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Abstract Nappi, fermented shrimp, is a traditional diet that is widely consumed by the ethnic communities of Southeast Asian countries, especially in Bangladesh. The present study was carried out to determine the proximate composition of Nappi collected from two different places, i.e., the Moheshkhali and Chaufaldandi areas of Cox’s Bazar district, Bangladesh. Traditional methods were used to prepare Nappi, and the standard procedure was followed to determine the proximate composition. The proximate composition of Nappi varied from place to place depending on the raw materials, preparation techniques, and surrounding conditions of the formulation places. Associated statistical analysis was conducted by r-programming (version 4.2.3). Proximate composition includes moisture, protein, ash, fat, and carbohydrate contents, amounting to 37.66 ± 1.51%, 34.34 ± 0.68%, 17.49 ± 0.46%, 8.53 ± 0.45%, and 1.39 ± 0.10%, respectively, for the Moheshkhali sample and 35.44 ± 1.37%, 37.23 ± 1.78%, 18.46 ± 0.59%, 6.00 ± 0.40%, and 2.66 ± 0.21%, respectively, for the Chaufaldandi sample. The study showed that moisture and fat content were significantly higher (ANOVA, p

Nappi, fermented shrimp, is a traditional diet that is widely consumed by the ethnic communities of Southeast Asian countries, especially in Bangladesh. The present study was carried out to determine the proximate composition of Nappi collected from two different places, i.e., the Moheshkhali and Chaufaldandi areas of Cox's Bazar district, Bangladesh. Traditional methods were used to prepare Nappi, and the standard procedure was followed to determine the proximate composition. The proximate composition of Nappi varied from place to place depending on the raw materials, preparation techniques, and surrounding conditions of the formulation places. Associated statistical analysis was conducted by r-programming (version 4.2.3). Proximate composition includes moisture, protein, ash, fat, and carbohydrate contents, amounting to 37.66 ± 1.51%, 34.34 ± 0.68%, 17.49 ± 0.46%, 8.53 ± 0.45%, and 1.39 ± 0.10%, respectively, for the Moheshkhali sample and 35.44 ± 1.37%, 37.23 ± 1.78%, 18.46 ± 0.59%, 6.00 ± 0.40%, and 2.66 ± 0.21%, respectively, for the Chaufaldandi sample. The study showed that moisture and fat content were significantly higher (ANOVA, p < 0.05) in the Moheshkhali sample. In contrast, protein, carbohydrate, and ash content were substantially higher (ANOVA, p < 0.05) in the Chaufaldandi sample. Nappi's marketing strategy, supply channel, and value chain were also analyzed. The study's findings revealed that the quality of Nappi relied on fresh raw materials, the hygienic condition of the processing places, and suitable techniques. Moreover, good-quality Nappi has a significant market demand among the local ethnic communities in Bangladesh and the ethnic communities living abroad. So, it is recommended that interventions be provided on proper preparation techniques and marketing channels for Nappi. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The challenges faced by ethnic migrants in urban areas highlight the importance of gaining a comprehensive understanding of their perception. This research investigates the adaptive capacities of ethnic migrants, extending the analysis beyond the first generation to explain how these communities navigate challenges in the post-COVID era. The study examines the dynamics of ethnic migration, exploring intercultural interactions and the evolving experiences of successive migrant generations using sentiment analysis techniques. The study analyzes textual data from in-depth semi-structured interviews to understand their experiences in city and sentiments about the host community. Sentiment analysis, often known as opinion mining, is used in this research to determine the emotional undertone of the third and fourth-generation Chinese and Anglo-Indian residents living in Kolkata, India. The study contributes to evidence-based strategies by identifying positive and negative sentiments associated with ethnic migrants. Results show that the frequency and polarity of the words used during the interviews significantly explain their association with the host community and their sense of belongingness. The findings of this research are significant in indicating the vitality of these communities in the city. