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- Convenors:
-
Otto Latva
(University of Turku)
Noora Kallioniemi (University of Turku)
Hannu Salmi (University of Turku)
Emily O'Gorman (Macquarie University)
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- Formats:
- Panel
- Streams:
- Expanding the Practice of Environmental History
- Location:
- Room 21
- Sessions:
- Friday 23 August, -
Time zone: Europe/Helsinki
Short Abstract:
The panel focuses on how digitised newspaper data can be used to explore the changes in biodiversity and the human relationship with animals and plants over a long period of time. The aim of the panel is to bring together researchers who use such data to study the questions of the multispecies past.
Long Abstract:
The digitisation of historical newspapers over the past twenty years has provided a powerful tool for historical research that allows long-term analysis and the exploitation of large amounts of material, especially as the ways of searching the material, identifying names and concepts, and extracting material with computer-assisted methods has advanced rapidly. Today, hundreds of millions of pages of newspaper material are available, from different countries and continents, and publications from the entire history of newspapers, from the 17th century to the present day, have been digitised. The material from the 19th and 20th centuries in particular is abundant from an environmental history perspective, as during the period of expansive growth of the press, observations on nature and the environment were also regularly published in the pages of newspapers. The aim of the panel is to bring together researchers who use digitised newspapers to study the history of biodiversity. How can this data be used to explore changes in the distribution of animal or plant species, what are the critical issues to consider and what opportunities does the analysis open up? The panel will use newspaper data to explore the history of invasive and extinct species, as well as the questions of the multispecies past. The panel welcomes presentations from different geographical contexts and time periods.
Accepted papers:
Session 1 Friday 23 August, 2024, -Paper short abstract:
The cultural history of the Horse chestnut is often connected to prestigious landscapes. In the presentation I will compare Finnish newspaper data with garden literature, and ponder how digital methods can help to enlarge the historical knowledge about a species.
Paper long abstract:
The goal of the Fauna et Flora Fennica project is to widen the understanding of the history of biodiversity in Finland, using digitised newspapers as a source material. In the presentation I will focus on trees, especially noble deciduous trees. As a case study I will concentrate on Horse chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum), of which the first mention can be found in in 1891. The cultural history of the Horse chestnut is connected to gardens and prestigious landscapes, but it has also spread into surrounding environments. I the presentation I will compare the findings in the newspapers with garden literature, and ponder how digital methods can help to enlarge the historical knowledge about a species previously studied in the context of gardening.
Paper short abstract:
In this paper I look at how garden lupines (Lupinus polyphyllus) have been discussed in Finnish press since the 19th century. I show how newspaper and magazine data is valuable when studying changing notions on plants and biodiversity and that it can also help trace plant agency.
Paper long abstract:
In this paper I look at how garden lupines (Lupinus polyphyllus) have been discussed in Finnish press since the 19th century. Garden lupine, native to North America, was brought to Finland in the nineteenth century to be used as an ornamental plant and forage plant. It was seen as a useful plant as gardeners admired its colorful looks and farmers used it as a fertilizing plant, but as time went on, peopled perceptions changed as the plants ability to spread from gardens to outside nature became evident. Nowadays it is listed as an invasive alien species and seen as a biodiversity threat and landowners are demanded to get rid of it. By looking at digitized newspaper and magazine data, I trace peoples’ perceptions of garden lupines, track its changing place in Finnish culture and nature from the nineteenth century onward: I show how Finns attitudes have changed toward this plant and why. What kind of emotions this garden escapee has evoked and how different people have understood and defined it according to the press? I also show how the plant itself; its biology and agency has affected the ways people have understand it. In my paper, I highlight the benefits of using digitized newspaper and magazine data as a source when studying changes in the biodiversity. Even with its shortcomings, as a source it is valuable in tracing attitude changes. I argue that it can also be used to trace plant agency.
Paper short abstract:
This paper explores Baltic Sea Porpoise using Finnish and Swedish newspaper archives, examining their historical distribution from the late 19th century to the 1960s.
Paper long abstract:
In this paper, I delve into the manifold ways in which newspaper archives can provide invaluable source material for cultural historical research. The presentation encompasses two compelling case studies that shed light on the subject matter. Firstly, I explore the utility of newspaper archives as a qualitative research tool, offering insights into my perceptions of the porpoise as gleaned from textual content. This research uncovers a rich tapestry of my own cultural interpretations regarding the presence of porpoises and other marine mammals. The archive reveals diverse discourses that portray the porpoise as a spectacle, a resource, and an object of both wonder and scrutiny. This investigation is firmly grounded in my own textual analysis and harnesses digital methods as integral research tools.
Secondly, I underscore the potential for quantitative research employing newspaper archives. In this research model, observations concerning porpoises are systematically organized into structured data tables, with a specific emphasis on geospatial information. These data are then translated into maps and vectors, visually elucidating the research findings. My study aims to demonstrate how digital newspaper archives can be harnessed to study species that are on the brink of extinction or already endangered. Additionally, I emphasize the invaluable contribution of historical newspaper archives in enriching our comprehension of environmental history.
Paper short abstract:
The project Fauna et Flora Fennica studies the fauna and flora in the region of Finland through multidisciplinary research. We demonstrate the use of digitized newspapers to find sightings of different animal and plant species around Finland, thus renewing the understanding of Finnish biodiversity.
Paper long abstract:
The project “Fauna et Flora Fennica” studies the fauna and flora in the region of Finland through historical, cultural and linguistic research. It brings to light a large number of sightings of different species hidden in newspapers and magazines from the 19th century to the 1970s. The sightings have not been previously widely known in a natural scientific and public context. The aim of the project is to renew the understanding of Finnish biodiversity and to provide more comprehensive information on the occurrence of different species in Finland.
In our presentation, we demonstrate the use of digitized newspaper data and creating maps that show the sightings of the species. We describe critical issues that we have encountered so far in our research. When finding species hiding in newspapers, change and transformation are present in many ways. For instance, changing names of the plants and animals, changing human made borders and changes that invasive and other newly-arrived species bring about are issues to consider. The project brings together reciprocal multidisciplinary competence from different fields of humanities. We also collaborate with natural scientists and communicate our findings with them.