Finding the 'first voice' in rural England: the challenges of safeguarding intangible heritage in a national museum

Smith, R. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0009-0407-0309 (2009) Finding the 'first voice' in rural England: the challenges of safeguarding intangible heritage in a national museum. International Journal of Intangible Heritage, 4.

Abstract/Summary

This paper is an attempt to explore the challenges of defining intangible heritage and ‘community’ in England. It uses as its case study the Museum of English Rural Life, University of Reading: an urban museum with a rural theme. The paper examines current theoretical discourse around the concept of the ‘first voice’ and debate about the role of museums in the preservation of intangible heritage. It then examines the relevance of these concepts to the identification of ‘rural’ intangible heritage stake holders in England. In this way, it shows the potential for concepts of intangible heritage to influence national museums. However, by applying theory and practice which is designed to support work with well-defined ‘originating communities’ to a national museum, it also highlights the challenges of initiating community engagement in a multicultural society.

Item Type	Article
URI	https://reading-clone.eprints-hosting.org/id/eprint/37946
Refereed	Yes
Divisions	Central Services > Academic and Governance Services > University Museums and Special Collections
Publisher	The National Folk Museum of Korea
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