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores four 1.5-generation Korean-New Zealanders' perceptions of bilingualism, heritage language (HL) competence, and identity. Drawing on interview data, the study shows that the participants were strongly connected to their ethnic group and strove to accept and strengthen their hyphenated Korean-New Zealander identities through foregrounding their bilingual and bicultural competence. In addition to their Korean use at home, socializing with other Korean speakers at church and in peer groups aided their learning of a wide range of registers in context, while providing culturally sensitive places for the participants to explore their identities. Nevertheless, the study also found that the participants encountered racial and linguistic hierarchical structures from which they were marginalized, which delayed their construction of positive bilingual identities. The findings enable a deeper understanding of how family-internal and family-external factors shape immigrant children's identities, and suggest that substantial institutional and societal support are needed to foster immigrant children's bilingualism and biculturalism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While tourism brings employment opportunities to ethnic communities surrounding national parks, striking a balance between economic development and environmentalcultural preservation is paramount for ensuring long-term sustainability. In 2021, the first mountain cog rail transit project for poverty alleviation and tourism development started to be built in western China. It will pass through the pilot area of the Giant Panda National Park, bringing development opportunities and challenges for the local Tibetan community. Based on a questionnaire survey of 395 Tibetan residents in the park vicinity, this study utilizes asymmetrical approach so as to explore the multifaceted elements shaping benefit-sharing, tourism support and community participation intentions. The findings reveal residents’ heightened emphasis on the economic benefits of tourism over environmental and cultural considerations. This inclination is rooted in the enduring impact of stringent ecological conservation measures over the past 50 years, significantly constraining regional economic development. Notably, young females who did not fully benefit from tourism express a high level of support for tourism, particularly when economic, cultural, and facility benefits align. Paradoxically, higher economic benefits are associated with lower community participation intentions in tourism decision-making, underscoring that only low economic benefits trigger such intentions. Active community participation predominantly manifests among young males, suggesting that residents express participation intentions when their benefit-sharing needs are not adequately met. This study provides valuable insights into the coordinated development of transportation, community benefit-sharing, and the preservation of national parks.

AbstractThis research delves into the evolving sociocultural identity discourses within ethnic communities, particularly in the context of tourism revitalization. We used a qualitative case study approach to conduct 25 interviews in the Fengyang and Dailing She ethnic townships in Cangnan County, Wenzhou City, Zhejiang Province, China. An in-depth iterative analysis of these interviews revealed three key findings: The symbolic significance of She ethnic townships, accentuated by tourism, necessitates the identity-building processes of She community members; the paradox of cultural essentialism and the ethnic-cultural commodification propels the evolution of She sociocultural identity; and empowering She people in community engagement can help sustain She sociocultural identity. These insights enrich the understanding of sociocultural dynamics in ethnic communities, highlighting the challenges and opportunities presented by commercializing cultural attractions through tourism and emphasizing the need for a balanced approach in preserving and leveraging ethnic minority cultural resources in tourism-based cultural industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines Chinese immigrant parents' educational involvement beliefs and practices during their children's transition to kindergarten in the United States. Interviews were conducted with 10 Chinese immigrant parents in an area with a small Chinese population and limited ethnic resources. Three main themes emerged. First, limited English proficiency and inadequate knowledge of the American educational system are barriers to parental involvement. Specifically, although parents acknowledged the importance of family-school partnerships, they were not confident interacting with teachers or local parents. Parents expressed concerns that their limited English skills would adversely impact their children's academic and mental development. Additionally, parents explained reasons for having high educational expectations for their children, given the unequal educational opportunities for immigrant students. Second, Chinese immigrant parents endeavored to understand the American educational system, and they adjusted their beliefs and practices by comparing American and Chinese schools and volunteering in the school. Third, Chinese immigrant parents navigated ethnic resources by building a collaborative ethnic community and creating parent support groups on social media. This study highlights that although immigrant background restricted Chinese immigrant parents' educational involvement, they were keenly aware of the importance of parental involvement in supporting their children's kindergarten transition and actively adjusted their educational