Archive for keyword: Identity

Călușul at Rusalii and its overlapping contexts

The căluș ritual of southern Romania (also found in certain villages in northern Bulgaria) takes place every year at the time of Rusalii (Pentecost, 50 days after Orthodox Easter).  The căluș has drawn the attention of many researchers, from a range of backgrounds and disciplines including folklorists, religious historians (spiritual …read more

Politics of representation, identity and minorities as portrayed through local dance in the Banat Region

This paper will examine the politics of representation and identity as portrayed through dance by the co-located ethnicities in the Banat region of Romania using three main parameters, the ‘representation’ that the dancing is portraying, the context in which the dancing takes place and the adaption of the dancing to …read more

‘Va dorim success, felicitare’: competition and community participation in Romanian dance festivals

This chapter explores Romanian dancers’ participation in organized dance competitions, both within Romania and internationally, and investigates the informal competition that exists between the members of the Banat Romanian dance community. It includes three themes. The first traces a historical trajectory on the changing importance of performances of local, regional, …read more

Performing local identity: Place, community and dance in Timișoara, Romania

This paper investigates connections between local conceptions of place and identity and participation in community music and dance events in the city of Timișoara, located in the Banat region of Romania. Every year the Timișoara cultural events calendar includes an increasing number of community events that include presentational performances of …read more

An outsider’s view of an interethnic community in Banat: culture and identity in the village of Svinița

During Easter 2013, under the auspices of the International Council of Traditional Music study group for ethnochoreology, a group of international researchers participated in a fieldwork trip in the village of Svinița, in the Danube gorge. This visit was initiated to coincide with viewing the custom of ‘Joc de pomană’ …read more

Dancing ethnicity: a case study of Festivalul Etnilor, Timișoara

This paper examines performances of dance and music by the various co-located ethnicities in Romanian Banat at the annual ethnicities festival in Timișoara. By considering each participating group in turn I consider both the participants, and their performances. The multicultural, multi-ethnic and multi confessional ethos of Banat is reflected in …read more

The Romanian Căluș tradition and its changing symbolism as it travels from the village to the global platform

In this essay I first examine the symbolisms of the Romanian Căluș tradition in its village setting, then I look at the changes that took place in these symbolisms during its transformation from a village ritual to a national icon. Finally I investigate the position that the Căluș tradition holds …read more