Lauri Harvilahti - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Lauri Harvilahti
Folklore: structure, typology, semiotics
In the early twentieth-century Europe, international indexing systems and typologies were develop... more In the early twentieth-century Europe, international indexing systems and typologies were developed for folklore archives and research. Later, these indexes formed international standards. As an illustrative example of such international systems, mention may be made of such as the Thompson motif index of folk literature, and the Aarne-ThompsonUther folktale type index. The problem presented in my article is to ponder, how to combine the traditional indexes of narrative folklore with the methodology of computer-based research. The problem with using the traditional motif indexes is that only very rare cases e.g. of Thompson’s index represent Caucasian, Siberian, Central Asian or East Asian traditions, and in general only a few non-European traditions are well represented. Luckily there exists the index developed recently by Yu.E. Berezkin and E.N. Duvakin, entitled “Thematic classification and distribution of folklore and mythological motives by area. Analytical catalog”2 . This inde...
Contacts and Networks in the Baltic Sea Region
Etnomusikologian vuosikirja, Dec 1, 1988
Suu-urku sheng• soikiokoppainen pipa-luuttu • lehdellä soittelu• dongien sävelasteikoto vertailev... more Suu-urku sheng• soikiokoppainen pipa-luuttu • lehdellä soittelu• dongien sävelasteikoto vertaileva kansanmusiikin tutkimus Kiinassa Joitakin tietoja dong-kansasta Suomalainen kansanperinteen tutkimusryhmä teki matkan Kiinan Guangxin maakuntaan dong-kansan pariin huhtikuussa 1986.1 Guangxin maakunta rajoittuu lounaassa Vietnamiin, etelässä on Tonkinin lahti, idässä Guangdongin maakunta. Retkemme pääkohde, Sanjiang Dongin autonominen piirikunta sijaitsee aivan Guangxin maakunnan pohjoisosassa. Dongit asustavat kolmen maakunnan: Guangxin, Hunanin ja Guizhoun alueella. Sinotiibettiläisten kielten thai-haaran dong shui-ryhmään kuuluvan dong-kielen puhujia on vajaa miljoona. Sanjiangin väestöstä heidän osuutensa on hiukan yli puolet (144.336/279.912) v. 1983 tilaston mukaan. Dongien talot ovat puisia, normaalisti kolmikerroksisia rakennuksia. Alimpana asustavat kotieläimet, keskimmäisessä ovat työja oleskelutilat ja ylimpänä makuutilat ja elintarvikevarastoja. Käytössä on suurperhejärjestelmä: yhdessä talossa saattaa asua useita aviopareja ja sukupolvia. Talouden perustan muodostaa riis.in ja vihannesten viljely sekä kotieläinten hoito. Myös kalanviljelyä ja metsästystä hrujoitetaan. Huomiota kiinnittivät tyypilliset omavaraistalouden piirteet. Kylissä näkyi runsaasti käsityö ammattien hrujoittajia ja pienyrittäjiä: kyläseppiä, muita tarvekalujen valmistajia, mitä erilaisimpia kauppiaita ja kaupustelijoita, suutareita, räätäleitä, partureita jne. Markkinaelärnä oli myös vilkasta. Erikoisen
Contacts and Networks in the Baltic Sea Region, 2018
Since prehistoric times, the Baltic Sea has functioned as a northern mare nostrum — a crucial nex... more Since prehistoric times, the Baltic Sea has functioned as a northern mare nostrum — a crucial nexus that has shaped the languages, folklore, religions, literature, technology, and identities of the Germanic, Finnic, Sámi, Baltic, and Slavic peoples. This anthology explores the networks among those peoples. The contributions to Contacts and Networks in the Baltic Sea Region: Austmarr as a Northern mare nostrum, ca. 500-1500 ad address different aspects of cultural contacts around and across the Baltic from the perspectives of history, archaeology, linguistics, literary studies, religious studies, and folklore. The introduction offers a general overview of crosscultural contacts in the Baltic Sea region as a framework for contextualizing the volume’s twelve chapters, organized in four sections. The first section concerns geographical conceptions as revealed in Old Norse and in classical texts through place names, terms of direction, and geographical descriptions. The second section di...