involvement beliefs and practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In addition to unraveling the layers of the concept of Volksgemeinschaft, the study aims to show, through the publicistic activities of Gusztáv Gratz, the president of the Hungarian German Folk Culture Association (MNNE), how Gratz interpreted the idea of the German Volksgemeinschaft, how he related to it, and what consequences this had for the conflicts that developed within the MNNE organisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Five thousand years of national history have forged the collective consciousness of the Chinese nationalities of solidarity, prosperity, and loss, and its effective dissemination has provided support for the thorough casting of Chinese national community consciousness. Starting from the core content, scientific connotation, and contemporary value of the national community consciousness, the article combines the Lasswell 5W model to innovate the communication pattern of the national community ideology. It establishes an evaluation index system for the communication effect. Taking China's major universities as the research object, the entropy value method is used to calculate the weights of the evaluation indexes, and a fuzzy comprehensive evaluation model of the dissemination effect of the ideology of the national community is established. Combined with the questionnaire data, the independent sample test and ANOVA are used to compare the differences in the ideology of the national community among college students. A multi-dimensional fuzzy comprehensive evaluation of the dissemination effect of the ideology is carried out. Whether college students have student cadre experience or not shows a significant difference at 1% level, the weight value of the indicator of communication content is 0.2734, and the comprehensive evaluation score of ideology communication effect is 7.32, which is in the middle-upper level. The ideological communication effect of the national community needs to be coordinated by the government, the media, the community, and colleges and universities to actively build a linkage communication situation in which the consciousness of the national community is “dominated by one party and coordinated by many parties”.

This paper outlines a rationale and a methodology for an art-based community-visioning model to facilitate visioning of the community's future by young people from marginalized communities. The model presented was implemented among young people from the Mountain Jewish Community in Israel. It was found that the use of personal drawings made it possible to simultaneously identify and communicate personal narratives, and thereby develop a shared community vision. The theoretical and practical implications of the model are discussed, as well as its applied potential for community organization processes with young people from marginalized communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article is devoted to the historical and philosophical understanding of the ethnic stereotype in the modern global world. The relevance of the study is dictated, on the one hand, by the increasing level of anxiety and aggressiveness in the virtual and real space, the escalation of ethno-cultural tension, ethnophobia, as well as the increasing ethnic stereotyping in society. And, on the other hand, the lack of comprehensive and systematic studies of the problem of ethnic stereotypes in the context of modern collisions. In this regard, the article proposes a substantive historical and philosophical analysis of the nature of ethnic stereotypes, revealing not only the structural components and features of ethnic stereotyped thinking, but also the significance of ethnic stereotypes in diagnosing the prospects for ethnocultural interaction. The article differentiates authentic and artificially mythologised ethnic stereotypes, and also reveals the special role of the ethnic stereotype as a tool that can be used both to escalate tension and bring together ethnic and cultural communities. Two correlated levels in stereotyped perception are analysed: the cognitive and emotional-value levels, which together have a direct impact on the positive or negative connotation in ethnic stereotyping. The author substantiates the relationship between various distorted variants of ethnic self-expression in a hyperpositive and lithotised form and existing ethnic stereotypes, which manifests itself in ethnocultural deviation: ethnophobia, collective guilt, ethnofavoritism, ethnofanatism, etc. Exploring heterostereotypes, the author emphasises that in the conditions of open global boundaries, the attributed categorisation is conditional and therefore heterostereotypes will always act as a mental construct. The practical significance of the findings about the importance of timely detection of the transformation of ethnic stereotypes, which are a kind of indicator of ethno-cultural tension and affecting the prospect of ethno-cultural interaction in the modern multi-ethnic world, is emphasised.

