Theme:
6. Contested Pasts & Presents
Session format:
Regular session
Title:
CANCELLED Pioneers and Kuhnian Revolutions at the Dawn of Celtic Studies: Re-thinking the Present Debate through the Lenses of the Past
Content:
In a recent television programme, the well-known Irish actor Ardol O'Hanlon explored his supposed Celtic roots using archaeology and showing how this was used for political ends especially in the 1930s, contrasting the ideas of Adolf Mahr and E. Estyn Evans.
Celtic studies are a ‘hot topic’ in Archaeology, always was, always is. There is no escape from it. Nowadays the focus of the debate is on Archaeogenetics, looking at the spread of the Celts and Celtic language in Europe to tackle the current dispute on ‘Celtic from the East’, ‘Celtic from the West’ and ‘Celtic from the Centre’. Basically, we are trying to use new and fashionable approaches to provide an answer to one of the oldest questions affecting Celtic studies since its establishment, i.e. the search for the ‘original Celtic homeland’.
The session encourages scholars to take a step back and rethink past approaches, looking at the dawn of Celtic studies in Europe. Who were the pioneers? Which approaches did they use and why? How much did the then historical-political context (e.g. nationalism) affect their approach toward the past?
The session particularly welcomes contributions dealing with the emergence of Celtic studies in Europe, especially in the 19th and early 20th century, and the reasons why they can be considered revolutionary in Kuhnian terms. This will allow us to trace back the steps which led to the current East/West/Centre conundrum, giving us the chance to rethink them critically and possibly explore alternative ways of interpreting the archaeological record and the ancient written sources.
Keywords:
Celtic studies, Kuhnian revolutions, pioneers, East/West/Centre conundrum
Session associated with MERC:
no
Session associated with CIfA:
no
Session associated with SAfA:
no
Session associated with CAA:
no
Session associated with DGUF:
no
Session associated with other:
Main organiser:
Fabio Saccoccio (United Kingdom) 1
Co-organisers:
John Collis (United Kingdom) 2
Raimund Karl (Austria) 3
Gonzalo Ruiz Zapatero (Spain) 4
Affiliations:
1. University of Nottingham, Department of Classics and Archaeology
2. University of Sheffield, Department of Archaeology
3. University of Vienna, Institute for Prehistory and Historic Archaeology
4. Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Departamento de Prehistoria, Historia Antigua y Arqueologia
THIS SESSION CAN NOT BE SELECTED AT THIS MOMENT