Relacje Międzykulturowe – Intercultural Relations (RMIR) is an open-access, semi-annual, peer-reviewed journal publishing articles in English and Polish. In spring each year, a volume is published in Polish, and in autumn, it is published in English. It serves as an interdisciplinary forum for academic scholars and professionals to present the latest theoretical and empirical advancements of various issues related to intercultural relations. The journal publishes, among others, papers on issues such as cultural studies, ethnic and minority-majority relations, migration and intercultural contact, intercultural psychology and pedagogy, globalization and integration processes, multicultural societies, and politics.
Naród rozproszony. Recenzja książki Beaty Umubyeyi Mairesse pt. All Your Children, Scattered (wyd. Europa Editions, Nowy Jork 2022, 192 ss., ISBN: 9781609457853, tłum. Alison Anderson)
Copyright (c) 2025 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0
„Rewolucja oddycha przez gwiazdy” – gwiazdy sceny ballroomu
Geneza, charakter i polityczna symbolika Dnia Narodów, Narodowości i Ludów Etiopii
GENESIS, NATURE AND POLITICAL SYMBOLISM OF THE DAY OF NATIONS, NATIONALITIES AND PEOPLES OF ETHIOPIA The Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples’ Day of Ethiopia is an annual celebration observed since 2006, aimed at honoring the country’s ethnic diversity and promoting the idea of peaceful coexistence among its people. Its character stems from the adoption of ethnofederalism as the state’s constitutional foundation in the 1990s. However, recent events demonstrate that ethnic-based violence remains one of the main threats to lasting peace in Ethiopia. Consequently, the impact of this holiday on the country’s situation appears to be limited. Nevertheless, an analysis of its celebrations and symbolism provides valuable insights for studying nation-building processes, modernization, and political anthropology in Ethiopia.
Znaczenie wody dla pasterzy fulańskich w Nigerii – wymiar kulturowy i wpływ jej niedoboru na konflikt z ludnością osiadłą
THE IMPORTANCE OF WATER FOR THE FULANI PASTORALISTS IN NIGERIA – THE CULTURAL DIMENSION AND THE IMPACT OF ITS SCARCITY ON CONFLICT WITH THE SETTLED POPULATION The article presents a study of the meaning of water in the culture of Fulani pastoralists in Nigeria and of the impact of its shortage on conflict with sedentary people. The paper presents a general profile of the nomadic Fulani people in Nigeria. It examines the key role of important elements of Fulani culture – cattle, migration, herding practices and, inextricably linked to it, water availability – in the daily lives of Fulani nomads. The study discusses the impact of diminishing water resources and desertification on traditional migrations in search of pasture for cows. It examines the causes of increasing competition for natural resources and the resulting tensions between pastoralists and farmers, which have erupted into mutual violence for over a decade.
Dekolonialna tożsamość polityczna z perspektywy współczesnych intelektualistów afrykańskich
DECOLONIAL POLITICAL IDENTITY FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF CONTEMPORARY AFRICAN INTELLECTUALS In the postcolonial era, Africa constantly redefines its identity and strives for full sovereignty in various areas. Many African countries still struggle with building stable governments that reflect their unique traditions and societal needs, while also focusing on developing local industries, decolonizing the education system, promoting social inclusivity, and strengthening their voice on the international stage. The article analyses how contemporary African thinkers, such as Claude Ake, Mahmood Mamdani, and Ali Mazrui, understand the decolonization process, what solutions they propose, and how their visions impact African politics and societies. By examining their theories and philosophies, the article highlights the similarities and differences in their approaches, discussing issues of cultural and political identity, political strategies leading to sovereignty, and the challenges the continent faces in the global context. The reflections in the article aim to provide a better understanding of contemporary decolonization processes in Africa and their implications for the continent’s future.
Współczesne rozstrzygnięcia nad przeszłością oratury
CONTEMPORARY APPROACHES TO THE LEGACY OF ORATURE: HOW IS THE ROLE OF SPOKEN WORD SHAPED IN AFRICA? The paper invites to rethink the existent terminology describing oral literature and to challenge its common (mis)understandings in the related fields of Humanities. Reviewing the most important (and published) pieces of orature and their interpretations shows the ever changing comprehension of the phenomenon, taking into consideration its contemporary transformations and present embodiments on the African continent. The discourse leads toward renewal of the definition of the spoken literature, underling as its foundational characteristics the (literary) performativity and creativeness.
