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Journal of Ethnology 4/2010 focuses on the dance in the gender and political context. Daniela Stavělová defines the dance antropological study in connection with some selected social aspects (Some Issues of Ethnochoreological Study: Dance, Gender, and Politics). Anca Giurchescu devotes herself to the Rumanian Pentecost ritual called căluş, its contemporary form and role it played during the period of the Communist regime (Survival of a Ritual in Contemporary Social Contexts: Căluş - between Ritual and National Symbol). Kateřina Černíčková portrays the ethnographic area of Horňácko and its sedlácká dance (The Sedlácká-Dance from the Ethnographic Area of Horňácko in Political Rhythm. A Musical and Dance Tradition in Light of Social and Political Activities from the late-19th Century until 1945). In her contribution, Tereza Nováková follows the paralell of gender relations in the society and dance (Argentine Tango: a Gender Image of the Society), Kristýna Slezáková analyses on an example of capoeiro motion activity its transformations in relation to changing political regimes in Brazil (Capoeira as a Politically Functioning Phenomenon).
Transferring Tradition column presents the theme of women´s dance expressions at the men´s dance verbuňk (by Jarmila Vrtalová) and the contribution on Baroque Christmas plays (by Ludmila Sochorová). Materials column brings the study devoted to the digital conversion of photo-documents and the ethic issues on the example of photo archive collection at the National Institute of Folk Culture in Strážnice (by Michal Škopík). Social Chronicle remembers the anniversaries of ethnologist Marta Šrámková (born 1935), cultural anthropologist Zdeněk Salzmann (born 1925) and ethnologist Milan Leščák (born 1940), and publishes two obituaries: for singer and musician Jiří Kapic (1931-2010) and ethnologist Jaroslav Štika (1931-2010). Other regular columns include the information on conferences, exhibitions, festivals, reviews of new books, and actual professional activities.
The contribution presents a theoretical definition of the dance anthropological study aimed at the issue of gender and social and political aspects. The above is based on post-structuralist tendencies and especially on possible semiotic analysis. The comprehension of dance expression as a symbol (which can be understood only if being a part of so-called performance) and the reference to its multi-dimensionality have become a significant point of the study. Dance as a visual expression significantly contributes to the study of gender relations, especially because of the gender performativity whose essence is created by repeated and ritualized acts and gender body stylizations. There is pointed out the fact that dance disposes of unique power thanks to which it can support and change the existing social and political structure simultaneously. In this sense, there is developed the possibility to use the dance as a symbol of national identity whereby the deliberate manipulation with this symbol is an essential element. The manipulation then becomes an efficient weapon in reaching the political goals. Important remains the fact that the dance as a clearly visible (and audible) hallmark improved by the entertainment experience is - in this case - a suitable mean of expression, which can be understandable for the widest social groups within the given culture.
Ritual căluş is a still living ritual practice at Pentecost (Whitsuntide) in the southern regions of Romania. Considered at a synchronic level, it reveals a great variety of structures and meanings that represent different stages of transformation. This article is based primarily on the long-time fieldwork experience and information resulting from the dialogues with tradition bearers, the direct observation and the analysis and interpretation of visual and written documents. The intention is to present the ritual căluş in its contemporary existence and try to disclose the reasons of its survival. Subsequently the intention is to comment the role given to căluş as a national symbol and the manipulation therewith for legitimating the political power under the Communist dictatorship. Finally, the future existence of the ritual căluş will be questioned in the light of the UNESCO program for the safeguarding of the cultural heritage. In an introductory section, however, căluş will be situated in a large European cultural context and described in more general terms in order to illuminate the complex structure of the ritual and the intricate relationship established among and between the component elements.
The study describes concrete social and political activities that influenced the conditions for existence and the processes of passing down the musical and dance folklore, namely the dance called sedlácká (farmer’s dance) from the Moravian region of Horňácko. The historical probe carried out within the chosen regional and time limits, focuses on the documentation of social and political circumstances under which the expressions of traditional folk culture were applied. During the monitored period of time, the issues concerning the process of the Czech national movement and political emancipation as well as the issues related to the creation and confirmation of the feeling of Czech and Slovak mutuality come to the fore. Attention is paid to different political meetings, manifestations, festivals; the mass gymnastics displays whose main aim was to demonstrate the support and strength of the national movement could not be omitted. It was essential, however, to specify the role a concrete musical and dance expression closely connected with the local tradition played and to find out how its performance at social and political events was reflected in its following viability.
