Oral Tradition: A Study in Historical MethodologyOral traditions are historical sources of a special nature. Their special nature derives from the fact that they are ""unwritten"" sources couched in a form suitable for oral transmission, and that their preservation depends on the powers of memory of successive generations of human beings. In many parts of the world inhabited by peoples without writing, oral tradition forms the main available source for a reconstruction of the past. Do the special characteristics of oral traditions u ""unwritten"" information dependent on the memory of successive generations u invalidate them as sources of historical data? If not, are there means for testing their reliability? Professor Vansina shows in Oral Tradition that with knowledge of the language and of the society, the anthropologist and historian can extract or deduce the historical content of oral testimonies. Based on the author's many years of fieldwork in Africa, this definitive work explores the possibility of reconstructing the history of non-literate peoples from their oral traditions, surveys existing literature, offers a typology of oral traditions, and evaluates methods of collection and interpretation. On first publication, Daniel McCall in the American Anthropologist called Oral Tradition "" a tour de force. Indeed this may well be the most significant work written on the relation of oral tradition to history in thirty yearsafor any field worker who intends to collect oral traditions, this work is indispensable. |
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Oral Tradition: A Study in Historical Methodology Robert Loring Allen,Jan Vansina No preview available - 2017 |
Common terms and phrases
aetiological myths Africa aNdoong anthropology archaeological belong Burundi Bushongo chain of transmission characteristics commentary comparative method comparison concerning contain cultural values Cunnison diffusion distortions dynastic E. E. Evans-Pritchard example exist fact factors failure of memory falsification fieldworker fixed texts free texts function genealogies give happens historian historical information historical source history of Rwanda important influence informant’s initial informant initial testimony instance interpretation Jan Vansina Kagame kind king king of Burundi king of Rwanda Kuba lambil large number linguistic literary categories Luapula means method of transmission Meyerowitz mnemonic myths names occur official traditions one’s oral traditions particular past person poems poetry political possible preserved proverb purpose question recited recorded regarded reliability royal Ruganguuza Ruhinda Rundi Rwanda social society songs specialists statements stereotype Takyiman tale transmitted tribal tribes Trobriand Islanders Tutsi type of tradition Vansina words writing