Patrimony, Memory and Identity in West Africa,
International Conference, IFRA-Nigeria, Ibadan, July 3-5, 2012
Location: Nigeria
Call for Papers Date: 2012-07-03
_______
Patrimony, Memory and Identity in West Africa, International
Conference, IFRA-Nigeria, July 3-5, 2012
IFRA is launching a new multi-annual research programme on Patrimony,
Memory and Identity in West Africa with a particular -but not exclusive-
focus on Nigeria. An international conference will take place at the
University of Ibadan from July 3-5, 2012. This project is intended to link
up Nigerian and West African Scholars to the many international research
teams that are currently working on the concepts of patrimonialisation and
identity.
presentation
For some times, the concept of patrimony, interpreted in a variety of
subfields within the Social Sciences and the Humanities, has occupied a
significant place in research programs on Africa. The making of
patrimonies and the way they interact with the present – the process of
patrimonialisation – studied in a time-sensitive perspective, may provide
alternative understanding of contemporary Africa. Studies on Africa have
focused on violence, armed conflicts, rebellions, religious and ethnic
extremisms, corruption etc. Such analyses have not taken into
consideration the complex and multidimensional nature of such events From
the local to transnational spaces including the physical ,inner and mental
territories, processes of patrimonialisation, on the other hand, are
windows in the making of a collective memory, imaginary, identities, and
trajectories of nation- building. Several 'case studies' abound that call
for deeper analysis. This project intends to promote a collective,
international effort to explore some of the many processes of
patrimonialisation that occur in West Africa, with Nigeria as a center-
point of the investigation. The programme aims at studying processes of
patrimonialisation that would provide alternative understandings of the
way national, sub-national and transnational identities are being built in
contemporary Nigeria and West Africa.
axes structuring this programme:
1. Processes of patrimonialisation in Africa: review of achievements and
theoretical implications for the study of contemporary Africa. This axis
aims at reviewing current trends in research on processes of
patrimonialisation in Africa. Scholars will explore the concept of
patrimony from global and comparative perspectives. They will look at
theoretical implications of the study of patrimonies and processes of
patrimonialisation in the understanding of contemporary Africa, especially
with regards to the understanding of the dynamics of identity. They will
identify and explore an array of specific processes of patrimonialisation
of particular interest to understand contemporary Nigerian society.
2. Contested patrimonies and memories: History, Culture and Politics in
post-colonial West Africa Processes of Patrimonialisation are anchored in
history but deeply informed by present experiences. In fact, patrimonies
are defined in such ways as to serve the interest of those who lay claims
to them. As such, various stakeholders with conflicting interests struggle
over the meaning of the same categories of patrimony. Such is the case
with the question of repatriation of artifacts looted in the capital of
coastal African States by European colonial expeditionary forces in the
last decade of the 19th century and kept today in various Western public
and private collections. Scholars are invited to revisit, in a comparative
way, the historical trajectories of these collections, their shifting
meanings, and interpretations and to question the legal and political
context of these contestations. Researchers are also encouraged to
document other instances of contested patrimonies such as festivals,
masquerades, social practices, artworks, trade guilds, sacred spaces or
objects, traditions, archaeological sites, and to look at the role of
museums and cultural authorities resolving or reinforcing contestations,
etc…
3. Environment as patrimony: from local practice to global concern. The
patrimonialisation of the tropical environment has been the subject of
several recent studies looking mainly at francophone Africa, but little
has been written about similar processes in Nigeria. In a country
characterized by its dense, largely built up urban environment consisting
of colossal infrastructural and developmental projects, can the natural
environment still be considered a form of patrimony by government and
communities? How do local practices of management of the environment
cooperate with or struggle against governmental and international
'conservational' policies in an era of concern regarding global warming or
threatened biodiversity? Has natural patrimony been sacrificed in the name
of industrial development? Has environmental thematic entered the field of
Nigerian politics? Scholars are also invited to produce original papers
looking at the issues of oil spillage and mismanagement of natural
patrimony, conservation of sacred natural spaces and spiritual evolution
in the perception of the natural environment related to the spread of
Islam and Christianity, tourism policies, change and continuities in the
management of national parks and reserves from the colonial period, etc.
