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'Where it all Began': the representation of Malaysian heritage in Melaka.

Authors :
Worden, Nigel
Source :
International Journal of Heritage Studies; Sep2001, Vol. 7 Issue 3, p199-218, 20p, 5 Black and White Photographs
Publication Year :
2001

Abstract

Melaka is represented in Malaysia's tourist and heritage industries as the place 'where it all began'. This article examines the meaning of this slogan in the context of the cultural policies of the Malaysian state in the 1970s and 1980s when constructions of the political and religious traditions of the pre-colonial feudal Melakan Sultanate were presented as emblematic of the modern nation. The images of the Sultanate, of colonial rule and of Malaysian nationalism in Melaka's museums are analysed.The emphasis on ethnic Malay heritage also indigenised that of other Melakan inhabitants, such as the Portuguese Eurasians or the Peranakan, and ignored that of the majority, later Chinese immigrants. Finally the article questions the future of these representations with the shift in Malaysian cultural representations in the 1990s to those of a modernising, multi-ethnic nation in which a feudal past plays a lesser role. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
13527258
Volume :
7
Issue :
3
Database :
Complementary Index
Journal :
International Journal of Heritage Studies
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
5253978
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1080/13527250120079300