One meets again and again in studies of epic singing among various peoples accounts of singers wh... more One meets again and again in studies of epic singing among various peoples accounts of singers who are able to repeat a long narrative poem after only a single hearing, reworking or improving the original version in their own renditions, or rapidly producing a new poem on a given theme.1 The repetition of a song on the basis of only a single hearing was also apparently not unheard of in the Finnish-Karelian song tradition. There were a number of singers who were able to repeat any song after having heard it only once, among others, Iivana Shemeikka, who—as has been reported—“after hearing a song but once knew it for good ” (Virtanen 1968:42). Although the skill of the gifted singer made it possible to improvise on the basis of traditional forms and to repeat a song after hearing it only once, as a general collective expression it was obviously a 1 Arash Bormanishov (1982:163) writes thus about Kalmyk epic singers: “It is a known fact that among the Kalmyks there were some who memori...
One meets again and again in studies of epic singing among various peoples accounts of singers wh... more One meets again and again in studies of epic singing among various peoples accounts of singers who are able to repeat a long narrative poem after only a single hearing, reworking or improving the original version in their own renditions, or rapidly producing a new poem on a given theme. The repetition of a song on the basis of only a single hearing was also apparently not unheard of in the Finnish-Karelian song tradition. There were a number of singers who were able to repeat any song after having heard it only once, among others, Iivana Shemeikka, who—as has been reported—“after hearing a song but once knew it for good” (Virtanen 1968:42). Although the skill of the gifted singer made it possible to improvise on the basis of traditional forms and to repeat a song after hearing it only once, as a general collective expression it was obviously a
In his 1990 book E. J. Hobsbawm outlines the history of nationalism. He begins with the French Re... more In his 1990 book E. J. Hobsbawm outlines the history of nationalism. He begins with the French Revolution, proceeds through stages like "protonationalism," "transformation" (1870-1918), and the "apogee" of nationalism (1918-50) to the late twentieth century, and finally ends up with a prophecy according to which (in light of the progress in the study and analysis of nations) nationalism is past its peak: "The owl of Minerva which brings wisdom, said Hegel, flies out at dusk. It is a good sign that it is now circling round nations and nationalism" (182-83).
Samples of four styles of overtone singing, or Ôthroat singingÕ, that are traditionally performed... more Samples of four styles of overtone singing, or Ôthroat singingÕ, that are traditionally performed in Altai (Sygyt , Qargyraa, Khmei, and Qay) were studied. Spectral analyses of the digitized singing samples showed that these different styles have certain acoustic characteristics in common. There seems to be a stylistic continuum from a traditional (western-like) singing style to ÔpureÕ overtone singing. In the Sygyt style overtone melodies are produced by selectively amplifying overtones especially in the frequency area normally occupied by the F2 of vowels. In Qargyraa and Khmei melodies are produced in a similar way by amplifying certain overtones, but in addition there is a prominent high-frequency component giving these styles their characteristic timbre. The peculiarity of the epic Qay style is the use of a similar high-frequency component simultaneously with clearly articulated words, although Qay singers can sometimes switch between ÔnormalÕ articulation and overtone melody...
... It will be intriguing to compare the versions that we collected in September 1996 with the ve... more ... It will be intriguing to compare the versions that we collected in September 1996 with the version compiled by Surazakov thirty years earlier from Kalkin. ... Page 14. 228 LAURI HARVILAHTI References Foley 1995 John Miles Foley. The Singer of Tales in Performance. ...