4. Patrimony and Identity in Nigeria.
As we enter in the second decade of the twenty-first century, more than
fifty years after the independence of Nigeria, are there forms of
patrimony that emerged as crucial parts of the Nigerian identity? Here, we
invite scholars to reflect on patrimonialisation as a tool to create
national identities in a postcolonial context. For instance, we would
welcome essays dealing with the evolution and spread of foodways and
cuisines in the sub-region, in a historical perspective, and their role in
forging or contesting national identities. Recent studies suggest that
patrimonies can be thought of as by-products of consumption. Indeed,
luxury or culturally valued items can become part of national patrimony
and identity-building processes. We welcome scholarly, interdisciplinary
reflections on the emergence of categories of material culture, brands,
local or imported items that have become deeply intertwined with the
Nigerian identity. Scholars are also invited to reflect on the video and
the music industries as patrimony and their role in creating popular
cultures and youth sub-cultures, propagating and exporting values and
imaginaries that have contributed to the making of the modern Nigerian
person. Other relevant studies on patrimonies and identity in Nigeria will
be welcome.
Besides the above questions, we welcome papers on patrimony and policy
making, on the question of the patrimonial status of land and its reform,
as well as innovative papers on the emergence of new forms of
identity-related forms of patrimonies in West Africa and Nigeria in
particular.
The deadline for submitting paper proposals is October 30, 2011.
Proposals should include:
1 A 600-word abstract and title,
2 The author's name (with Last name underlined),
3 Postal Address,
4 Telephone number,
5 Email address,
6 Institutional affiliation.
Please submit all abstracts to:
Gérard Chouin: patrimony2012@ifra-nigeria.org with copy to Mr. Martin
Mbella: admin@ifra-nigeria.org
Updates about the conference will be regularly posted on our website and
facebook page:
www.ifra-nigeria.org
IFRA-Nigeria page on facebook
Gerard Chouin
IFRA-Nigeria
Institute of African Studies
University of Ibadan
Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria
+2347060581845
Email: patrimony2012@ifra-nigeria.org
Visit the website at http://www.ifra-nigeria.org
International Conference, IFRA-Nigeria, Ibadan, July 3-5, 2012
Location: Nigeria
Call for Papers Date: 2012-07-03
_______
Patrimony, Memory and Identity in West Africa, International
Conference, IFRA-Nigeria, July 3-5, 2012
IFRA is launching a new multi-annual research programme on Patrimony,
Memory and Identity in West Africa with a particular -but not exclusive-
focus on Nigeria. An international conference will take place at the
University of Ibadan from July 3-5, 2012. This project is intended to link
up Nigerian and West African Scholars to the many international research
teams that are currently working on the concepts of patrimonialisation and
identity.
presentation
For some times, the concept of patrimony, interpreted in a variety of
subfields within the Social Sciences and the Humanities, has occupied a
significant place in research programs on Africa. The making of
patrimonies and the way they interact with the present – the process of
patrimonialisation – studied in a time-sensitive perspective, may provide
alternative understanding of contemporary Africa. Studies on Africa have
focused on violence, armed conflicts, rebellions, religious and ethnic
extremisms, corruption etc. Such analyses have not taken into
consideration the complex and multidimensional nature of such events From
the local to transnational spaces including the physical ,inner and mental
territories, processes of patrimonialisation, on the other hand, are
windows in the making of a collective memory, imaginary, identities, and
trajectories of nation- building. Several 'case studies' abound that call
for deeper analysis. This project intends to promote a collective,
international effort to explore some of the many processes of
patrimonialisation that occur in West Africa, with Nigeria as a center-
point of the investigation. The programme aims at studying processes of
patrimonialisation that would provide alternative understandings of the
way national, sub-national and transnational identities are being built in
contemporary Nigeria and West Africa.
axes structuring this programme:
1. Processes of patrimonialisation in Africa: review of achievements and
theoretical implications for the study of contemporary Africa. This axis
aims at reviewing current trends in research on processes of
patrimonialisation in Africa. Scholars will explore the concept of
patrimony from global and comparative perspectives. They will look at
theoretical implications of the study of patrimonies and processes of
patrimonialisation in the understanding of contemporary Africa, especially
with regards to the understanding of the dynamics of identity. They will
identify and explore an array of specific processes of patrimonialisation
of particular interest to understand contemporary Nigerian society.
