This article describes the relationship between the global protection system of intangible cultural heritage and practising dance at the regional and local levels. It is analysed on the example of traditional wedding dances from the region of Wielkopolska (Greater Poland), i.e. wiwat, przodek, and chodzony (równy). The aim of this analysis is to study UNESCO’s policy and the consequences of applying the protection system of intangible cultural heritage to traditional dance. The author points out that once the traditional dance is recognised as an element of cultural heritage the process of patrimonialisation starts. Consequently, the dance is incorporated in various socio-cultural processes that affect its meaning, form, and how it is practised. By referring to the concepts of patrimonialisation, intangible cultural heritage, and ‘UNESCOisation’, the text discusses the multi-context functioning and the diversified use of the traditional dances from Wielkopolska from three ethnographic regions: Biskupizna, Szamotuły, and Region Kozła (the Goat Region). The author argues that the varied trajectories in the patrimonialisation of the traditional dance can bring both positive effects (strengthening the local identity, raising the awareness of one’s own cultural heritage and its value) and possible risks (interference of external agencies, internal conflicts, symbolic and practical changes).
The aim of the article is to analyze the activities of the carol formation named „Koalicja Wschowskich Kolędników” – a group of young people from Wschowa in western Poland, who practice Christmas carol singing celebrations around the streets of the city and near villages. This recent phenomenon due to the lack of intergenerational communication draws from various regions of Poland. The article consists of three parts: 1) ethnographic description of the group, its activity and social perception, 2) locating it in the background of regional carol traditions, 3) case study in terms of tradition, folklore, invented tradition and intangible cultural heritage.
PL
Celem artykułu jest analiza działalności Koalicji Wschowskich Kolędników – grupy młodych ludzi z okolic Wschowy (woj. lubuskie), która w okresie Świąt Bożego Narodzenia praktykuje obchody kolędnicze ulicami miasta i przylegających do niego wsi. Jest to zjawisko stosunkowo świeże, które z uwagi na brak przekazu międzypokoleniowego w formie i treści czerpie z różnych regionów Polski. Artykuł składa się z trzech części: 1) etnograficznego opisu kolędowania, prezentacji grupy i społecznego odbioru zjawiska, 2) osadzenia wschowskiego kolędowania na tle wielkopolsko-lubuskich tradycji kolędniczych, 3) analizy przypadku w kategoriach tradycji, folkloryzmu, tradycji wynalezionej i niematerialnego dziedzictwa kulturowego.
The article is an anthropological analysis of the symbolism of hair and the socio-cultural meaning associated with hairstyles based on the example of dreadlocks in Poland, explored during field research conducted by the author in 2016–2017. The text presents the symbolism of dreadlocks in various cultural contexts and an analysis of hair stereotypes in the experiences of people wearing dreadlocks in Poland. This hairstyle is part of many cultures, in which it has different names and performs different functions. Depending on the place, it may symbolize the religiosity of an individual, a political manifesto, mourning or fashion. The individual motives to wear such a hairstyle are not always associated with a particular ideology or policy, but the decision to do so is not completely free from significance. The main part of the article, discussing the Polish context, has been based on interviews conducted as part of the author’s M.A. thesis.