Południowoafrykańska muzyka XX i XXI wieku – odbicie realiów i manifestacja tożsamości
SOUTH AFRICAN MUSIC OF THE 20TH AND 21ST CENTURIES – A REFLECTION OF REALITY AND A MANIFESTATION OF IDENTITY This article aims to introduce the audience to a selection of South African musical styles that emerged and evolved in the 20th and 21st centuries. These include marabi, kwela, mbaqanga, kwaito and amapiano, with most attention paid to the last two. The article adresses the historical and socio-political specificities of South Africa, which have significantly influenced the music of the country through, among other things, the creation of a specific urban space. The work also serves as an introduction to the reflection on music as a manifestation of identity in South Africa. The starting point for this reflection is the colonial era, for it laid the foundation of apartheid and, together with it, shaped the characteristic conditions in which South African music developed.
Kahina a (re)konstruowanie tożsamości w Północnej Afryce
KAHINA AND THE (RE)CONSTRUCTION OF IDENTITY IN NORTH AFRICA The legendary figure of the Kahina – a Berber queen and leader whose biography is full of questions and uncertainties – serves as a tool of identity-making – be it the indigenous communities, the French, or Arab history-based policy of representing North Africa as a region in desperate need of a civilizational rebirth. The Kahina has also been portrayed as a proto feminist heroine – a trope vividly present in the modern literature of the region. Building on the existing literature devoted to the „Sorceress” – the exact translation of her Arabic sobriquet, this text’s primary focus is the question of strategy – how does the figure of the Kahina serve the different narratives framing the identities of North Africa.
Czarny queer to nie biały queer, czyli o południowoafrykańskim zmaganiu się z tożsamościami
BLACK QUEER IS NOT WHITE QUEER: NAVIGATING IDENTITY IN SOUTH AFRICA The article explores the literary representations of queer short fiction in the Queer Africa: New and collected fiction anthology within the South African context, shedding light on the ongoing struggle to redefine diverse identities and experiences among the Black. It delves into the distinctive nature of African queer experiences, deliberately positioned in contrast to Western gay studies. This comparative analysis aims to deconstruct prevailing notions of queerness, interweaving critical examinations of race, economic disparities, poverty, and the conservative traditionalism inherent in African familial structures. By critically engaging with these multifaceted issues, the article endeavors to transcend conventional paradigms of queer studies, emphasizing the unique complexities inherent in the African narrative. Notably, the article highlights the emergence of the blackness of Africans as a pivotal and dominant factor in the redefinition of queerness within this specific local context.
W poszukiwaniu tożsamości – przypadek Kafka’s Curse Achmata Dangora
IN SEARCH OF IDENTITY – THE CASE OF KAFKA’S CURSE BY ACHMAT DANGOR The question of identity is one of the fundamental issues raised in post-colonial studies. However, the identity crisis is not a phenomenon typical exclusively to post-colonial societies. The authors of the proposed essay believe that both the expressed dependency on the love tale about Laila and Majnun, as well as the reference made in the title of Achmat Dangor’s Kafka’s Curse could perhaps be read as an indication that problems connected with searching for one’s ‘pure’ identity presented in this book are not constrained to post-colonial world only. The main aim of the proposed essay will be to demonstrate the obvious instability of identity in Kafka’s Curse, typical for human mental and emotional development, through the application of Richard Jenkins’ theory (Jenkins 2008) defining identity as a process of ‘being’ or ‘becoming’. Therefore, there should be no question of one’s identity, but rather of one’s identities. Through the proposed analysis, the authors would wish to present, how the multidimensional characters of the five stories cannot ‘plan’ their identities as their development continues through different stages of life, and that their identity therefore cannot be some fixed feature but it must develop in time as well as change based on a place and the circumstances, as according to Jenkins.
Muzeum (bez) pamięci – Museu Nacional da Escravatura w Luandzie i dziedzictwo transatlantyckiego handlu niewolnikami w Angoli
MUZEUM (BEZ) PAMIĘCI – MUSEU NACIONAL DA ESCRAVATURA IN LUANDA AND THE LEGACY OF THE TRANSATLANTIC SLAVE TRADE IN ANGOLA This article examines the role of the Museu Nacional da Escravatura in Luanda as a site of both memory and oblivion, embedded within Angola’s broader postcolonial heritage and historical politics. Based on field research conducted in 2023, the author explores the museum’s history, exhibition, and spatial-symbolic context. The institution, while officially commemorating the transatlantic slave trade, does so through a narrative that omits the complexity of local actors and historical nuances. Drawing on Ruy Llera Blanes’s concept of “places of no history,” the museum is interpreted as a space where memory is simultaneously revived and sanitized. The article addresses the selectivity of historical narratives, the instrumentalization of heritage, contemporary identity politics, and the marginalization of community-based memory practices.