The contribution features the parallel between the development in gender relations and in dance. The objective is to verify the hypothesis that the reflections of social changes in cultural phenomena become evident - in case of Argentine tango - through the transformation of traditional roles, interfering with the hitherto firm parallel: body - sex - gender - gender’s dance role - gender’s performance. In the preamble, the author introduces the phenomenon of Argentine tango and the social and anthropological background of her research, which allows analyzing the human body and its motion as a text in context. In the first part of the essay, she introduces the reader to the history, development, structure, and etiquette of Argentine tango. Essential for the essay is its closing part, an analysis of the tango gender structure and its transformations in time, analyzing the structure, performance, interference, and deconstruction of gender stereotypes and archetypes in tango. The author points out an apparent hierarchy of those concepts and their postmodern characteristics.
Capoeira is a Brazilian cultural phenomenon. It is a motion activity at the boundary of fight, dance and play accompanied by specific music and songs, whose outstanding feature is a unique leading musical instrument. Today, capoeira serves as a legacy of slavery because it originates in mingling of the dragged Africans´ cultures with the new environment suppressing every human liberty. The essay deals with the development of capoeira within the political relations of the country. It follows how capoeira reflects the changes of political regimes in Brazil, pointing out that the phenomenon - because of its character - entered into the political events directly, having become a bearer of certain ideas. The author comes to a conclusion that the political significance of the observed phenomenon has changed lately and capoeira is becoming rather an instrument of social mechanisms. The issue if the phenomenon is influencing the political events even today or if it can be a part of political programs remains opened, leaving room for next research.
Journal of Ethnology 3/2010 pays attention to the theme A human and a play. The contribution by Petr Janeček (Game Over? Actual Themes of Czech Ethnological Research of a Children's Game) presents the general introduction to problems and the overview of basic essays and issues relating to this phenomenon. Dana Bittnerová focuses on the comparison between the children's games collection by collector Štěpán Bačkova from the mid-19th century, the first published children's games collection in the Czech Lands, and the complex of games played by Prague children between 1992 and 2004 (Trends in Development of Children's Dramatic Games). Jana Poláková's essay is dedicated to minority Roma milieu (Games and Toys of Roma Children), psychologists Miroslav Klusák and Miloš Kučera deal with classicifation as a theoretical issue (Some Remarks on Children's Games). Jana Moravcová adumbrates the phenomenon of RPG (role-playing games) and LARP (live-action role-playing games) among young people of today, using an example of one of such games (The Battle of Five Armies. So-called dřevárny and relative free-time activities of present-day young people in the Czech Republic).
Stopping with Photos with the title The World of Disappearing Games - games with textile fibres presents so-called games with strings (Hana Dvořáková). Transferring Traditions column publishes the contributions Transformations in Games of Strážnice Children in the Past 25 Years (Petr Horehleď) and An Attempt to Return the Regional Folklore to School Praxis (Alena Schauerová). Social Chronicle remembers the anniversary of ethnologist Barbora Čumpelíková (born 1930) and publishes the obituaries for musician and musicologist Vladimír Baier (1932-2010) and singer and choreographer Věra Rozsypalová-Bláhová (1941-2010). Other regular columns include the information on conferences, exhibitions and actual professional activities.
Ethnology plays an essential role in the research of games and play in academical discourse. Ethnology was one of the first scientific fields which began to deal with ludic activities - first, of course, mainly with collection and classification of children's formalized games. Ethnology can contribute to the academical study of games and play in a significant way even today when also other humanities and social sciences, such as psychology and pedagogy, deal with the theme. Ethnological research of games should be aimed especially at collection, description, classification and interpretation of the local cultural variants of gaming behavior. Among the most actual themes of Czech ethnological research of games are compilation of a catalogue and synthetic interpretation of historical children's games, collection, classification and analysis of contemporary children's games and - last, but not least - the collection, classification and analysis of contemporary syncretical games including the research of their relation to the entertainment and gaming industry and the popular and mass culture.