Mushrooms play a crucial role in human life as well as in nature, providing food, medicine, and carrying out vital processes of decomposition, nutrient recycling, and developing mycorrhizal association with plants. The traditional system of knowledge about identification, collection, and usage of mushrooms has been accumulated through the shared experiences of many generations. Unfortunately, there have been continuous threats to the folk knowledge of mushrooms mainly due to habitat degradation, urbanization, and contemporary medication. The current research was, therefore, aimed to document an ethnomycological knowledge possessed by the ethnic communities of Swat, Pakistan. The purposive randomized sampling was carried out using chain referral method. Ethno-mycological information was collected from 62 informants using free listing, preference ranking, and use totaled methods. In total, 34 species of mushrooms belonging to 31 genera and 21 families were reported. About 85% of the reported species belong to Basidiomycetes, and 12.5% to Ascomycetes are used as food and for medicinal purposes. Morchella angusticeps, M. esculenta, Pleurotus sp., Auricularia sp., Flammulina velutipes, Agaricus bisporus, Ganoderma lucidum, and Sanghuangporus sanghuang were among the most cited edible and medicinal mushrooms. The current study revealed that district Swat is rich in wild edible and medicinal mushrooms (WEMs), and the local communities possess rich traditional knowledge about their collection, storage, and utilization. The diversity of WEMs of this region could contribute substantially to the socio-economic uplifting of the local communities through appropriate domestication and commercialization. Anthropogenic factors, coupled with depletion of traditional knowledge, threaten the diversity of WEMs in the region; therefore, in situ and ex situ conservation strategies are highly recommended. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The traditionally rich agroforestry systems are usually sustained on the basis of choice, need and importance of the plants. The traditional home gardens are usually the manifestation of indigenous communities long acquired understanding of and commitment to resource conservation based on their custom, religious beliefs and practices. The present study aims to assess plant species diversity and understand the key factors that affect the plant diversity of home garden agroforestry systems of three dominant ethnic communities viz. Bodo, Mishing and Sonowal Kachari residing in the unique floodplain system of Brahmaputra valley region of Assam, Northeast India. A total of 368 plant species were recorded with herbs being the most abundant (159 species) followed by trees (148 species) and shrubs (63 species). With 294 plant species, the Sonowal Kachari home gardens contributed to highest species richness, followed by Mishing (244 species) and Bodo tribe (214 species). Sorenson similarity index revealed high similarity in plant species composition between the Mishing and Sonowal Kachari home gardens. Because of its huge economic and cultural significance, Areca catechu L. was the predominant tree crop in all the ethnic group home gardens. Factors like home garden size and proximity of gardens to major roadways showed significant positive correlation with plant species richness and diversity, while duration of flood and ethnicity had a negative correlation with the same. The owner's choice had a bearing on the plant species composition of the gardens on a smaller scale, however it was also affected by socio-economic and environmental factors on a broad scale. The information generated from the present study will help to develop a better understanding of the traditional agroforestry systems, preferences of the ethnic communities and development of home gardens towards achieving the greater goal of sustainable livelihood, while contributing to biodiversity conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most World Heritage Sites in the Maghreb region are threatened by numerous natural and anthropic hazards, the latter usually due to complex economic, social and cultural dynamics. Because of changes in ways of life and housing models, traditional building cultures are often not recognised by inhabitants as heritage and are becoming unable to resist the spread of modern standardised technologies. These changes put at risk the conservation status and consequently the Outstanding Universal Value of the sites. The World Heritage Site of the M'Zab Valley in Algerian desert is a rare example of the preservation of both tangible and intangible dimensions of heritage and their transmission to new generations through the construction of the new settlement of Tafilalt, built interpreting the traditional techniques. The contribution analyses the case of the M'Zab Valley in order to show the role of community involvement in safeguarding the authenticity and integrity of this World Heritage Site.