Muzealizacja a dekolonizacja dziedzictwa afrykańskiego
MUSEUMISATION AND THE DECOLONISATION OF AFRICAN HERITAGE The author focuses on the analysis of how African cultural heritage is presented in museums, with particular emphasis on its colonial context. She highlights the need to decolonize museum narratives through dialogue and cooperation with local communities. Using the framework of critical museology, the article examines how politics, institutional conditions, and curatorial decisions shape narratives of difficult pasts – especially those related to slavery and colonialism. Drawing on the examples of Portugal as well as museums located in Mauritius and Zanzibar, the author demonstrates how local historical and social contexts influence museum representations. Furthermore, she argues that contemporary museums should serve as spaces for dialogue and multi-perspective reflection on cultural heritage.
Wstęp do numeru tematycznego Afrykańskie narracje. Tożsamości i różnorodność współczesnej Afryki
Commonly referred to as Raqs Sharqi in Arabic, “belly dance” is a choreographic form intricately woven into the cultural fabric of the MENAT region. This paper begins by tracing its transcultural evolution, from colonial influences to recent feminist discourses, illustrating how research on belly dance offers a rich field for examining the complex interplay of culture, ethnicity, religion, gender, and power. The second section builds on this foundation, applying theoretical frameworks to investigate how dancers’ habitus is selectively developed through “reflexive body techniques” (Crossley 2004), exploring how gendered social structures are embodied (Sassatelli 2022) and performed (Butler 2006) by Italian dancers. The third section details the research methodology, employing a mixed-methods approach informed by a narrative-inspired analysis (Greimas & Courtés 1982; Ferraro 2021). A web survey and in-depth qualitative interviews were designed to explore dancers’ perceived processes of transformation. The Greimasian and Ferraro frameworks were operationalised to structure the data according to the Canonical Narrative Schema (CNS), enabling an analysis of the key stages of the dancers’ journeys. The fourth and fifth sections present and analyse data collected from 428 respondents and three in-depth interviews. Using NVivo software, all data were analysed thematically within the CNS framework. Five key themes emerged: Empowerment, Cultural Capital, Vitality, Socialisation, and Identity. These findings are contextualised within Italian society, with an emphasis on gender roles and stereotypes, which have shaped the experiences of Italian women over the past two decades. Given the breadth of data collected, this paper focuses on one key dimension: the perceived experience of personal transformation, which most participants described as leading to the emergence of a “new self.” By examining the different stages of the Italian belly dancers’ journeys, this paper aims to explore how gendered social structures in the Italian context are embodied by practitioners, shaping their learning and performing as a journey of self-discovery.
Copyright (c) 2024 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0
World music might be defined most benignly as an attempt to conceptualise all of the world’s music. More cynically though, world music can be also seen as just an advertising label for all non-Western music. Many scholars have gone even further and argue that world music is a delusional subjective fantasy, an unreal utopia and an oppressive discourse of western hegemony. Defining what world music is really depends on who is asking the question. Whose world musi is it? This paper will focus on the philosophical conundrums of ‘world music’ within the context of the current BA World Music at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance at the University of Limerick. The paper will be framed through the following questions: what is world music; whose music is it; why should we world music and how it can be done? In this article, I will trace the shifting meanings of world music from its origins as pedagogical framework, to its use as a popular music marketing term and finally its significance as part of a post modern critique of globalisation. I will outline how students at the Irish World Academy engage with ‘world music’ both as a problematic concept but also an exercise in exploring transcultural musical relationships, particularly through practical ensemble work in five different cultural areas: popular music, Javanese gamelan, Indian Classical music, Ewe drum and dance and Turkish maqam. I will also discuss my own journey as a musician and outline how this practice has influenced both my pedagogical and theoretical framing of what it means to be a performer in the contemporary global music landscape.
Tango: An Introduction To Tango-related Topics
The aim of this article is to present tango not as a choreographic arrangement (although this will inevitably be discussed), but as a social phenomenon with a very interesting history, created in specific historical and cultural circumstances, constituting an extremely popular cinematic and literary motif and, no less importantly, an area of linguistic research. Hence the more general or descriptive nature of the article, in which, in addition to the necessary information, numerous questions, doubts and research paths appear. At the same time, we would like to emphasize the international and intercultural nature of tango, visible primarily in music and dance, but also in all the other threads presented in this article, which makes this dance a subject of broadly understood cultural studies.
