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ISSN 2084–1418
The paper edition of the Anthropology of History Yearbook is the definitive version

2016, No. (9), Cultural Heritage

Maria Małanicz-Przybylska
On the polysemy of the musial heritage of the Podhale region

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Keywords: tradition, Podhale region, traditional music, folklore, intangible cultural heritage

Abstract:
My article is based on the ethnographic fieldwork, which I conducted between 2011 and 2015 in Podhale region. Analysing my interlocutors’ statements and behaviours, I try to explain what, for modern Górale (people living in the Polish Tatra Mountains), makes up an intangible cultural heritage. My interviewees however would never use this term. Instead, they prefer to call it tradition. Nevertheless I try to indicate that Górale tradition has a lot in common with the institutional meaning of intangible heritage. There is no easy and clear answer to the question ‘what is tradition for the Górale today?’. One way to do so, however, is to combine three aspects which only seemingly are exclusive. The first facet refers to the requirements, which are made (in the opinion of the Górale) by ‘salvaging’ institutions, such as UNESCO or by juries at folklore competitions, etc. The second image of tradition is connected with the exploitation of Górale tradition, a crucial factor in the region, since tourism is the main source of the income. The third understanding of the tradition can be named the ‘local’ one. It is linked with the inner, everyday lives of the Górale community. In this article I present examples taken from the musical space of the modern Podhale region, but I am sure that my statements can be easily applied to any other components of the contemporary culture of the Górale. My conclusion is that these three understandings of Górale tradition are in everyday life strictly connected, and together they build up a coherent unity, which realizes and actualizes itself in common practices and actions.

About Author:
MARIA MAŁANICZ-PRZYBYLSKA - ethnologist, musicologist, PhD student in the Institute of Ethnology and Cultural Anthropology of the University of Warsaw. E-mail: maria.malanicz[at]gmail.com.

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