Projects / Programmes
Etnološke in folkloristične raziskave kulturnih prostorov in praks (Slovene)
January 1, 2009
- December 31, 2014
| Code |
Science |
Field |
Subfield |
| 6.04.00 |
Humanities |
Ethnology |
|
| Code |
Science |
Field |
| 6.05 |
Humanities |
Other humanities |
Researchers (16)
Organisations (1)
Significance for science
Researchers explored and interpreted cultural phenomena, processes, practices, and social/cultural actors in the context of everyday life. The chronotopical character of everyday life has always been a framework for the study of human existence in the widest anthropological sense as well as for understanding the particular configurations onto which individual and collective identities are forged. Our research was based on the study of a range of existing cultural practices, which in turn inform the conceptualisation of identity, now understood as hybrid and fluid. The dynamism as well as the logics of change and process identified with the contemporary world were incorporated into interpretations of the past. Both made key contributions to understanding everyday life as it unfolds in the landscape, which as the site of both temporary and long-term mobility of people, goods and ideas is inherently multi-ethnic, multi-cultural. The program team’s goal and achievement was to contribute to drawing analytical and ethnographic conclusions – in terms of research questions, fieldsites, and methods – from the critical shifts in the disciplines’ commonsense understandings concerning identity. The program developed and expanded on the institute’s traditional research areas, historical and theoretical-methodological questions within the discipline, and research into material, social and symbolic phenomena and practices typical of the lives of individuals and communities in various (from microlocations to transnational settings) social and professional environments. By researching the history, theory and methodology of the discipline, we continued to shed light on the cognitive and research dynamics integrated into the development of humanities at the national as well as global level. Explorations of the spaces and practices related to the material aspects of social life contributed to understanding contemporary adaptations of traditional forms of food production and processing and their role as rural livelihood strategies. Research within literary folklore included the fundamental review editions by genres (a type index of Slovenian fairy tales – in print) as well as research into contemporary storytelling. Research on social practices maintained a focus on the processual, dynamic dimension of culture in order to explore the role of the cultural or social in everday life while sidestepping the analytical trap of cultural essentialisation. This focus enabled researchers to contribute to understanding the practices and processes through which social actors and groups define their relation to the social world (locally, nationally, transnationally). Research of everyday practices is important for other disciplines in Slovenia as well as in international and interdisciplinary comparative studies often carried out through the institute’s collaborations on international projects. The program involved further developing the use of the institute’s infrastructure, including the archive and audio-visual laboratory. Special care was devoted to the dissemination of research findings through publications in scientific journals and books both nationally and internationally; through intense cooperation with domestic and foreign experts and institutions; through organising and participating in domestic and foreign academic gatherings and associations; through participation in international editorial boards; and finally through participation in international projects. Collaborations with national universities on common research projects has intensified greatly in recent years. Research team members were/are also editors of two international academic journals – Traditiones and Studia Mythologica Slavica – and several book collections (Opera ethnologica slovenica, Ethnographica – Dissertationes, SMS – Supplementa, Slovenski pravljičarji, Glasovi).
Significance for the country
Researchers analyzed the human condition and social reality as it is experienced daily on the ground by social actors; in this way they contributed to discussions concerning fundamental questions about identity and belonging that have both particular and universal appeal. At the same time, research was aimed at contributing to awareness concerning cultural roots while maintaining openness towards and respect for other cultural patterns and lifestyles characteristic of multi-ethnic and multicultural environments such as the one in Slovenia. Researchers also paid attention to the ethnic, linguistic, generational and social bases of cultural diversity; they explored it through direct contact with people as social actors and members of varied groups and communities. In doing so, researchers came to grip with their informants’ everyday problems as they negotiated and fashioned creative responses to diverse circumstances and processes (political, economic, social, cultural, natural). Discovered strategies and practices that social actors enact daily represent crucial information for local, regional and national policymakers. We argue that research conducted on the material, social and symbolic dimensions of culture can have positive long-term effects, as findings can be useful in family firms, in the development of crafts, in the tourism sphere (local, regional, national), and in the uses of heritage and education or training. Findings from studies on material culture concerning traditional forms of food cultivation and manufacture as well as their contemporary adaptations can contribute to planning and harmonizing this particular practice in Slovenia. Findings from the field of literary folklore of particular regions and local communities could be adapted for touristic and cultural development purposes in terms of rural development planning as well as the organization of cultural events at the local and national levels. Some of them are already used for storytelling for educational, cultural, touristic and developmental purposes. The research of social practices, livelihood strategies shed light on the potential that such practices with roots in established traditions can have in the contemporary world guided by the principles of the preservation of natural and cultural heritage. Research on identity practices and policies across different levels of territoriality contributed to a more dynamic understanding of identity locally, regionally and nationally. Some findings are significant for academic and lay discussions on national identity, demonstrating that a sense of identity and an awareness of multiculturalism and difference are not mutually exclusive in the age of Europeanisation. With the development of our archive in the direction of greater openness, researchers can promote the institute’s research findings and valuable collections. Another activity that contributed to this task is the organization of the Days of Ethnographic Film as the central ethnographic film event in Slovenia promoting world and Slovenian culture. Another important task of the research program was the transfer of knowledge through education at a number of levels. This involved the academic promotion of research findings as well as their expert dissemination to the broader public through mass media, events and consulting. Research results are important for the global promotion of Slovenia. The cultural distinctiveness of everyday life past and present, cultural creativity and living heritage all represent important elements in the promotion of a country and its existence in an international context; at the same time, they are the central points of the EU-funded research program Horizon 2020.
Most important scientific results
Annual report
2009,
2010,
2011,
2012,
2013,
final report,
complete report on dLib.si
Most important socioeconomically and culturally relevant results
Annual report
2009,
2010,
2011,
2012,
2013,
final report,
complete report on dLib.si