The essay dedicated to children's dramatic games queries the similarity between the content of dramatic intrigue and its presentation in the past and in the present. Considering the trends in repertoire development, the essay draws upon Štěpán Bačkora's collections to describe the status in the mid-19th century; to analyze the contemporary children's games the essay takes advantage of the research among pupils in the elementary schools in Prague. Based on comparison of both game levels as regards content (1. thematic field within which the player accepts his/her new gaming identity; 2. structural motifs taking share in the construction of a dramatic intrigue story), the essay comes to several findings: as to the thematic point of view, the games referring to agricultural culture and the Christian faith have disappeared; the games concerning the choice of partner are passing through transformation; on the contrary, the theme of social bullying has been strengthened. The aforementioned trends are determined by economic development, transformation of social relations within local societies, and, of course, by mass media. As to the structural motifs, they tend to reductions both in their quantity used for construction of a concrete dramatic intrigue, and in their form. In-line-putting of structural motifs as well as their form influence the contemporary dramatic games. Games with simple and anticipatable construction as well as easy-to-remember verbal and motion parts manageable for a great number of players “playing not well together” have gone through. Such trends are determined by limitation of opportunities suitable to realize a game, by instability of players' groups, their age homogeneity and related absence of relevant “experts”, especially teenagers.
The contribution deals with the research of children's folklore among Romani people. The author proceeds from her own experience, terrain research, written retrospective sources and literature. She was collecting the source materials for the study between 2005 and 2010, in different types of residential areas. Each of them presents specific features in gaming expressions, in knowledge and variability of games as well as in relationship to toys. Children in Roma settlements use toys collectively. Their games have simple rules, they do not last very long and depend on the actual situation, weather, and the possibility to use the surrounding space and the material offered. The nature in their closest neighborhood provides them with wide variability and possibilities. In Roma settlements, one can note modern varieties of traditional children's games even today. Children coming from non-segregated environment of a small town are better interrelated with their toys; they understand “playing” in the sense coming near to its usual interpretation. Children from urban agglomeration are lacking mostly in the space itself. Their nearer contact with every-day reality and majority inhabitants in the neighborhood are reflected in diversity of games (cards, čára), used toys (toys for sandpit) and e.g. even in using the children's counting-our rhymes implied from Czech cultural environment.
The classification, the essay deals with, is based on the collection of games played by present-day school-age children in the 1st through 9th class (totally 1600 cases in 81 classes from the 1st to 9th year). The procedures inspired by Mr. and Mrs. Opie from Oxford were used to create the collections (the collection was created with the assistance of students working in the field). First, it was the revised system of so-called basic motifs (1. chasing games, 2. catching games, 3. seeking games, 4. hunting games, 5. racing games, 6. dueling games, 7. exerting games, 7*. schooling games, 8. daring games, 8* shocking games, 9. guessing games, 10. acting games, 11. pretending games, 12. shooting games, 13. gender games); the system was used for classification “from bellow” - the idea of so-called basic games (1. to touch, 2. in touching the body, 3. object-throwing - with touching the body, 4. throwing the object - on the track, 5. run- with touching the body, 6. run- on the track, 7. motion structure - joggling and rhythmic exercise 8. object structure, 9. guessing, 10. fictive identities and stories). In both types of classification the authors stumbled on the possibility to consider both mutually combining levels in the future - the level of body subjects activity and the level of roles in a game. The first level includes the poetics of drives (oral, anal, scopic etc. in a variety of their transformations), while the other one covers cultural and moral relations (“Oedipus” relations or those deduced from the Oedipus ones) handling with the drives, such as competition, “bullying”, “democratic” distributions.
The contribution deals with the theme of live-action role-playing games in the Czech Republic at present. The general part includes explanation of used terms LARP and dřevárna, brief history of these games in the world and in the Czech Republic, description of particular types of dřevárna including a brief overview of the most favorite actions of this type; it mentions the players community, its structure and relation to other similar free-time activities. The second part of the contribution is dedicated to one of the biggest fantasy dřevárna-type games in the Czech Republic - The Battle of Five Armies. The author depicts origin of this action in 2000 and its development until today, game rules to make weapons and costumes, rules for system of duels, game objects used, preparations for the game on the part of the players and arrangers and the course of the game itself taking account of the year 2010. The text is completed with the game world map and some photos of costumed players.
