Jules Sion,Alan Grant Ogilvie and the college des Ecossais in Montpellier: A network of geographers

The ‘new geography’ propounded by Vidal de La Blache in the early years of the 20th century was diffused by his protégés in France and abroad. Field classes played a significant role in the process, with the Collège des Ecossais, established by Patrick Geddes at Montpellier, providing an ideal base for British students to study the natural and cultural landscapes of the component pays of southern France. The careers of Jules Sion and Alan Grant Ogilvie are explored in this article, and practical links between French and British geographers are exemplified through experiences of fieldwork in the Languedoc before and after World War II. Networks of professional contact and friendship are vital in understanding how the practice of modern geography has been shaped.     

The Red Book of Appin: Medicine as Magic and Magic as Medicine

Folk Traditions and Folk Medicine in Scotland: The Writings of David Rorie. Edited by David Buchan. Edinburgh: Canongate Academic, 1994. 317pp. Hdbk. ISBN 1 898410 01 1. £20. Reviewed by Gillian Bennett.

Counsel from the Ancients: A Study of Badaga Proverbs, Prayers, Omens and Curses. By Paul Hockings. Berlin and New York: Mouton de Gruyter, 1988. 796pp. ISBN 3 11 011374 0. Reviewed by Ellen Ettlinger.

Welshness Performed: Welsh Concepts of Person and Society. By Carol Trosset. Tucson and London: University of Arizona Press, 1993. 183pp. ISBN 0 8165 1378 3. Reviewed by Tecwyn Vaughan Jones.

The Arabian Nights: A Companion. By Robert Irwin. Allen Lane: Penguin Press, 1994. 344pp. ISBN 0 713 99105 4. £20.00. Reviewed by Gwendolyn Leick.

The Stonemans: An Appalachian Family and the Music that Shaped their Lives. By Ivan M. Tribe. Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1993. 361pp. Illus. ISBN 0 252 01978 4 (hdbk) / 0 252 06308 2 (pbk). Reviewed by Steve Roud.

Traveling the High Way Home: Ralph Stanley and the World of Traditional Bluegrass Music. By John Wright. Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1993. 273pp. Illus. ISBN 0 252 02024 3. Reviewed by Steve Roud.

Captain Jack Crawford: Buckskin Poet, Scout and Showman. By Darlis A. Miller. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1993. 363pp. Illus. ISBN 0 98263 1449 X. Reviewed by Steve Roud.

Victorian Village Life. By Neil Philip. Oxfordshire: Albion Press, 1993. 160pp. Illus. ISBN 1 871927 05 6. £9.99. Reviewed by George Monger.

The English Rural Community: Image and Analysis. Edited by Brian Short. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992. 239pp. B/W illus. ISBN 0 521 40537 9 (hdbk) / 0 521 40567 X (pbk). Reviewed by George Monger.

Countrywomen on the Land: Memories of Rural Life in the 1920s and 30s. By G.K. Nelson. Stroud: Alan Sutton, 1992. 182pp. B/W illus. ISBN 0 7509 0181 0. £14.99. Reviewed by George Monger.

Chronicles of Alston. By Joan Rockwell. London: Janus Publishing, 1993. 189pp. ISBN 1 8576 024 8. £11.95. Reviewed by Jacqueline Simpson.

The Yorkshire Dictionary of Dialect, Tradition and Folklore. By Arnold Kellett Smith. Settle: Otley, 1994. ISBN 1 85825 016 1 (pbk) / 1 85625 017 X (hdbk). Reviewed by G.M. Awbery.

Maya Textiles of Guatemala. By Margot Blum Schevill. Austin: University of Texas Press, 1993. 295pp. Colour and b/w illus. ISBN 0 292 75143 5. Reviewed by C. Stevens.

Superstitions: Folk Magic in Hull's Fishing Community. By Alec Gill. Beverley: Hutton Press, 1993. 174pp. Illus. Pbk. ISBN 1 872167 56 x. £7.50. Reviewed by Jacqueline Simpson.

Burmese Puppets. By Noel F. Singer. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1992.126pp. 16 colour illus, 42 b/w illus. ISBN 0 19588589 9. Reviewed by George Monger.

The Maiden Who Rose from the Sea and other Finnish Folktales. Edited and translated by Helena Henderson. Enfield: Hisarlik Press, 1992. 192pp. ISBN 1 87431201 X. £14.95. Reviewed by Ruth Glass.

Folklore of Somerset. By Alan Holt. Stroud: Alan Sutton, 1992. 180pp. Illus. ISBN 0 7059 0221 3. £7.99. Reviewed by Jacqueline Simpson.

Hausa Folktales from the Niger. Translated and edited by Robert S. Glew and Chaibou Babalé. Athens, Ohio: Ohio University Press, 1993. 136pp. ISBN 0 89680 176 4. Reviewed by Ruth Glass.

