Becoming two
by Sam Heeremans – The oldest transformative journey we know is birth. Going from a dark world surrounded by nothing but water and your mother’s warmth, entering the…
Tag: Traditie & ritueel
Easter gardens and Christmas trees
By Fridus Steijlen – When I arrived in mid-January in Ambon for my second year at Pattimura University I saw Christmas and New Year decor on the streets,…
Storytelling in Anthropology
By Romy de Vos – For my bachelor’s thesis, I conducted research among individuals and groups who are involved in initiatives to grant posthumous rehabilitation for people who…
Religion has left the hospital: the uneasy silence of professionalization
By Peter Versteeg – Have you ever wondered why something happened to you? I hope you haven’t because this question often arises when people are faced with something…
Grief is a thing to be sung: solace from Shi’a lamentation
By Aleeha Zahra Ali A year and a half ago, I learnt what grief was. Before that I had known waves of sadness, despair, depression, heartbreak and anger.…
Ramadan as an anthropologist
By Lilian Ebbelaar Ramadan to me was always something that was so interesting. It had this kind of mysterious feeling and always felt strange to me. Why are…
Rituals to help us out, and beliefs one professes tongue in cheek – Part II
By Ton Salman This is part II of the blog “Rituals to help us out….” If you have not yet read part I, you can read it here.…
Het ontstaan van een nationale held
Door Irene Stengs Op plekken waar mensen op een dramatische manier om het leven zijn gekomen ontstaat de laatste decennia vaak een tijdelijk monument bestaande uit bloemen, kaarsen,…
Face masks as freedom and belonging
By Quirina Geijsen Face masks, you can see them everywhere now. They come in different shapes and sizes and are offered in multiple choices of the most beautiful…
De dag die je weet dat gaat komen: ritueel in tijden van corona
DOOR IRENE STENGS Woensdag 15 april was het zover: de Koninklijke Bond van Oranje Verenigingen maakte het alternatieve programma voor Koningsdag bekend. Koningsdag 2020 zal de geschiedenis ingaan…
The Car Free Day in Surabaya: a pro-environment event?
By Freek Colombijn Every Sunday morning from 6 to 10 a.m. part of the main street of Surabaya is closed for all motorized traffic for an event that…
Hazes is ook erfgoed
door Annemarie de Wildt Een oratie die aantoont hoe we van alles erfgoed maken: de redding van het Thaise jeugdelftal, de monsterzwemtocht van Maarten van der Weijden en…
Try a Little Legal Tenderness
This financial speculation essay acknowledges the inspiration of the Dick Jensen version of the song, “Try a Little Tenderness,” in its principal guiding pun; it is a suggested…
Nederland houdt van gewoon
Door Irene Stengs. In het kader van ‘onderzoek om de hoek’ kom ik nog een keer terug op mijn veldwerkexcursie naar de Huishoudbeurs van afgelopen februari. In mijn…
If you eat Nsima, you are happy
By Liza Koch This photo essay is about the process of making Nsima flour, the most important food people eat every day in Malawi.
Dancing to the State: Ethnic Compulsions of the Tangsa in Assam
By Meenaxi Barkataki-Ruscheweyh Let me begin by telling you a little bit about myself, the region and the people — the Tangsa — with whom I worked and…
Some thoughts on film in ethnography
Still from ‘Inside the Mind of Favela Funk’ By Ina Keuper On 7 December the Department of Social and Cultural Anthropology organized its second Ethnographic…
Down to Earth: Op zoek naar de wijzen
Still uit de documentaire ‘Down to Earth’ Door Peter Versteeg Het idee dat inheemse volken een wijsheid en spiritualiteit kennen die ‘wij in het westen’ al lang geleden…