Journal of Ethnology 2/2010 pays attention mainly to returns and rehabilitation of traditional construction materials and building techniques in the life-style of today. Václav Michalička contemplates about the meaning of revitalization, its final appearances, and their functions (Some aspects of revitalization in traditional techniques in folk architecture). In these connections, Alena Dunajová and Ivana Žabičková reveal the issue of clay (Revitalization of clay houses at the turn of the millennium), Marie Baďuříková deals with wood as basic construction material, especially in country regions (Timbered buildings: tradition and today). Martin Šimša submits the contribution aimed at statistics and writing about use of fireplaces, wood stoves and masonry stoves in the contemporary system of heating (Local heating – new returns of old themes).
Stopping with Photos submits the photos by K. O. Hrubý (1916–1998) documenting the production of unburnt clay bricks in South East Moravia. Transferring Traditions column publishes the contributions Roots of folklorism and its present importance (Josef Jančář) and Transformations of folk songs (Marta Toncrová). The interview is held with ethnologist Jan Krist (*1950). Social Chronicle mentions other two anniversaries: choreographer Jiřina Mlíkovská (*1925) and musicologist Bruno Nettl (*1930). The obituary note remembers the personality of writer Helena Lisická (1930–2009). Other regular columns include the information on conferences, exhibitions and publisher’s and other professional activities.
The traditional building techniques include plenty of information and affirmations that can be purposefully applied in the process of creating and improving the cultural memory of the society. Revitalization of traditional techniques in folk architecture means in this case the “revival of historical manufacture procedures”. In practice, they are done for different reasons and needs. However, the struggle to protect the knowledge from being fully forgotten is the primary one. Nevertheless, only the finding of renewed social legitimacy for traditional techniques and the active social use mean the real revitalization. The functionality of the revived techniques is the necessary condition for legitimate revitalization. It is especially the museum memory institutions and the institutions of monument preservation that can try to revitalize the historical phenomena successfully. Those institutions have namely the opportunity to research the original and authentic element, to read necessary information in them, to analyze the information scientifically and to verify and apply them. Especially the open-air museums with their nature comply with the conditions of experimental centers that offer the unique chance to revitalize the traditional techniques in folk architecture in the most real and historically identical appearance.
The authors deal with the phenomenon of returning clay as material used for construction of new houses and repairs of traditional clay buildings. The first chapter includes the historic excursus that is followed by characterization of using the clay-building construction techniques within the country environment in Central and South Moravia. In these regions, clay prevailed in construction of farmsteads since the 18th century whereby it developed especially in the 19th century. Recently, clay has been used again for reconstructions of landmarks as documented by concrete cases. The second part of the essay sums up the situation abroad where especially France belongs to the top European countries in the field of the unburnt-clay buildings research. Close to Lyon is situated an experimental settlement built from unburnt clay, and special university programs (CRATerre Centre, GAIA and TERRA 2000 projects) deal with the research of clay-building construction techniques. Other European countries paying high attention to clay in building industry are Germany with university research and a central organization (Dachverband Lehm) and Austria where they do essential experiments in the field of ecological architecture. Furthermore, the essay analyses the most often defects in existing clay buildings (mainly humidity and its causes), the reconstructions of those buildings and the ways of using the clay material in new constructions.
Timber is the primary and basic building material used for construction of dwellings in the Czech Republic. It was used in the form of round timber, balks, boards, and roofing. Timber buildings have been maintained mainly as a part of country settlement. Nowadays, farmsteads as well as single timber houses are used mostly for recreation. The timber buildings were influenced by their long-term development and regional customs. The site of the houses as well as their ground plan always depended on financial possibilities of the owners and on changing rules. In the present, the residential houses cannot be built in the same way. When comparing individual structures, used materials and their processing, we can gain the knowledge of principal differences between the timbered buildings from the past and the contemporary ones. We must proceed to the monuments, their repairs, or reconstructions in a different way. Those buildings should be repaired in the way of a scientific reconstruction with respect to their use. Architectural expression, mass, detail and material processing of new timbered houses should correspond to the neighbouring housing and environment.