Arthur: Y Casgliad Arthuraidd—Catalog/The Arthurian Collection—A Catalogue. Gwasanaeth Llyfrgell a Gwybodaeth/Library and Information Service. Cyngor Sir Clwyd/Clwyd County Council, 1994. 190pp. ISBN 1859910025. £15.95. Reviewed by Juliette Wood.

Medieval Balladry and the Courtly Tradition: Literature of Revolt and Assimilation. By Gwendolyn A. Morgan. American University Studies Series 4, Vol. 160. New York: Peter Lang, 1993. 148pp. Reviewed by Kaye McAlpine.

Treasures of the National Library of Ireland. Edited by Noel Kissane. Published by the Boyne Valley Honey Company, 1994. 242pp. ISBN 0 951782 34 7 (pbk)/ 0 951782 35 5 (hdbk). £9.95 (pbk), £25.00 (hdbk). Irish edition Seoda i Leabharlann Náisiúnta nah Éireann. Pbk £9.95. Reviewed by John Hutchings.

Legends Told in Canada. Edited by Edith Fowke. Toronto: Royal Ontario Museum, 1994. 96pp. Illus. Hdbk. ISBN 0 88854 410 3. C$19.95. Reviewed by Jill Clayton.

Folk Law: Essays in the Theory and Practice of Lex non Scripta . Edited by Alison Dundes Renteln and Alan Dundes. New York: Garland, 1994. 1037pp. 2 vols. Hdbk. ISBN 0 8153 1314 4. US$150. Reviewed by Jill Clayton.

The Horsieman: Memories of a Traveller 1928–58. By Duncan Williamson. Edinburgh: Canongate, 1994. 276pp. ISBN 0 86241 444 X. £13.99. Reviewed by Ruth Glass.

Fireside Tales of the Traveller Children. By Duncan Williamson. Edinburgh: Canongate Press, 1993. Pbk. ISBN 0 86241 4 57 1. £3.50. Reviewed by Ruth Glass.

The Broonie, Silkies and Fairies. By Duncan Williamson. Edinburgh: Canongate Press, 1993. Pbk. ISBN 0 86241 456 3. £3.50. Reviewed by Ruth Glass.

The Well at the World's End: Folk Tales of Scotland. By Norah and William Montgomerie. Edinburgh: Canongate Press, 1993. Pbk. ISBN 0 86241 462 8. £3.50. Reviewed by Ruth Glass.

The Rebirth of Witchcraft. By Doreen Valiente. London: Robert Hale, 1989. 236pp. Illus. ISBN 0790-3715-5. Reviewed by Jacqueline Simpson.

An ABC of Witchcraft Past and Present. By Doreen Valiente. London: Robert Hale, 1994. 377pp. Illus. Pbk. ISBN 0790 5350 9. £7.99. Reviewed by Jacqueline Simpson.

The Rise and Fall of Merry England: The Ritual Year 1400–1700. By Ronald Hutton. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press, 1994. 366pp. Appendix. Notes. Index. Hdbk. ISBN 0 19 820363 2. £17.95. Reviewed by Gillian Bennett.

The Things That Were Said Of Them: Shaman Stories and Oral Histories of the Tikigaq People. By Tom Lowenstein. Told by Asatchaq. Translated by Tukummiq and Tom Lowenstein. The University of California Press, 1992. 262pp. 5 photographs and 2 maps. ISBN 0-520-06569-7. Reviewed by Ruth Glass.

Dragons, Devils and Demons (Traditional Sussex Tales II). Edited by Tony Wales. Reviewed by Jacqueline Simpson.

Cassettes obtainable from Elixis Enterprises, Glistar Studios, PO Box 110, Horsham, W. Sussex RH12 1ZS. £5.95 ea/£10.95 pair (plus 95p postage). Reviewed by Jacqueline Simpson.     

Linking Essentialist and Constructivist Ethnicity

Abstract

This article argues that the essentialist and the constructivist positions within theories of ethnicity are in fact compatible if one introduces a concept here called “internalized fluid capacities”, connoting that which is inherently (genetically) dispositional – and in that sense biologically “anticipated” – but which remains to be developed into observable social characteristics through sociocultural impact. This perspective is based on the genetic capacity to mold or “instruct” the development of an organism from its embryonic state and onwards by using prior stages as points of departure for further instructions. In this way, certain fluid capacities become imprinted in individuals and collectivities through reinforcing interaction with the ambient society. These capacities may then harden and develop into apparent “essentials”, forming a group's collective self-image. The article concludes with the suggestion that this explanatory model can be usefully applied to the debate around Swedish governmental definitions of Saamihood.