Re-constructing the past in post-genocide Rwanda

An Archaeological Contribution

Datos Bibliográficos

ID6041672
AutoresJohn Giblin (0000-0001-6016-5753, University College London, autor de correspondencia), John D Giblin
Año2010
Volumen45
Número3
Páginas341-341
Fecha de publicación2010-12-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessNo
TipoARTICLE
RevistaAzania Archaeological Research in Africa (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0067-270X • E-ISSN: 1945-5534
EditorialInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/0067270x.2010.521680
OpenAlexW2066160287
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas8

A particular version of Rwanda’s pre-colonial Iron Age past was constructed during colonial rule and influenced by a racial world-view. This ethnicised and racialised past was used by successive Rwandan rulers to divide the population along newcomer/latecomer lines and eventually became a central tenet of the propaganda that contributed to the genocide in Rwanda in 1994. More recently this racial presentation of Rwanda’s past has since been successfully deconstructed by social historians such as Mamdani (2002), Chretien (2003), Eltringham (2004) Vansina (2004 and Newbury (2009), and has been shown to be a heavily biased construction based on colonial values. Yet, the ethno-racial presentation of the past continues to be problematic for history education in Rwanda. This thesis follows on from the work of these authors. It suggests that archaeology can usefully engage with contemporary political contexts, involving the deconstruction and reconstruction of Rwanda’s pre-colonial past in a climate of reconciliation. Following this introduction this thesis explores the concept of ethnicity in relation to Rwandan archaeology before reconsidering the tangible evidence for the Iron Age in Rwanda through a critical review of the existing literature. Furthermore, through the application of a politically aware and sensitive theoretical and methodological framework, this thesis explores non-ethno-racial historical narratives in pre-colonial Rwanda through a new body of archaeological data generated during twelve months of recent fieldwork in southern, central and northern Rwanda. Finally this thesis concludes with a summary of the archaeological outcomes of this research and some speculation on future research directions

Archaeology · Art · Colonialism · Deconstruction (building) · Ethnic group · Ethnology · Genocide · Geography · Literature · Narrative · Political science · Politics · Population · Relation (database) · Sociology · Anthropology · Demography · Gender Studies · Global Maritime and Colonial Histories · History · Law · Middle East and Rwanda Conflicts