THE ROLE OF THE POPULAR PLAY IN PRESERVING NATIONAL IDENTITY (THE EXAMPLE OF VELIKA PISANICA, CROATIA, WITH ADDITIONAL REFERENCE TO BURGENLAND AND SLOVENIA)
THE ROLE OF THE POPULAR PLAY IN PRESERVING NATIONAL IDENTITY (THE EXAMPLE OF VELIKA PISANICA, CROATIA, WITH ADDITIONAL REFERENCE TO BURGENLAND AND SLOVENIA)

Summary/Abstract: Ethnographic inquiry into the folk culture of the Carpathian Basin, with particular reference to developmental trends, has revealed much new information regarding the lives of Hungarians abroad, especially regarding changing living conditions within Hungarian populations now living outside historically redrawn Hungarian state borders. It would be no exaggeration to claim that these Hungarians have, to the present day, lived under extraordinarily diverse circumstances, and that the preservation of folk culture in the minority national environment has been a decisive factor in the maintenance of their national identity. For this culture to survive and grow, however, it is essential that members of the national group learn and use their native Hungarian tongue. The present study concerns itself with the historic genre of the popular play, a cultural phenomenon that has played a special role in this regard and that in some places, both in the recent past, and today, still bears considerable significance in the preservation of minority national identity. Accordingly, this study will not extend to actual folk dramatics, though it will make reference to certain intersections and possible relationships where it seems natural to do so.

• Details
• Contents