Table Of ContentInternational Federation of Library Associations and Institutions
Fédération Internationale des Associations de Bibliothécaires et des Bibliothèques
Internationaler Verband der bibliothekarischen Vereine und Institutionen
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Federación Internacional de Asociaciones de Bibliotecarios y Bibliotecas
IFLA Publications 95
Collecting and Safeguarding
the Oral Traditions:
an international conference
Khon Kaen, Thailand, 16-19 August 1999
Organized as a Satellite Meeting of
the 65th IFLA General Conference
held in Bangkok, Thailand, 1999
Edited by
John Mcllwaine and Jean Whiffin
K G- Saur München 2001
IFLA Publications
edited by Carol Henry
Recommended catalogue entry:
Collecting and safeguarding the oral traditions : an international conference ;
Khon Kaen, Thailand, 16 - 19 August 1999 ; organized as a satellite meeting
of the 65th IFLA general conference held in Bangkok, Thailand, 1999 /
ed. by John Mcllwaine and Jean Whiffin. -
München : Saur, 2001, Χ, 158 p. 21 cm
(IFLA publications ; 95)
ISBN 3-598-21825-7
Previously published as Collection and Safeguarding the Oral Traditions: an international conference/
ed. by John Mcllwaine and Jean Whiffin. -
The Hague: IFLA Headquarters, 2000. - ISBN 90-70916-80-0.-
(IFLA Professional Reports; 68. - ISSN 0168-1931).
Die Deutsche Bibliothek - CIP-Einheitsaufnahme
Collecting and safeguarding the oral traditions : an international conference ;
Khon Kaen, Thailand, 16 - 19 August 1999 ; organized as a satellite meeting
of the 65th IFLA general conference held in Bangkok, Thailand, 1999 /
ed. by John Mcllwaine and Jean Whiffin. -
München : Saur, 2001
(IFLA publications ; 95)
ISBN 3-598-21825-7
Θ
Printed on acid-free paper
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National
Standard for Information Sciences - Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials,
ANSI Z39.48.1984.
© 2001 by International Federation of Library Associations
and Institutions, The Hague, The Netherlands
Alle Rechte vorbehalten / All Rights Strictly Reserved
K. G. Saur Verlag GmbH München 2001
Printed in the Federal Republic of Germany
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system of any nature, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical,
photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
Printed / Bound by Strauss Offsetdruck, Mörlenbach
ISBN 3-598-21825-7
ISSN 0344-6891 (IFLA Publications)
CONTENTS
Contributors ν
Introduction vi
Ralph W. Manning, Chair Professional Board, IFLA
Keynote Address:
John D. Waiko. Safeguarding Papua New Guinean culture in the next millennium:
educational reforms and preservation of cultural traditions 1
General
Malama S. Meleisea. UNESCO Memory of the World Programme and oral
tradition 25
Dietrich Schüller & Kevin Bradley. Technical aspects: care, handling and
preservation: bibliography and glossary 30
Regional studies
AFRICA
Mbathio Sail. The importance of oral tradition for children: the case of the
countries of the Sahel 42
A. Raphaël Ndiaye. Oral tradition: from collection to digitization 49
Fatogoma Diakité. Oral tradition and libraries 68
ASIA
Khunying Maenmas Chavalit. Roles of libraries in promoting and preserving
oral cultures 73
Saneh Chamarik. Oral tradition in Thailand: a development perspective 75
Leo Alting von Geusau. SEAMP (South East Asian Mountain Peoples '
Programmes) for culture and development 89
Chong Ching Liang. Inter-generational cultural transmission in Singapore 95
EUROPE
Joëlle Garcia. Collecting and preserving the French oral heritage : the role
of a national library 105
LATIN AMERICA <£ THE CARIBBEAN
Heather R. McLaughlin. The Cayman Islands Memory Bank: collecting
and preserving oral history in small island societies 112
Haydée Seijas. South America: two cases from Venezuela and Peru 119
NORTH AMERICA
Magdalena A. K. Muir & Lloyd N. Binder. Traditional knowledge and northern
wildlife management: the Arctic Circumpolar Route 128
PACIFIC
Sagale Buodromo. The role of the Fiji (National) Museum in collecting oral
traditions 140
Martha Kaltal. The Oral Traditions Programme of the Vanuatu Cultural Centre 144
Closing paper
Steve Cisler. Beyond print: using the Internet for preservation and stimulation
of local culture 150
iv
Contributors
Lloyd Binder, President, Kunnek Resource Development Corporation and Research Associate,
Arctic Institute of North America, Calgary, Canada
Kevin Bradley, Manager, Sound Preservation/Technical Services, National Library of
Australia, Canberra
Sagale Buodromo, Registrar, Fiji Museum, Suva
Prof. Saneh Chaînarik, Director, Local Development Institute ESARN, Bangkok, Thailand.