Research projects concerning informational and heritage resources accumulated in the Croatian diaspora communities are becoming a growing interest in Croatian academia. This paper is a contribution to illuminate content and significance of resources which are necessary in the research of the history and the present Croatian emigration. In the introduction we bring a short history of St. Anthony Croatian Catholic Church and Croatian community that gathered there since the founding of the parish in 1910. The second part of the paper explains the role of the church archives on an example of St. Anthony Croatian Catholic Church in relation to the community, analysing its structure and signi- ficance and reviewing the methodology used and shown in the research. By analysing the content of the documents the emphasis is put on the importance of archival sources for the historical research of the Croatian community in Los Angeles. Until now the Parochial Archives of St. Anthony Croatian Catholic Church has been unknown to the professional and scientific public, therefore, this paper is also a contribution to the research of the Croatian cultural and archival heritage in diaspora. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of African Diaspora: Transnational Journal of Culture, Economy & Society is the property of Brill Academic Publishers and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This study was conducted to determine the daily lives and social interaction of the Dayak Desa inside and outside Betang Panjai (the long house). This research used a descriptive qualitative approach through the phenomenological method. The study will use semi-structured interviews with three key informants and four other informants. The research data obtained comes from interviews, observation, documentation study and literature study. The theory used in this research is social interaction and social interaction form from Soerjono Soekanto. The results of this study conclude that the Dayak people are active workers, uphold their trust, respect each other and have a high sense of brotherhood. Culture and customs are adhered to in daily practices, including working together in the gardens, fields and rice fields, sharing stories and listening to the conversations of friends and neighbors in the living room. Differences in views on politics, education and technology do not hinder social interaction among residents of Panjang's house.

Ethnic communities play a vital role in the cultural richness, economic vitality, and social integration of cities. While past research has undertaken a comprehensive analysis of street networks in these communities, a notable gap persists associated with the in-depth interpretation of syntactic data. The present research addresses this gap through a study of six Chinese communities in Sydney, Australia, which are selected based on concentration and diversity census data. The primary research question asked is, " How are the social-spatial patterns of ethnic communities manifest in Sydney?" This research aims to reveal hidden socio-spatial characteristics, emphasising variability, concentration, and balance. Space Syntax, widely recognised for its applicability in urban street analysis, has provided multiple quantitative techniques, focusing on the presentation of syntactic maps and average syntactic properties. In contrast, the present research addresses the tendency to report average properties by introducing three statistical distribution indicators (variance , skewness , and kurtosis) to decode six syntactic properties (i_local, i_global, NAIN_local, NAIN_ global, NACH_local, and NACH_ global) derived from axial line and segment analyses. The findings indicate that the statistical distribution analysis effectively characterises the spatial patterns of six of Sydney's ethnic communities, providing valuable insights into socio-cultural organisation, distribution, and interactions in community settings. This advanced understanding of distributed patterns of spatial accessibility and connectedness contributes significantly to spatial planning and intervention efforts in street networks and socio-spatial contexts. • The distinct socio-spatial characteristics of six Chinese ethnic communities are presented. • Syntactic measures identify the accessibility and connectedness of street networks. • Statistical distribution analysis captures urban heterogeneity and concentration. • Results highlight the importance of inclusive, balanced street networks in local communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Residents' heightened emphasis on the economic benefits of tourism over environmental and cultural considerations. • Young females who did not fully benefit from tourism express a high level of support for tourism, particularly when economic, cultural, and facility benefits align. • Higher economic benefits are associated with lower community participation intentions in tourism decision-making. • Residents express participation intentions when their benefit-sharing needs are not adequately met. While tourism brings employment opportunities to ethnic communities surrounding national parks, striking a balance between economic development and environmentalcultural preservation is