Tecnobrega is a peripheral electronic music produced since the 2000s in the state of Pará, in northern Brazil. It is marked by the mix of traditional local romantic music, the rhythms from the Caribbean and electronic music globalized by the spread of recording technologies. In the last decade, the tecnobrega unfolded in several rhythm variants. This work presents an ethnography of parties related to new trend called ‘rock doido,’ the main current phenomenon of electronic music in Pará, both due to the size of the parties and the reach in digital media. The article presents the results of field research that were carried out in two events that took place in the city of Belém (capital of Pará state) in 2023. The first experience takes place at the Crocodilo Sound System Party, which focuses on the execution of the repertoire of rock doido. The second is a presentation by DJ Lorran, the main name of the rock doido in Pará today. The research also cross-discusses the spread of Pará production in the context of global-peripheral electronic music, enhanced by digital tools such as YouTube and social media.
The article describes the culture of Japanese Gothic DJs and analyses their figures. The Gothic DJs are a part of the general Gothic art, and Goth subculture intercultural movements, taken from the West and re-invented in Japan. In Japan, those movements are a strong reaction towards the dominant, conservative culture, whereas, in the West, this classical opposition (described by, for example, Dick Hebdige) is not that strong nowadays. Japanese social collectivism is often seen as oppressive towards some artistic and free-spirited individuals. Artists like those DJs are the opposition to this collectivism, and their sets at the parties make a space for other Goths to express themselves in their safe space. This movement is also very innovative due to mixing different aesthetics (keis) and minimising the problem of subcultural gatekeeping. The paper describes the rebellion led by DJs’ performances, music sets, and visual style. It is based on the bigger field research done in 2019 and 2023, where the method used was participatory observation.
Fado – the Space of Intercultural Dialogue between Poland and Portugal
This article explores fado music as a medium for intercultural dialogue between Portugal and Poland, focusing on the early 21st century while considering its multicultural roots in Lisbon’s marine districts. The study situates itself within broader research on fado’s global reach, including its popularity in Japan. The first section examines fado’s role in multicultural relations, presenting it as a living heritage and space for dialogue. The second section highlights the integration of Polish and Portuguese cultural elements in fado. The third section discusses fado concerts and festivals in Poland, emphasizing their role in cultural exchange, with a case study on Fado Café in Grudziądz.
Flamenco Dance Academies in Seville – a Transcultural Exchange Field
The objective of this text is to present flamenco dance academies in Seville as a field of transcultural exchange. The theoretical framework is provided by two concepts: Wolfgang Welsch’s idea of transculturality and Francisco Aix Gracia’s concept of the ‘flamenco field’ (campo flamenco). Flamenco dance academies serve functions that extend well beyond the mere execution of dance instructions – they are institutions where individuals from diverse cultural backgrounds, including foreigners, Andalusians, Andalusian Roma, and Spaniards from outside Andalusia, interact and negotiate their cultural identity. Flamenco dance schools also may be considered as transcultural platforms for the renegotiation of elements integral to the identities of foreign dancers, including lifestyle, behaviour, language, body, movement, and expression.
“Le Musiciste” Study Days for an Education in and the Spread of a Stolen Story
The initiative of the study days dedicated to the history of female musicians, now in its ninth edition, came to light in 2015 due to the need to raise awareness of and re-evaluate the female identity of a social, cultural and artistic nature often forgotten by European musical historiography. The ban on performing in public after marriage, the preclusion from musical positions and careers, the lack of public institutions that permitted the creation of educational pathways for women equal to those of the other sex, have all conditioned the development of female musical art and sometimes even leading to its obsolescence even though many women were protagonists, authoritative professionals and attentive witnesses of the musical society of their time. This legacy, which determined the cancellation of an important artistic legacy from the collective memory, and come down to the present day, can be reversed only thanks to a thorough knowledge of the female contribution to the music of the past and present.
Music and Its Intercultural Dimensions: A Review of the Book Na stykach iskrzy: literackie konteksty rocka [ENG: Sparks at the Points of Contact: Literary Contexts of Rock Music] (2023) by Sławomir Kuźnicki Published by Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Opolskiego
The Intercultural Dimension of Research on Music and Dance
Tożsamości Półwyspu Iberyjskiego w perspektywie artystycznej
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