[ANU Pacific.Institute] Seminar on traditional canoes in Taiwan and Micronesia Wed 6 April 1pm

[Christopher Ballard]

School of Culture, History and Language
ANU College of Asia and the Pacific
 Department of Pacific and Asian History
2016 Seminar Series

Wednesday, 6 April, 1pm - 2:30pm

Seminar Room C, Coombs Building (9), Fellows Road, ANU

The Transformation of Traditional Canoe Usage in Taiwan and Micronesia
Final oral presentation

Karen Kan-Lun Tu
School of Culture, History and Language
College of Asia and the Pacific, Australian National University

The relationship between what is often described as: "tradition" and "modernity" in Oceania involves a complex process of transformation and revitalization, much discussed and contested both in scholarship and in everyday life in Oceania. My thesis explores their relationship in the transformation of traditional canoe usage on Orchid Island in Taiwan, and Yap State in the Federated States of Micronesia. I focus on the different uses of traditional canoes from the late nineteenth century to the present, discussing how foreign colonial powers influenced canoe usage and how "traditional" canoes have acquired "modern" meanings over time. This comparative study is framed within a broad historical perspective on social and cultural change in the Pacific. I discuss the importance of cultural and historical factors that have influenced the functions of canoes and their central meaning for Islanders today. This includes a comparison of traditional and modern canoe designs, their use and purpose, and local reactions to transformations in canoe usage, based on oral traditions, historical records and ethnographic research. Debates about appropriate canoe usage frequently emerge during contemporary cultural revivals and demonstrations, and thus my thesis focuses on how Islanders appropriate the canoe as a symbol of cultural revitalization and identity. In this final presentation I will give an overview of my research findings and offer some vignettes from fieldwork which highlight the historical and cultural tensions concerning canoe use in both Orchid Island and Yap.

Seminar enquiries: andrew.delisle at anu.edu.au<mailto:andrew.delisle at anu.edu.au>

_______________________________________________
Pah.seminars mailing list
pah.seminars at mailman.anu.edu.au<mailto:Chl.pah at mailman.anu.edu.au>
http://mailman.anu.edu.au/mailman/listinfo/pah.seminars


===========================================
Dr Chris Ballard | Associate Dean (HDR), Masters of Asia-Pacific Studies (MAPS) Convenor, and Co-chair ANU Pacific Institute | ANU College of Asia & the Pacific | HC Coombs Building #9, Room 4218 (2nd floor) | The Australian National University | Canberra ACT 0200 | Australia  | CRICOS Provider #00120C | Tel:  +61 2 6125 0305 | chris.ballard at anu.edu.au<mailto:chris.ballard at anu.edu.au> | https://researchers.anu.edu.au/researchers/ballard-chl


-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://mailman.anu.edu.au/pipermail/pacific.institute/attachments/20160401/387713a9/attachment.html>