Prof. Khunying Maenmas Chavalit, Library and Documentation Officer, SEAMEO (Southeast
Asia Ministers of Education Organization) Regional Centre for Archaeology and Fine Arts;
President IFLA 1999 National Orgaruzating Committee
Steve Cisler, Board Member, Association for Community Networking and Consultant, Tachyon
Inc., San Jose, California
Fatogoma Diakité, Directeur, Opération lecture publique du Mali, Bamako
Joëlle Garcia, Département de l'Audiovisuel, Bibliothèque nationale de France, Paris
Martha Kaltal, National Cultural and Historical Sites Survey, Vanuatu Cultural Centre, Port
Vila, Vanuatu
Chong Ching Liang, Oral History Centre, National Archives of Singapore
Heather R- McLaughlin, Memory Bank Coordinator, Cayman Islands National Archive
Malama S. Meleisea, Regional Adviser for Social and Human Sciences for Asia and the Pacific,
UNESCO, Thailand
Magdalena A. K. Muir, International Energy, Environmental and Legal Services and Research
Associate, Arctic Institute of North America, Calgary, Canada
A. Raphaël Ndiaye, Coordonnateur des services d'information, ENDA Tiers-Monde, Dakar,
Senegal
Mbathio Sail, Bibliothèque lecture développement, Dakar, Senegal
Dietrich Schüller, Director, Phonogrammarchiv, Vienna, Austria
Haydee Seijas, Executive Secretary, Unuma Sociedad Civil de Apoyo al Indigena, Caracas,
Venezuela
Leo Al ting von Geusau, Senior Researcher, SEAMP, Chiang Mai, Thailand
Prof. John D. Waiko, Minister of Education, Papua New Guinea
ν
Editorial note
The papers presented at the Conference are reproduced basically as they were originally
presented and have been only lightly edited in order to make spelling, layout and citation of
references consistent. Some of the longer papers have also been shortened. Γη a number of
cases, the actual presentations were accompanied by visual aids of various kinds which it
has not been possible to reproduce. The presentations by Dietrich Schüller and Kevin
Bradley were largely visual and ad hoc, and only the bibliographical and technical handouts
which accompanied their presentations have been reproduced here.
Following this conference the Professional Board of IFLA in December 1999, adopted a
resolution put forward by the Section on Preservation and Conservation which called on
IFLA "To support and encourage the collection and safeguarding of the world's oral
tradition and to take measures to ensure increased awareness of oral tradition as an integral
part of the world's intellectual and cultural heritage". The mailing list ORAL TRAD
<[email protected]> has been created especially to promote discussion of these
objectives. All those who attended the Khon Kaen Conference, and all members of the
Standing Committee on Preservation and Conservation were made subscribers to the list on
its inception.
John Mcllwaine, Chairman Standing Committee, IFLA Section on Preservation and
Conservation
Jean Whiffin, Member Standing Committee, IFLA Section on Preservation and
Conservation
vi
INTRODUCTION
Ralph W. Manning
Chair, IFLA Professional Board\ July 2000
The preservation of cultural heritage in all the regions of the world forms part of the
primary focus of IFLA's Medium-Term Programme 1998-2001. In addition, the IFLA
Professional Board has identified preservation and conservation of the intellectual heritage
in the world's libraries as one of the Professional Priorities for the future work of IFLA.
One of IFLA's primary roles in this area is to ensure appropriate coordination of
preservation activities at the international level through programmes such as advocacy,
training, and the development and dissemination of standards and best practices.
It was with these priorities in mind that the IFLA Professional Board, in consultation with
the National Organizing Committee for the 65th IFLA Conference to be held in Thailand,
chose Collecting and Safeguarding the Oral Traditions as the topic for the official pre-
session seminar. The seminar was held in Khon Kaen, Northeastern Thailand, immediately
prior to the IFLA Conference in Bangkok. To reflect its commitment to the fostering of
international library activities, IFLA adopted a new format for this pre-session seminar by
holding an open satellite meeting rather than a closed invitational event as had been the case
at previous pre-session seminars. Participation from around the world was invited and
special emphasis was placed on encouraging the participation of colleagues from the
developing world and from our colleagues in archives, museums, historical societies and
similar cultural centres. We were successful in attracting 68 participants who came from 36
countries on 6 continents, ensuring a truly international exchange of ideas and sharing of
cultures.
Oral history represents an important foundation for the understanding of cultures and social
traditions throughout the world. With today's technologies, we have the means to collect
and preserve original oral renditions of stories, music, recollections, sacred traditions and
personal histories. In many societies without a written tradition, oral heritage becomes a
vital link from the past, into the present and toward the future. But also for societies with
well established documentary traditions, oral heritage enhances the written record with its
rich texture and direct link to history.
The writers included in this volume tell us of their passion and energy to preserve the
threatened traditions of such countries as Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Cayman Islands and even
the far northern regions of the Arctic Circumpolar Route. We read about unity in diversity,
we read about diversity in unity, we read about the old teaching the young and we read
about the young speaking to the old. We gain a better understanding of the importance of
family ties and how oral traditions contribute to the need for cultural roots, and we see
examples of how traditional knowledge contributes to the advancement of society and its
identity.
vii