of paper prepared for the conference “Culture Archives and the State: Between Nationalism, Social... more of paper prepared for the conference “Culture Archives and the State: Between Nationalism, Socialism, and the Global Market,” May 3-5, 2007, Mershon Center, Ohio State University, USA. My intention is, to begin with, to give an idea about the ideological background of Romanticism as an impetus for collecting of folklore materials at the beginning of the 19th Century. The romantic trends that spread throughout Europe began to be felt more and more strongly in Finland too. At that time Finland was an autonomous grand duchy under the Russian tsar (from 1809). Romanticism arose a need for recreating or reconstructing mythical past, poetic landscapes of golden age. In the latter half of the 19 Century the romantic, nationalistically inspired movement aimed mostly (as in the case of Finland) at supporting the nation-state status. The organized collection of folklore began in the first half of the 19th century. The major milestone in the history of collecting and protecting the Finnish tra...
Kirja-arvio Kuusi, Matti ym.: Proverbia septentrionalia Kielenainekset keel (kieli: viro, sivulla... more Kirja-arvio Kuusi, Matti ym.: Proverbia septentrionalia Kielenainekset keel (kieli: viro, sivulla: 106)
Folklore: structure, typology, semiotics
In the early twentieth-century Europe, international indexing systems and typologies were develop... more In the early twentieth-century Europe, international indexing systems and typologies were developed for folklore archives and research. Later, these indexes formed international standards. As an illustrative example of such international systems, mention may be made of such as the Thompson motif index of folk literature, and the Aarne-ThompsonUther folktale type index. The problem presented in my article is to ponder, how to combine the traditional indexes of narrative folklore with the methodology of computer-based research. The problem with using the traditional motif indexes is that only very rare cases e.g. of Thompson’s index represent Caucasian, Siberian, Central Asian or East Asian traditions, and in general only a few non-European traditions are well represented. Luckily there exists the index developed recently by Yu.E. Berezkin and E.N. Duvakin, entitled “Thematic classification and distribution of folklore and mythological motives by area. Analytical catalog”2 . This inde...
Contacts and Networks in the Baltic Sea Region
Etnomusikologian vuosikirja, Dec 1, 1988
Suu-urku sheng• soikiokoppainen pipa-luuttu • lehdellä soittelu• dongien sävelasteikoto vertailev... more Suu-urku sheng• soikiokoppainen pipa-luuttu • lehdellä soittelu• dongien sävelasteikoto vertaileva kansanmusiikin tutkimus Kiinassa Joitakin tietoja dong-kansasta Suomalainen kansanperinteen tutkimusryhmä teki matkan Kiinan Guangxin maakuntaan dong-kansan pariin huhtikuussa 1986.1 Guangxin maakunta rajoittuu lounaassa Vietnamiin, etelässä on Tonkinin lahti, idässä Guangdongin maakunta. Retkemme pääkohde, Sanjiang Dongin autonominen piirikunta sijaitsee aivan Guangxin maakunnan pohjoisosassa. Dongit asustavat kolmen maakunnan: Guangxin, Hunanin ja Guizhoun alueella. Sinotiibettiläisten kielten thai-haaran dong shui-ryhmään kuuluvan dong-kielen puhujia on vajaa miljoona. Sanjiangin väestöstä heidän osuutensa on hiukan yli puolet (144.336/279.912) v. 1983 tilaston mukaan. Dongien talot ovat puisia, normaalisti kolmikerroksisia rakennuksia. Alimpana asustavat kotieläimet, keskimmäisessä ovat työja oleskelutilat ja ylimpänä makuutilat ja elintarvikevarastoja. Käytössä on suurperhejärjestelmä: yhdessä talossa saattaa asua useita aviopareja ja sukupolvia. Talouden perustan muodostaa riis.in ja vihannesten viljely sekä kotieläinten hoito. Myös kalanviljelyä ja metsästystä hrujoitetaan. Huomiota kiinnittivät tyypilliset omavaraistalouden piirteet. Kylissä näkyi runsaasti käsityö ammattien hrujoittajia ja pienyrittäjiä: kyläseppiä, muita tarvekalujen valmistajia, mitä erilaisimpia kauppiaita ja kaupustelijoita, suutareita, räätäleitä, partureita jne. Markkinaelärnä oli myös vilkasta. Erikoisen
Contacts and Networks in the Baltic Sea Region, 2018
Since prehistoric times, the Baltic Sea has functioned as a northern mare nostrum — a crucial nex... more Since prehistoric times, the Baltic Sea has functioned as a northern mare nostrum — a crucial nexus that has shaped the languages, folklore, religions, literature, technology, and identities of the Germanic, Finnic, Sámi, Baltic, and Slavic peoples. This anthology explores the networks among those peoples. The contributions to Contacts and Networks in the Baltic Sea Region: Austmarr as a Northern mare nostrum, ca. 500-1500 ad address different aspects of cultural contacts around and across the Baltic from the perspectives of history, archaeology, linguistics, literary studies, religious studies, and folklore. The introduction offers a general overview of crosscultural contacts in the Baltic Sea region as a framework for contextualizing the volume’s twelve chapters, organized in four sections. The first section concerns geographical conceptions as revealed in Old Norse and in classical texts through place names, terms of direction, and geographical descriptions. The second section di...