2. Contested patrimonies and memories: History, Culture and Politics in
post-colonial West Africa Processes of Patrimonialisation are anchored in
history but deeply informed by present experiences. In fact, patrimonies
are defined in such ways as to serve the interest of those who lay claims
to them. As such, various stakeholders with conflicting interests struggle
over the meaning of the same categories of patrimony. Such is the case
with the question of repatriation of artifacts looted in the capital of
coastal African States by European colonial expeditionary forces in the
last decade of the 19th century and kept today in various Western public
and private collections. Scholars are invited to revisit, in a comparative
way, the historical trajectories of these collections, their shifting
meanings, and interpretations and to question the legal and political
context of these contestations. Researchers are also encouraged to
document other instances of contested patrimonies such as festivals,
masquerades, social practices, artworks, trade guilds, sacred spaces or
objects, traditions, archaeological sites, and to look at the role of
museums and cultural authorities resolving or reinforcing contestations,
etc…
3. Environment as patrimony: from local practice to global concern. The
patrimonialisation of the tropical environment has been the subject of
several recent studies looking mainly at francophone Africa, but little
has been written about similar processes in Nigeria. In a country
characterized by its dense, largely built up urban environment consisting
of colossal infrastructural and developmental projects, can the natural
environment still be considered a form of patrimony by government and
communities? How do local practices of management of the environment
cooperate with or struggle against governmental and international
'conservational' policies in an era of concern regarding global warming or
threatened biodiversity? Has natural patrimony been sacrificed in the name
of industrial development? Has environmental thematic entered the field of
Nigerian politics? Scholars are also invited to produce original papers
looking at the issues of oil spillage and mismanagement of natural
patrimony, conservation of sacred natural spaces and spiritual evolution
in the perception of the natural environment related to the spread of
Islam and Christianity, tourism policies, change and continuities in the
management of national parks and reserves from the colonial period, etc.
4. Patrimony and Identity in Nigeria.
As we enter in the second decade of the twenty-first century, more than
fifty years after the independence of Nigeria, are there forms of
patrimony that emerged as crucial parts of the Nigerian identity? Here, we
invite scholars to reflect on patrimonialisation as a tool to create
national identities in a postcolonial context. For instance, we would
welcome essays dealing with the evolution and spread of foodways and
cuisines in the sub-region, in a historical perspective, and their role in
forging or contesting national identities. Recent studies suggest that
patrimonies can be thought of as by-products of consumption. Indeed,
luxury or culturally valued items can become part of national patrimony
and identity-building processes. We welcome scholarly, interdisciplinary
reflections on the emergence of categories of material culture, brands,
local or imported items that have become deeply intertwined with the
Nigerian identity. Scholars are also invited to reflect on the video and
the music industries as patrimony and their role in creating popular
cultures and youth sub-cultures, propagating and exporting values and
imaginaries that have contributed to the making of the modern Nigerian
person. Other relevant studies on patrimonies and identity in Nigeria will
be welcome.
Besides the above questions, we welcome papers on patrimony and policy
making, on the question of the patrimonial status of land and its reform,
as well as innovative papers on the emergence of new forms of
identity-related forms of patrimonies in West Africa and Nigeria in
particular.
The deadline for submitting paper proposals is October 30, 2011.
Proposals should include:
1 A 600-word abstract and title,
2 The author's name (with Last name underlined),
3 Postal Address,
4 Telephone number,
5 Email address,
6 Institutional affiliation.
Please submit all abstracts to:
Gérard Chouin: patrimony2012@ifra-nigeria.org with copy to Mr. Martin
Mbella: admin@ifra-nigeria.org
Updates about the conference will be regularly posted on our website and
facebook page:
www.ifra-nigeria.org
IFRA-Nigeria page on facebook
Gerard Chouin
IFRA-Nigeria
Institute of African Studies
University of Ibadan
Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria
+2347060581845
Email: patrimony2012@ifra-nigeria.org
Visit the website at http://www.ifra-nigeria.org
Rasheed O. Olaniyi, PhD
Department of History,
University of Ibadan,
Ibadan, Nigeria.
Email:rasolaniyi@yahoo.com, rasheed_olaniyi@hotmail.com
Mobile Phone:+234-8033358474
Department of History,
University of Ibadan,
Ibadan, Nigeria.
Email:rasolaniyi@yahoo.com, rasheed_olaniyi@hotmail.com
Mobile Phone:+234-8033358474
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