paramount for ensuring long-term sustainability. In 2021, the first mountain cog rail transit project for poverty alleviation and tourism development started to be built in western China. It will pass through the pilot area of the Giant Panda National Park, bringing development opportunities and challenges for the local Tibetan community. Based on a questionnaire survey of 395 Tibetan residents in the park vicinity, this study utilizes asymmetrical approach so as to explore the multifaceted elements shaping benefit-sharing, tourism support and community participation intentions. The findings reveal residents' heightened emphasis on the economic benefits of tourism over environmental and cultural considerations. This inclination is rooted in the enduring impact of stringent ecological conservation measures over the past 50 years, significantly constraining regional economic development. Notably, young females who did not fully benefit from tourism express a high level of support for tourism, particularly when economic, cultural, and facility benefits align. Paradoxically, higher economic benefits are associated with lower community participation intentions in tourism decision-making, underscoring that only low economic benefits trigger such intentions. Active community participation predominantly manifests among young males, suggesting that residents express participation intentions when their benefit-sharing needs are not adequately met. This study provides valuable insights into the coordinated development of transportation, community benefit-sharing, and the preservation of national parks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Religación: Revista de Ciencias Sociales y Humanidades is the property of Religacion: Revista de Ciencias Sociales y Humanidades and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Since China's open-door and economic reform in 1979, new waves of emigration from the country have been increasingly diverse with highly skilled immigrants on one hand and unskilled or undocumented immigrants on the other. Based on data from an online survey and in-depth interviews of contemporary Chinese immigrants in metropolitan Los Angeles, we explore two main questions: (1) How do Chinese immigrants negotiate integration and identity as they navigate multiple pathways to resettlement? (2) Why do patterns of convergence and divergence emerge simultaneously and within the same ethnic group? We find that, although Chinese immigrants as a group are economically well-integrated, their lived experiences on the ground do not fit neatly into linear models of assimilation. We also find that their patterns of integration, identity formation, coethnic interaction, and sense of belonging are multivariate, and even peculiar and counterintuitive. These divergent patterns emerge from the interactive processes of immigrant selectivity and social transformations in the context of reception at the dual levels of the host society and ethnic community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Russian and French phraseological semantic correspondences that are genetically related to national and cultural realities, to history, social and political life, literature, superstitious beliefs, and customs are considered in this paper based on interlingual pairs of phraseological units. The study of such language units reveals the national and cultural identity of the Russian and French ethnic communities. The authors identify interlingual phraseological semantic correspondences that reveal the originality of the mentality, way of thinking, and technique of secondary nomination of representatives of the Russian and French ethnic communities.

The article focuses on the theoretical and methodological status of the concept of religion in the essentialist interpretation of ethnic community by analyzing the material of foreign researches. The key effort is to reveal whether the essentialist views on ethnic communities are compatible with the constructivist paradigm of religion. The essentialist approach to the notion of an ethnic community now develops in the frame of primordialism, which can be divided into two main directions: cultural and socio-biological. Proponents of the former concentrate on a detailed description of cultural differences between ethnic communities, with cultural diversity being accepted only to describe the essence of a particular ethnic community. Sociobiological primordialists deny cultural features’ status at the face of biological evolution. The common theoretical assumption of primordialisms turns out to be the essentialist vision: an ethnic community is endowed with the essence defined by a number of attributes, including religion. The constructivist approach, however, suggests that religion has no referent in reality and its notion is defined conventionally and empirically. Accepting this approach would deprive religion of its essence. Rendering the essence of religion relative, therefore, means blurring the boundaries defining the essence of an ethnic community. This consequence clearly contradicts the essentialist approach to an ethnic community. Thus, embracing an essentialist approach to ethnic community leads to the need to adopt the essentialist interpretation of religion.

