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It is thought that Laos is home to no fewer than forty-seven ethnic groups. The Lao, who live in the plains, form half the country's population thereby constituting the country's predominant culture. Laos is also home, however, to many mountain minorities that live with their own languages, beliefs and aesthetic traditions. A large number of these local cultures, some of them of great antiquity, have managed to survive in spite of the ups and downs of regional history. None the less, this exceptional cultural diversity, which forms part of the rich national heritage of Laos, is currently under threat--in particular the intangible heritage of the oral, gestural, musical and ritual kind that relies entirely on memory.
More than a quarter of century after the end of the war in 1975, the Lao leadership is still in search for a compelling nationalist narration. Its politics of culture and representation appear to be caught between the rhetoric of preservation and the desire for modernity. Meanwhile, originating from the periphery where ethnic minorities had hitherto been symbolically, politically and administratively confined, the participation of some of their members in the Indochina Wars (1945-75) exposed these individuals to socialization and politicization processes.This rigorously researched and cogently argued book is a fine-grained analysis of substantial ethnographic material, showing the politics of identity, the geographies of memory and the power of narratives of some members of ethnic minority groups who fought during the Vietnam War in the Lao People's Liberation Army and/or were educated within the revolutionary administration. No study has ever been conducted on the latter's views on the national(ist) project of the late socialist era. Their own perceptions of their membership of the nation have been overlooked.Post-War Laos is a set to be a landmark study, and an original contribution which refines established theories of nationalism, such as Anderson's 'imagined community', by addressing a common weakness: namely, their tendency to deny agency to individuals, who in fact interpret their relationship to, and place within, the nation in a variety of ways that may change according to time and circumstance.
Gender, ethnicity, and nation in China, as seen through an ethnography of the changing cultural production of the Miao, a minority population.
Despite their highly distinctive cultures and ethnic diversity, very little is known about Laos's hill tribes. In this book, Stephen Mansfield offers an in-depth examination of these little-studied tribes and their fragile micro-cultures.
The first systematic global study of how Christians respond to persecution, presenting new research by leading scholars of global Christianity.
Changes in the character of the political regime in Laos after 2000, a massive influx of foreign investment, and disruptions to rural life arising from improved communications and new forms of mobility within and across the borders have produced a major transformation. Alongside these changes, a group of young scholars carried out studies that document the rise of a new social, cultural and economic order. The contributions to this volume draw on original fieldwork materials and unpublished sources, and provide fresh analyses of topics ranging from the structures of power to the politics of territoriality and new forms of sociability in emerging urban spaces.
This all-encompassing volume offers a comprehensive look at the contemporary culture that defines this Southeast Asian country of Laos, examining everything from Buddhist traditions to Laotian cuisine. Coverage includes a brief history of the nation followed by in-depth narrative chapters on religion, literature, visual and performing arts, fashion, gender roles, everyday social customs, and more. Through illustrative descriptions of daily life, students will learn how traditional customs have shaped contemporary life in Laos today. Few other resources provide the same extensive coverage on current culture in Laos. Ideal for high school students as well as general readers, Culture and Customs of Laos is a must-have for all library shelves. The Southeast Asian country of Laos, one of the world's last-standing communist nations, has often been overshadowed in the international newsroom by its more dominant neighbors, Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia. Among one of the most bombed countries in the world, one that suffered much during and after the Vietnam War, Laos has been struggling economically and politically for decades. In spite of these challenges, a rich, beautiful culture has survived in Laos. This exhaustive volume offers a comprehensive look at the contemporary culture that defines this seemingly quiet country, from Buddhism to Laotian cuisine. Coverage includes a brief history of the nation followed by in-depth narrative chapters on religion, literature, visual and performing arts, fashion, gender roles, everyday social customs, and more. Through illustrative descriptions of daily life, students will learn how traditional customs have shaped contemporary life in Laos today. Few other resources provide the same extensive coverage on current culture in Laos. Ideal for high school students as well as general readers, Culture and Customs of Laos is a must-have for all library shelves.
This comparative study of the Naxi and Tai minority groups in Southwestern China examines the implementation and reception of state minority education policy. Hansen (Center for Development and the Environment, U. of Oslo) argues that state policy is not uniformly successful among all minorities, no
The mountainous borderlands of socialist China, Vietnam, and Laos are home to some seventy million minority people of diverse ethnicities. In Moving Mountains, anthropologists, geographers, and political economists with first-hand experience in the region explore these peoples' survival strategies, as they respond to unprecedented economic and political change. Although highland peoples are typically represented as marginalized and powerless, this volume argues that ethnic minorities draw on culture and ethnicity to indigenize modernity and maintain their livelihoods. This unprecedented glimpse into a poorly understood region shows that development initiatives must be built on strong knowledge of local cultures in order to have lasting effect.