Modern techniques have brought a lot of new opportunities for heating the households in the last two decades. Some of them, for example fireplaces, are fully new and have no tradition in our regions. In the contrary, the masonry stove continues the well-tried but forgotten technical solution. Regarding the recent trends emphasizing the energy saving and the utilization of renewable resources, the heaters burning biomass, such as wood, sawdust pellets, or sawdust briquettes enjoy great popularity. As resulting from the ENERGO 2004 statistic analysis, use of the above fuels is more or less a matter of peripheral importance as compared with other kinds of energy. In the town, it moves about 2,5% while it exceeds 10 % in the country. The individual types of heaters used in the households show certain conservatism. In Moravia, the most wood is burned in central-heating boilers or kitchen stoves while in Bohemia, fireplaces and local heaters occur in larger extent. This corresponds to the data drawn in towns where the proportion of fireplaces as compared to other types of heaters, exceed 25% in some regions. The next development will show whether it means the long-term trend or just the passing tendency.
Journal of Ethnology 1/2010 is aimed at the issue of Czech minorities living abroad; it submits also some knowledge from the researches among the Slovaks in Hungary. Michal Pavlásek (Czech minority in the South Banat village of Veliko Srediště. Its beginnings and ethic processes) dealt with forming of Czech settlement in the region of present Serbian Banat. Stanislav Brouček (History and memories of the own past /with respect to testimonies of Czech immigrants to the Republic of South-Africa/) investigated the role of group and individual memory at Czech Diaspora. Petr Janeček (Literary folklore of Texas Czechs. On narrative repertoire of Czech emigration groups in the first half of the 20th century) paid attention to oral tradition at Czech minority in Texas. Markéta Janková and Tomáš Čech (Czechs abroad - trans-generational transfer of Czech folk culture among the members of fellow-countrymen associations) dealt with the activities of fellow-countrymen associations, while Eva Krekovičová (There are anthems and anthems. Anthems in the processes of transformation at the turn of the Millennium) investigated the self-identification of Slovak minority in Hungary.
Stopping with Photos submits the photos of events in the families of Czech immigrants to the USA, the Transferring Trandition column publishes the contribution by Magdalena Rychlíková about Ludvík Feigl (1861-1942), a significant Czech entrepreneur, collector and organizer of cultural life, who was working in Lvov in Eastern Halič for fifty years, and the commemoration of the work of writer Marie Damborská (1895-1990) written by literary scholar František Všetička. Social Chronicle remembers the anniversaries of Slovakian ethnologist Daniel Luther (born 1950) and Hungarian ethnologist of Slovakian origin Anna Divičanová (born 1940). It publishes also the obituary notes of Hungarian ethnologist Soňa Kovačevičová (1921-2009) and Czech ethno-musicologist Ivo Stolařík (1923-2010). Other regular columns pay attention to conferences, exhibitions, festivals reviews of new books and reports from the branch.
Veliko Srediště is a settlement situated in Serbian Banat, in Voivodina, near the town of Vršac. This contribution tries to find an answer to the issues relating to ethnogenesis of the Czech speaking inhabitants, who have been neglected by ethnologists, anthropologists, or historians researching the Czech speaking communities abroad. The contribution is based on the new hitherto not used resources provided by the archive of the Synodic Council in Prague as well as by the Regional History Archive in the village of Bela Crkva. The author discovered other important resources in the location concerned where he did large field research work. Taking into consideration those resources, one can refute the theses on ethnogenesis of Czechs in Veliko Srediště. Such theses assert Protestants from Svatá Helena, a Czech village in Rumania founded after 1820, to have been the first Czech colonists. In his contribution, the author interprets transmigration of the Czech speaking inhabitants as the process of migration consisting of three compact colonization waves reaching their peak with the large “Moravian” colonization wave in the 1850s. He records the historical development of Protestants since the end of the World War I, trying to explain the assimilation of Czech Roman Catholics within a larger group of German Roman Catholics.