One meets again and again in studies of epic singing among various peoples accounts of singers wh... more One meets again and again in studies of epic singing among various peoples accounts of singers who are able to repeat a long narrative poem after only a single hearing, reworking or improving the original version in their own renditions, or rapidly producing a new poem on a given theme.1 The repetition of a song on the basis of only a single hearing was also apparently not unheard of in the Finnish-Karelian song tradition. There were a number of singers who were able to repeat any song after having heard it only once, among others, Iivana Shemeikka, who—as has been reported—“after hearing a song but once knew it for good ” (Virtanen 1968:42). Although the skill of the gifted singer made it possible to improvise on the basis of traditional forms and to repeat a song after hearing it only once, as a general collective expression it was obviously a 1 Arash Bormanishov (1982:163) writes thus about Kalmyk epic singers: “It is a known fact that among the Kalmyks there were some who memori...
One meets again and again in studies of epic singing among various peoples accounts of singers wh... more One meets again and again in studies of epic singing among various peoples accounts of singers who are able to repeat a long narrative poem after only a single hearing, reworking or improving the original version in their own renditions, or rapidly producing a new poem on a given theme. The repetition of a song on the basis of only a single hearing was also apparently not unheard of in the Finnish-Karelian song tradition. There were a number of singers who were able to repeat any song after having heard it only once, among others, Iivana Shemeikka, who—as has been reported—“after hearing a song but once knew it for good” (Virtanen 1968:42). Although the skill of the gifted singer made it possible to improvise on the basis of traditional forms and to repeat a song after hearing it only once, as a general collective expression it was obviously a
In his 1990 book E. J. Hobsbawm outlines the history of nationalism. He begins with the French Re... more In his 1990 book E. J. Hobsbawm outlines the history of nationalism. He begins with the French Revolution, proceeds through stages like "protonationalism," "transformation" (1870-1918), and the "apogee" of nationalism (1918-50) to the late twentieth century, and finally ends up with a prophecy according to which (in light of the progress in the study and analysis of nations) nationalism is past its peak: "The owl of Minerva which brings wisdom, said Hegel, flies out at dusk. It is a good sign that it is now circling round nations and nationalism" (182-83).
Samples of four styles of overtone singing, or Ôthroat singingÕ, that are traditionally performed... more Samples of four styles of overtone singing, or Ôthroat singingÕ, that are traditionally performed in Altai (Sygyt , Qargyraa, Khmei, and Qay) were studied. Spectral analyses of the digitized singing samples showed that these different styles have certain acoustic characteristics in common. There seems to be a stylistic continuum from a traditional (western-like) singing style to ÔpureÕ overtone singing. In the Sygyt style overtone melodies are produced by selectively amplifying overtones especially in the frequency area normally occupied by the F2 of vowels. In Qargyraa and Khmei melodies are produced in a similar way by amplifying certain overtones, but in addition there is a prominent high-frequency component giving these styles their characteristic timbre. The peculiarity of the epic Qay style is the use of a similar high-frequency component simultaneously with clearly articulated words, although Qay singers can sometimes switch between ÔnormalÕ articulation and overtone melody...
