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The UNESCO Effect: Confidence, Defamiliarization, and a New Element in the Discourse on a Japanese Island

Foster, Michael Dylan

Journal of Folklore Research: An International Journal of Folklore and Ethnomusicology, 2011, Vol.48(1), pp.63-107 [Peer Reviewed Journal]

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Title:
The UNESCO Effect: Confidence, Defamiliarization, and a New Element in the Discourse on a Japanese Island
Author/Creator: Foster, Michael Dylan
Language: English
Subjects: Behavioral sciences -- Anthropology -- Ethnology ; Environmental studies -- Environmental social sciences -- Rural sociology ; Behavioral sciences -- Anthropology -- Applied anthropology ; Social sciences -- Population studies -- Human populations ; Behavioral sciences -- Anthropology -- Applied anthropology ; Behavioral sciences -- Sociology -- Human societies ; Law -- International law -- Treaties ; Social sciences -- Human geography -- Social geography ; Behavioral sciences -- Anthropology -- Applied anthropology ; Business -- Accountancy -- Financial accounting ; Behavioral sciences -- Anthropology -- Ethnology ; Environmental studies -- Environmental social sciences -- Rural sociology ; Behavioral sciences -- Anthropology -- Applied anthropology ; Social sciences -- Population studies -- Human populations ; Behavioral sciences -- Anthropology -- Applied anthropology ; Behavioral sciences -- Sociology -- Human societies ; Law -- International law -- Treaties ; Social sciences -- Human geography -- Social geography ; Behavioral sciences -- Anthropology -- Applied anthropology ; Business -- Accountancy -- Financial accounting
Is Part Of: Journal of Folklore Research: An International Journal of Folklore and Ethnomusicology, 2011, Vol.48(1), pp.63-107
Description: Abstract The 2003 UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage established a ““Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.”” In 2009, seventy-six traditions from around the world were inscribed as the ““first elements”” on this list. One of these was Toshidon, a New Year's Eve ritual performed on the island of Shimo-Koshikijima off the southwest coast of Japan. How does recognition by an international body affect the way this small community perceives and performs its ““heritage””? In this article, I contextualize the UNESCO selection of Toshidon, describe the ritual itself, and then focus on the discussion that occurred on the island in 2009––10, as the UNESCO designation became a new factor in a long-running and complex local discourse on tradition. Observing the on-the-ground effects of UNESCO's recognition on this one island community provides insight into the broader interaction between global cultural policy and local tradition.
Identifier: ISSN: 07377037 ; E-ISSN: 15430413 ; DOI: 10.2979/jfolkrese.48.1.63

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