Paper short abstract:

Hungarian ethnographers and folklorists have fostered the notion of pristine peasantness as trustees of ancient and national tradition. However, I argue that ethnographic ‘facts’ are not mere copies of earlier lifeways but influence both scholarship and political legitimation.

Paper long abstract:

The concept of turning to and safeguarding tradition originates in the German ('Wandervögel', 'Freideutsche') and English (scouts) movements of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries when elites were increasingly preoccupied with 'old habits' triggering cultural and scholarly activities seeking authenticity and autonomy. Between the two world wars, Hungarian ethnographers and folklorists aimed at galvanizing cultural life according to national and Christian tenets. Similarly, during the height of Kádárist socialism, the revival movement and the populist turn continued to idealize peasants – especially Romanian Transylvanians and their singing, dancing, dress, and crafts - as trustees of ancient, genuine, and pristine national tradition. Based on such ‘classic’ ethnographic data, the concepts of tangible, and intangible aspects of historic peasant tradition continue to cement scientific, and artistic programs while also contributing to state actions and symbols. In my presentation, I ask whether 19-20th-century ethnographic and folkloric data can represent authentic cultural survivals of bygone days and argue against the essentialist notion of vernacular peasantness and specifically Hungarian peasant folklore as they balance on the heritage-invention and tradition-modernity axis. By highlighting their utility and representation for domestic and international consumption (tourism, UNESCO, world music, etc.), I argue that notions of heritage, folkloric and ethnographic ‘facts’ do not simply exist as mere fakes or copies of earlier lifeways but are in constant rupture, renewal, and innovation influencing both scholarship and political legitimation.