... It will be intriguing to compare the versions that we collected in September 1996 with the ve... more ... It will be intriguing to compare the versions that we collected in September 1996 with the version compiled by Surazakov thirty years earlier from Kalkin. ... Page 14. 228 LAURI HARVILAHTI References Foley 1995 John Miles Foley. The Singer of Tales in Performance. ...
of paper prepared for the conference “Culture Archives and the State: Between Nationalism, Social... more of paper prepared for the conference “Culture Archives and the State: Between Nationalism, Socialism, and the Global Market,” May 3-5, 2007, Mershon Center, Ohio State University, USA. My intention is, to begin with, to give an idea about the ideological background of Romanticism as an impetus for collecting of folklore materials at the beginning of the 19th Century. The romantic trends that spread throughout Europe began to be felt more and more strongly in Finland too. At that time Finland was an autonomous grand duchy under the Russian tsar (from 1809). Romanticism arose a need for recreating or reconstructing mythical past, poetic landscapes of golden age. In the latter half of the 19 Century the romantic, nationalistically inspired movement aimed mostly (as in the case of Finland) at supporting the nation-state status. The organized collection of folklore began in the first half of the 19th century. The major milestone in the history of collecting and protecting the Finnish tra...
Kirja-arvio Kuusi, Matti ym.: Proverbia septentrionalia Kielenainekset keel (kieli: viro, sivulla... more Kirja-arvio Kuusi, Matti ym.: Proverbia septentrionalia Kielenainekset keel (kieli: viro, sivulla: 106)
The Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage was adopted at the UNESCO Gen... more The Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage was adopted at the UNESCO General Conference in 2003. In Finland the Convention was ratified in May 2013. The Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture has assigned the responsibility for implementing the Convention to the National Board of Antiquities (NBA), which has now drafted a model for its execution in Finland. CUPORE – The Finnish Foundation for Cultural Policy Research has been collaborating in this preparatory stage in the context of background research.
At the end of 2014 and at the beginning of 2015 Cupore conducted as part of its assignment two surveys, one aimed at experts in the field, the other open to all respondents but especially aimed at relevant stakeholders. The latter survey was posted on the website on intangible cultural heritage maintained by the NBA for respondents to freely answer. The objective was to map the model for the Finnish implementation of the Convention and also to chart criteria for preparing a national inventory.
This final report of the study contains analyses of the mentioned surveys as well as expert articles that reflect on the analyses in more depth and explicate the definitions and concepts in the Convention. The articles especially examine the interfaces between intangible and tangible cultural heritage, the definitions and concepts of community participation and safeguarding, the role of archives in safeguarding intangible cultural heritage and the role of the WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization) in safeguarding intangible cultural heritage from the viewpoints of intellectual property and copyright legislation.
This report also includes the results of the 10 discussion groups organized by the NBA in autumn 2014/spring 2015. Among the themes of the hearings were all the five domains of intangible cultural heritage defined by the Convention: oral tradition, performing arts, social practices, rituals and festive events, and knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe, supplemented with the themes of cultural diversity, Swedish-speaking Finns, the Sámi and the Romani.
The report also offers a more detailed analysis of the execution and administrative processes, preparing of lists and the listing criteria implemented around the Convention in Estonia, Sweden, Austria and the Netherlands.
The underlying goal of this study has been to create a roadmap for a Finnish model for implementing the Convention and fostering intangible cultural heritage more generally as well, and for raising awareness in the civil society about what our intangible cultural heritage could be. A steering group was appointed for the study in cooperation with the NBA, with representatives from the NBA, The Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture and Cupore. In the course of the study the steering group has, apart from the hearings, also consulted with other operators, researchers and experts in the field.
(In Finnish, summary in English)