The conveners of the Transnational Asia/Pacific Section have put together the following guide highlighting panels, papers, and other events that might be of interest to section members or anyone interested in the folklore of Asia and the Pacific at the 2022 AFS Annual Meeting.

The reason for us to present this guide is not to restrict the scope of our research to the region and/or idea of “Asia,” but to provide a glimpse of topics and tools that may inform the research in or on Asia.

Download this Transnational Asia/Pacific Section Guide to AFS 2022

Learn more about the Transnational Asia/Pacific Section

Conveners: Liu Wei (Ph.D. Candidate of the Ohio State University) and Mark Bender (Professor in Dept. of East Asian Languages and Literatures, The Ohio State University)


Sessions Sponsored by the Transnational/Asia Pacific Section

01-05 Women, Belief, and Everyday Religious Experiences in Contemporary Multi-Ethnic China      
Thursday, 8:00 am–10:00 am                   
Promenade C

03-08 On Becoming More Differentiated: Diversification of Craft Practices and Experiences in Southwest China  
Thursday, 2:30 pm–4:30 pm                     
Diplomat       

04-01 Translation in/of Folklore Studies: Perspectives from China
Friday, 8:00 am–10:00 am                         
Tulsa Central

07-04 Exalting the Folk at the Feet of Himalaya: Representations of Folklore in Himachal Pradesh, India Saturday, 8:30 am–10:00 am  
Promenade B

Other Sessions of Interest

02-07 Folklore and the Transformation of Museum Collection Practices       
Thursday, 10:30 am–12:30 pm                     
Oklahoma South

04-03 Oral Traditions of the Indian Subcontinent: Orality as Means of Re-Centering the Margins [hybrid]                                  
Friday, 8:00 am–10:00 am                            
Promenade D

Individual Papers of Interest

Thursday

01-07 An Immortal Tree and a Pilgrimage Tradition at the Holy Confluence of Rivers: A Study of Akshay Vat and the Kumbh Consciousness

              Amit Singh (Ambedkar University Delhi)

01-03 Affective Investments in a Rite of Passage: A Study of Marriage Songs, Rites, and Rituals in Haryanavi Culture

              Ojaswini Hooda (University of Delhi)

02-11 Understanding the Personal Narrative of the Mask-Maker in Mukha Bhaona, the Ritualistic Mask Dance of Majuli District, Assam

              Bhumika Singh (Ambedkar University Delhi)

03-05 Curating Community: Comics Festival Organizing in India [virtual]

              Jeremy Stoll (Columbus College of Art and Design)

03-14 The Teller, the Tale, and In-Betweens: Re-Centering Peripheries through Transformative Collaborations

                Haidamteu  Zeme Zeme N (Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IITD))

Friday

04-09 Collective Joy by Comfort Creators: Craftsmanship and Foodways in the Digital Lifeworld

              Minglei “Hart” Zhang (University of Maine)

06-13 Japanese Classical Violinist Maako Sfrom Learns Old Time Fiddle by Ear from North Carolina Local Mentor Cecil Gurganus

              Maako Shiratori (Duke University)

06-03 Squid Game: Children’s Games and Conversations on the (Play)Ground

                Virginia Siegel (Arkansas Folk and Traditional Arts, University of Arkansas Libraries)

05-11 Innocence Lost: Games and Memory in the Korean Drama Squid Game

              Charles La Shure (Seoul National University)

04-11 Kumaoni Holi Folk Songs and Baithaks: Expressions of the Collective as Sites of Affective Affinities and Intimacies

                Meghal Karki (Ambedkar University Delhi)

05-14 Through the Eyes of Mourners: Feelings and Beliefs of Iranian Women in Practices of the Month of Muharram

                 Zahra Abedinezhad (The Ohio State University)

06-07 Treasured Folklife and Language Pluralism Face off with Sweeping National Mandates for English-language Instruction: Who Will Win?

                 Anis Sundusiyah (University of Pittsburgh)

Saturday

07-05 The Power of Rural Market: Reshaping Relocated Villagers’ Sense of Place in North China [virtual]

              Lei Cai (Wuhan University)

07-03 An Audience with the Thakurs: Exploring the Potential of Vernacular Belief in Bengal [virtual]

                 Malay Bera (Ashoka University)

08-03 Making the Chilocco Indian School: A Generational Story Graphic Novel

              Julie Pearson-Little Thunder (Oklahoma State University)

09-01 From Deification to Decoration: A Study of the Mohra Idols of Himachal Pradesh State in India [virtual]

              Avani Solanki (University of Chicago)

09-07 Conspiracy Belief and Political Identity: COVID-19 Conspiracy Narratives in Iran

                 Afsane Rezaei (Utah State University)

09-10 Tehri Dam Induced Eviction of Old Tehri: Memory and Narrative of Resistance and Belonging

                Ruchi Rana (Department of Modern Indian Languages & Literary Studies, University of Delhi)

09-13 Bengal Food Cultures in the Eyes of Global Corporatism: Folklore, Tradition, and Modernity

                 A.S.M. Abu Dayen (Jahangirnagar University)

Special Events

Reception Celebrating the AFS Notable Folklorists of Color                               
Thursday, 6:00 pm–7:30 pm
Promenade Foyer 

Remembering Terror, Retelling History: A Conversation about Racial Justice Initiatives in Tulsa and N.C.  
Thursday, 10:30 am–12:00 pm     
Greenwood Cultural Center, 322 North Greenwood Avenue, Tulsa, Oklahoma 74120           

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