Paper short abstract:

This paper explores the significance of a plane tree in a Greek village for people who perceive it constantly. It is argued that the plane tree is an active producer of the public sphere, while it becomes the materialised form of people's identity, giving them a sense of belonging in the world.

Paper long abstract:

The landscape can never be simply a representation, since it is lived and experienced by people. The phenomenological perception of the territorial affiliation is to be considered a key element in the making of our personal and collective identity. There are places where we feel at home and others where we do not want to go back. The aim of this paper is to explore the material and social significance of a plane tree in a village called Arna, situated at the South of Greece, as it is evoked by the mutual influence with people who perceive it. It focuses on questions about identity, locality and belonging, by following the transactions between people and the plane tree. The role of the plane tree in modifying a place where everyday life, memory and history are entangled is found to be significant. The idea of "feeling at home" emerges from the gathering around the plane tree, which produces a social place and becomes the symbol of the village, where people project their locality. Locals' expressions of their perception of the tree, along with their reactions concerning a potential death, underline its fundamental part in the creation of a familiar place where identity is being constructed.