The high applied significance of the problem of effective and tolerant student interaction in a multicultural educational environment has been proved. The results of an empirical research of personality determinants of ethnic tolerance of students have been presented. The study has been carried out on a Russian and Belarusian sample of students, which allowed us to identify specific features of the influence of empathy and reflexivity as personal determinants on the level of ethnic tolerance among students of different ethnic communities. The levels of development of empathy and reflexivity among Russian students and Belarusian students have been defined and analysed, their social predictors have been substantiated. Based on the results of variance and multiple regression analyses the strength, orientation and content characteristics of the influence of empathy and reflexivity of the individual on the student’s ethnic tolerance have been revealed. The results of the study are of interest to specialists in the field of personality psychology, ethnic psychology, cross-cultural communication.

Mushrooms play a crucial role in human life as well as in nature, providing food, medicine, and carrying out vital processes of decomposition, nutrient recycling, and developing mycorrhizal association with plants. The traditional system of knowledge about identification, collection, and usage of mushrooms has been accumulated through the shared experiences of many generations. Unfortunately, there have been continuous threats to the folk knowledge of mushrooms mainly due to habitat degradation, urbanization, and contemporary medication. The current research was, therefore, aimed to document an ethnomycological knowledge possessed by the ethnic communities of Swat, Pakistan. The purposive randomized sampling was carried out using chain referral method. Ethno-mycological information was collected from 62 informants using free listing, preference ranking, and use totaled methods. In total, 34 species of mushrooms belonging to 31 genera and 21 families were reported. About 85% of the reported species belong to Basidiomycetes, and 12.5% to Ascomycetes are used as food and for medicinal purposes. Morchella angusticeps, M. esculenta, Pleurotus sp., Auricularia sp., Flammulina velutipes, Agaricus bisporus, Ganoderma lucidum, and Sanghuangporus sanghuang were among the most cited edible and medicinal mushrooms. The current study revealed that district Swat is rich in wild edible and medicinal mushrooms (WEMs), and the local communities possess rich traditional knowledge about their collection, storage, and utilization. The diversity of WEMs of this region could contribute substantially to the socio-economic uplifting of the local communities through appropriate domestication and commercialization. Anthropogenic factors, coupled with depletion of traditional knowledge, threaten the diversity of WEMs in the region; therefore, in situ and ex situ conservation strategies are highly recommended.

Most World Heritage Sites in the Maghreb region are threatened by numerous natural and anthropic hazards, the latter usually due to complex economic, social and cultural dynamics. Because of changes in ways of life and housing models, traditional building cultures are often not recognised by inhabitants as heritage and are becoming unable to resist the spread of modern standardised technologies. These changes put at risk the conservation status and consequently the Outstanding Universal Value of the sites. The World Heritage Site of the M'Zab Valley in Algerian desert is a rare example of the preservation of both tangible and intangible dimensions of heritage and their transmission to new generations through the construction of the new settlement of Tafilalt, built interpreting the traditional techniques. The contribution analyses the case of the M'Zab Valley in order to show the role of community involvement in safeguarding the authenticity and integrity of this World Heritage Site. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presents the results of a sociological study conducted in some multiethnic communities situated in the central area of Moldova, Romania. Its main aim was to establish the ethnic identity of Catholic population in the villages of this region and to discover the way in which these communities build their ethnic and cultural identity. We used the scale of social distance, starting from the model developed by Bogardus (1925), which has become the most frequently used method of emphasizing the acceptance or isolation of social groups. We calculated the Social Distance Index (SDI) which highlights the number of social contact opportunities rejected by the respondent, the Social Contact Index (SCI) derived from the number of social contact opportunities accepted by the respondents, and the Qualitative Index of Social Contacts (QISC). The results are focused on ethnic aspects and local features of studied communities and the conclusions reveal the methods of ethnic self-defining for each community and their tendency to conserve local identity by refusing external influences that have an ideological stake. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this investigation, growth promoting role of indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) was assessed on yeasts representing three genera and four species viz Wickerhamomyces anomalus, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Candida tropicalis and Candida glabrata isolated from traditional fermentative starter materials of Ahom, Rabha, Bodo, Karbi, Kachari and Mishing communities of Assam, India. Isolates were first assessed for their ability to synthesize IAA in presence and absence of external tryptophan and was examined for stimulatory effect of growth on the tested isolates. Tryptophan dependent IAA synthesis was observed in 92% of isolates while 72% of isolates could synthesize IAA in absence of exogenous tryptophan. Candida glabrata KC3X could synthesize maximum IAA while Saccharomyces cerevisiae KR5.6 did not synthesize IAA in presence of external tryptophan. 3 out of 14 Wickerhamomyces isolates and the sole Saccharomyces isolate KR4.10 were found to synthesize significant amount of IAA in absence of tryptophan. Treatment of exogenous IAA on the growth of tested yeasts revealed that Saccharomyces isolates were more pronounced than others. Wickerhamomyces anomalus, Candida tropicalis and Candida glabrata did not show any significant response of growth in presence of exogenous IAA. This study concludes that plant condiments present in starter materials may aid in accelerated growth of Saccharomyces yeasts compared to non-Saccharomyces ones. Yeasts capable of synthesizing IAA but unable to show appreciable growth in presence of IAA may presumably facilitate sustenance of Saccharomyces spp. in fermentative consortia.

