Between archaeology and anthropology. Collective memory, liminal spaces, and mythical landscape

Abstract

The article discusses the possibilities of interdisciplinary collaboration between archaeology and cultural anthropology/ethnology. What seemed some decades ago unthinkable, due to the elusiveness or inaccuracy of oral tradition perceived from the archaeological side, has recently provided new perspectives for understanding space, the key concept that links both humanistic disciplines. The article shows some basic theoretical concepts, enabling interdisciplinary collaboration between the two disciplines. The key elements which connect the two disciplines are space, the oral tradition attached to it and collective memory. The traditional perception of space can offer a better understanding of some archaeological materials. The oral tradition embedded in the landscape can give us some understanding of the continuity of symbolic values of places, such as liminal spaces or elements of mythical landscapes.