Citation:
Dansac, Yael. 2023.“Embodying Celtic Heritage in Brittany’s Megaliths: Creative Rituality for Cultural Belonging.”. in Uses and Abuses of Power in Alternative Spiritualities. Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.
Abstract:
Abstract: In the last fifty years, Brittany has undergone a cultural revival characterized by artistic and linguistic manifestations that emphasize the historic relationships between this French region and other Celtic countries. After centuries of being mocked and denied by the French government, the Bretons’ Celtic identity has become a motive of personal and collective pride and a source of inspiration for diverse activities. Among these, the contemporary Pagan-inspired practices held in local megaliths have drawn my attention. I conducted ethnographic research to understand how members of this ethnic minority creatively relate their rituals to Brittany’s history and Celticity.Presenter bio: Yael Dansac, anthropologist, is the recipient of a CIVIS3i post-doctoral fellowship co-funded by Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions. She is affiliated to the Université Libre de Bruxelles, in Belgium, and to the University of Glasgow, in United Kingdom. Since 2022 she leads a transnational research project on the contemporary sacralization of European megalithic sites. Her interests include contemporary animism, embodiment, and relationships to non-human beings, visible and invisible. Her most recent book is entitled Relating with More-Than-Humans: Interbeing Rituality in a Living World (edited with Jean Chamel. London: Palgrave Macmillan, 2022).
Presenter affiliation: Centre for the Interdisciplinary Study of Religions and Secularism of the Free University of Brussels, Belgium, and Department of Theology and Religious Studies of the University of Glasgow, United Kingdom