Memory can be compared to the function of a balance wheel creating continuity in different areas of the society. History and memory are two different categories. History can enter memory; on the contrary, memory entry into history is an inadmissible matter for some historians; for other experts, the memories are adequate history resources. Subjective level of manipulation is what continues to be memory base. On the contrary, history is – to the maximum extent possible – an objectified view of the past. Memory records the past through individual experiences whereby several levels can be seen in the process of remembering. Especially: memory includes both a stage of a storage device and a stage of subjective interpretation depending on plenty of individualized factors including the current mood of the narrator. Both levels (storage device and interpretation), however, are subject to the author’s license whereby the purpose of this communication is dominating. On the other side, the purpose cannot be related only to an individual’s profit. The contribution summarizes some knowledge of the author gained at the collection of life stories among the members of Czech ethnic groups abroad with concrete examples from the Republic of South-Africa.
Literary folklore, traditional, orally-transmitted level of expressive culture, is generally considered to be a important part of culture of all ethnic groups, including European immigration to the U.S.A. Presented paper examines folkloric level of everyday culture of Texas Czechs in the first half of the 20th century. Since immigration of first Czech families to Texas to the end of the Second World War, Texas Czechs represented vital ethnic oral culture with many specific folkloric characteristics. Although majority of oral narratives of Texas Czechs in this period were directly transferred from the Old Country, some of them were influenced by immigrant and pioneer experience, different social and cultural conditions in Texas, and contacts with other Texan ethnic communities. Only the most vital European traditions, which could be adapted to the new lifestyle, survived acculturation to specific American geographical, social and cultural setting. Presented first part of the paper, using mainly yet unpublished 1942 thesis “Czech Folklore in Texas” by Olga Pazdral from Central Texas, tries to point out some general outlines of Texas Czech literary folklore of this period, focusing mainly on folk legends. Planned second and third part will outline other traditional narratives (folktales, short folklore genres like jokes and proverbs, children folklore and personal experience narratives). Folklore of Texas Czechs of the period can be characterized not only by its continuity with Old World traditions, but also by its incorporation of typically American folklore narratives, stemming from unique immigration experience.
The essay deals with features characteristic for the emigration of Czech expatriates abroad, in several migration waves. It records the role of fellow-countrymen associations, the trans-generational transfer of Czech traditions, and the safeguarding of Czech culture among the members of fellow countrymen associations and their descendants round the world. The authors submit descriptive results from a questionnaire research running in the years 2007 and 2008 (stress was put especially on the forms of trans-generational transfer and the influence of original cultured on the respondents' self-conception). The above research confirmed high influence of original cultural roots on the self-conception of Czech expatriates and their descendants, who took part in the research. Simultaneously, it drew attention to natural assimilation resulting in gradual abandonment of practicing the Czech traditional customs and the elements of Czech folk culture. Along with the “decline” of daily practicing, the trans-generational transfer in families, substituted by fellow-countrymen associations, gradually loses its influence on handing-over of the traditional components. The fellow-countrymen associations provide “education” and information for those interested (it is more a form of interest group); on the other hand, the expatriates could find here an alternative place to practice the Czech traditions, as mentioned above. Because ethnic identity is an important part of personal identity of an individual, the clubs - next to the family - are important not only for the entire communities but also for the individuals. Support provided by the Czech government to the clubs is therefore a significant contribution to their work.
In her essay, the author deals with different levels of self-identification at members of Slovak language islands in Hungary, based on an example of more ethnically symptomatic anthems. On the one hand, it is the anthem of the Slovaks in Hungary, which became an official anthem of this minority in 1999. The Slovaks in Hungary accepted the melody of a carol generally spread in Slovakia to be their anthem. The text of this song comes from 1991 and it was written by V. Gruska, a Slovak involved in folklorism in Slovakia. It is the song Daj Boh šťastia tejto zemi publicized in the media also in Slovakia, but mainly as a Christmas carol. Based on the aforementioned example the author points out the different historical memory of the Slovaks in Hungary and of the Hungarians in Slovakia on one side, and that of the Slovaks living in Slovakia on the other side. While the Hungarians in Slovakia take the official Hungarian anthem for their own, the Slovaks in Hungary felt a need to have different anthem song, than the state anthem of the Slovak Republic. Within this environment, regional (“Pilíšská anthem”) and local anthems (“Čabianska anthem” from 1932) exist and return. The second part of the essay mentions a parody of the official Slovakia state anthem (Anthem of Unjustly Baldheaded) spread by the Internet as an anthem of an officially registered interest association.
