In May 2002, when its independence was formally established, Timor-Leste became the latest of the former Portuguese colonies that had to come to terms with its colonial heritage. But this was not its only challenge, as this territory had been occupied by its neighbour Indonesia in the period 1975-1999, entailing misery for the population and an ‘Indonesiazation’ of their cultural expressions and institutions. The new state of Timor-Leste needed to conquer respect on the world stage – on the map it is a dwarf between the giants of Indonesia and Australia – and also legitimacy among its citizens, where problems triggered in particular by the Indonesian occupation still lingered. Therefore, the closely-connected processes of state-building, nation-building and identity-building have been going on until now. The state and several linked organizations such as the educational institutions are highly involved in the promotion of the ‘feeling of belonging’ to Timor-Leste among the citizens. Factors which complicate this identity-construction include internal rivalries, the cultural influence of Indonesia, and the great heterogeneity of the population, which counts about twenty ethnolinguistic groups. In the paper several dimensions and symbolic objects and events that are created and activated for the construction of a national identity are examined. These are the flag and anthem, language, religion, monuments, the cult of national heroes, and national celebrations. In most of these dimensions elements of perceived national culture as well as of Portuguese legacy are interwoven. The paper is based on documental research and interviews and observations in Timor-Leste during November 2016. PowerPoint, not the written texto, available.

Este trabalho procura conhecer os caminhos que levaram a construção da imagem do poeta Gonçalves Dias que conhecemos hoje. Procura-se entender de que forma ele veio a construir o nome, no cenário letrado do Império do Brasil, que o fez ser identificado como o poeta nacional por excelência, e também, identificar, em que esferas e projetos ele atuou durante o processo de construção de sua imagem. Nesse caminho, trabalhou-se com a análise de sua correspondência, de modo a perceber qual o peso que suas relações sociais exerceram na formação de sua identidade autoral. Entende-se também que a imagem/memória de Gonçalves Dias hoje conhecida foi fruto dos esforços de seus biógrafos, se não em criá-la, ao menos em fixá-la, ao longo dos anos, de modo a reservar para Gonçalves Dias, definitivamente, um lugar no panteon nacional.

Nation-building is a complex process and can be accomplished in many ways. While the Portuguese 20th century dictatorship of Oliveira Salazar enforced the many traits that made this period what it is, it remains a fact that the regime concerned itself with external policies and with the image it created among other countries, especially within Europe. One of the forms of imposing this idea of a nation was naturally through propaganda or ‘soft power’. The aim of this presentation is to show how translated propaganda contributed to a specific image of Portugal abroad, mainly through the speeches of Salazar, during the period of 1930-1950. Over these two decades the regime commissioned a high amount of textual production in several European languages, this attitude of intense translation efforts being viewed as a clear propaganda tool in itself. The English language and the intention of creating a specific image of the country among the British politicians and policy-makers was the goal of this course of action. Throughout the work, this will be highlighted through the qualitative analysis of a corpus of 29 speeches by Salazar published in English, mainly in London through Faber & Faber, but also in Lisbon, through the National Propaganda Secretariat. These circulated in book form, but also as individual booklets published under the umbrella collection “Salazar says”. These translations were for British consumption only. The outcome of this analysis will not only shed light on how the regime wanted to be known to a British target audience but also provide information on how the translation process occurred and thus shaped the nation-building process during this time frame and context.

Resumo Em 1969, a 60km da então capital da República Soviética do Cazaquistão, Alma-Ata, arqueólogos encontraram, durante uma escavação numa estrutura funerária do tipo kurgan, um traje envolvendo um esqueleto datados dos séculos V ou IV a.C. Ricamente decorados com mais de 4.000 peças de ouro, os restos foram logo apelidados de Golden Man. Por acreditarem se tratar de um jovem príncipe de origem cita-saca, o achado logo se tornou um dos mais importantes símbolos da nacionalidade cazaque em construção a partir daquele momento. Pesquisas realizadas desde o final da década de 1990 sugerem, porém, que o “Homem Dourado” tenha sido, de fato, uma “Mulher Dourada”, o que tem gerado um debate com certo impacto sobre a reformulação das representações sobre a identidade nacional cazaque. Esboçaremos reflexões sobre a relação entre nation-building, gênero e o papel político da arqueologia/antropologia do ponto de vista de um antropólogo-turista que visitou o Cazaquistão em dezembro de 2017.

Este artigo almeja analisar as operações de nation-building, que, desde os atentados terroristas de 11 de setembro de 2001, são consideradas uma das maneiras para se lidar com as novas ameaças de segurança internacional, principalmente os ditos Estados Falidos. Assim sendo, revisaremos a bibliografia sobre o tema, procurando identificar as origens destas operações, assim como as definições utilizadas pelos principais autores e os problemas que elas possam apresentar.

Indian and Brazilian societies present many differences, but they also share similarities that largely relate to their colonial past. They are marked by internal cultural differences and above all by huge social inequalities. In each country, discourses of political and intellectual leaders emerged who sought not only to explain local traditions and the status quo of social relations, but also to suggest political proposals to combat the perceived problems. This article aims to focus on the discourses of four important personalities responsible for the elaboration of approaches that would become paradigmatic references in the discussions in each of the countries: Gandhi vs. Ambedkar; Freyre vs. Fernandes. The analysis seeks to point to oppositions and parallels in the most diverse planes, but especially in the ways in which these thinkers dealt with the topics of differences and inequalities.

This article outlines the structure and editorial practices of the phonographic industry in postcolonial Mozambique during the so-called ‘socialist period’. It details the production phases, the associated companies and delves into the material conditions and aesthetic values that guided the phonograms published by NGOMA—dubbed as ‘the Mozambican national label’—and their relationship with state-defined cultural policy between 1978 (when production on this series commenced) and 1990 (when vinyl production officially ceased in the country). Several themes are explored, such as predominant topics of song lyrics, repertoires and artists, copyright, women artists, and the restrictions on music production during the civil war. After analysing the main musical trends and acknowledging noteworthy absences, I reflect on NGOMA’s efficiency in the nation-building process.

This dissertation explores the relationship between music, cultural policy, and the phonographic industry in communist Romania between 1965 and 1989. The main object is the state-owned record company Electrecord, the only of its kind during the analyzed period. On the one hand, I aim to identify the production phases, from the initial selection of artists and repertoire to be released, to the distribution and selling of phonograms, and analyze which political decisions influenced this process and to what extent. On the other hand, I will consider which musical genres were encouraged or censored by the company and on what grounds. With its 88-year history, Electrecord became a crucial institution to understand the history of recorded music in Romania, playing a fundamental role in many critical moments of social, economic, and political transformation. The company's participation in the state's cultural politics also offers an interesting case study on the relationship between music and nation-building but also on the mediation between economic, political and cultural aspects in the phonogram production process.