The text presents the preliminary results of the ongoing research on the Polish American community in Seattle, Washington. So far overlooked by the historians of the Polish American experience, the local group differs significantly from other centers of the Polish diaspora in the US. Poles settled in the Pacific Northwest from the late nineteenth century onward, and they developed in the city and around it a strong community that is internally diversified. In Seattle they were confronted with German, Irish, and Jewish groups, as was the case in other American cities, but also with other immigrants, for example with numerous Asians, Nordic people, Croatians, and Bulgarians. Contrary to the patterns of the Polish American community building, there has never been a Polish neighborhood in the city, and the Polish Roman Catholic parish was founded in Seattle as late as 1989. In fact, the parish never gained a crucial importance in the local ethnic community, and presently, as it used to be in the past, the immigrant life is organized around the Polish Home that was launched by the pioneer immigrants in 1918/1920. Many descendants of the earlier immigrant generations participate in the events initiated in Seattle by Poles who arrived in the last decades, and several recent immigrants became involved in the Polish Home Association. Moreover, web platforms -- new forms of ethnic connection that developed in the last decades, contribute to the increase of the bonding social capital within the Polish group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes one less important topic Weberian thought (especially in the Italian studies): the concepts of “ethnicity” and “race”. In particular, the essay focuses the problem of black Americans, around which Weber reflected starting from the information and experiences personally lived during his trip to the United States in 1904, invited by the Congress of Arts and Sciences of the Universal Exposition of St. Louis. The German scholar has the opportunity to know directly US society, to travel the South of the country, to discuss with members of the African American community. All this contributes to moving Weber away from the initial youthful positions - when the biological element of "race" is evident - to an analysis of the social and cultural implications of "ethnic community", in which, rather than the blood, "ethnic honor" is important. According to Weber, the only way to bring about a change in racial and ethnic relations is a charismatic authority, empowered to give orders that are typically obeyed (Weber, 1947). If, through the process of routinization, the charismatic authority is systematically transformed into rational authority, ethnicity can disappear; while if it is routinized in a traditional order, ethnicity can be further highlighted.

Copyright of Opera Slavica is the property of Masaryk University, Faculty of Arts and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This article is a product of an ongoing research entitled: “The educational public policies of the Articulated Action Plan-PAR in municipalities of Bahia”. It focuses on Vitória da Conquista, Ilhéus and Itabuna. We describe the results of this study concerning the reality of the quilombola 4 school education from a field 5 perspective, that of the quilombola peasant. We followed the dialectical historical materialism method. The results point to contradictions between what the law provides in the specific legislations and the materiality of this population’s particularities. We conclude that the specific mode of production of the quilombola countryside people legitimizes a social practice of coping with capital through the peasantry. To better explain it, we have used the emerging category Quilombola peasant.