Historical Process Research Articles

Lepanto or Little Algiers? Public history and the cultural politics of commemoration in modern Greece

ABSTRACT What can the Battle of Lepanto (1571) reveal about the interconnected politics of nationalism and racism in contemporary Europe? Linking memory studies, critical heritage and the history of European-Ottoman wars, this article uses the 450th anniversary of the historic battle as an entry point for rethinking the politics of commemoration in modern Greece. It takes a multi-scalar perspective which charts memory-making across different spatial and temporal scales and examines the role of mnemonic practices as articulations of Greek nationalism blended with dependence on Greece’s Euro-Atlantic patrons. The article situates the 450th anniversary of Lepanto within a larger commemorative tradition and long-term development of civic rituals and representational conventions. In doing so, it highlights the dynamics of voicing and silencing that shapes public history in ways that sanitise the past and obfuscate complex historical processes. Specifically, the article shows how the erasure of the Black history of Nafpaktos (the Greek town associated with Lepanto) and portrayals of the Greeks as an anti-Islamic nation have reinforced eurocentric civilisational narratives, occluding histories of colonialism and empire that continue to cast their shadows today.

Assembling Differences

In the Peruvian Amazon’s lower Marañón basin, the prospect of an indigenous assembly appears unlikely: how can previously semi-nomadic groups, historically immersed in recurrent warfare, come together in a cohesive political entity? This transformation is undoubtedly a product of historical processes, greatly influenced by Western political structures and legal frameworks. However, does this shift erase the traditional conflicts among Amazonian groups? The criteria defining indigenous identity and collective action still bear traces of past hostilities, albeit reshaped by indigenous political dynamics. This article draws from the ethnography of a federation assembly to delve into the nuances between fragmentation and unity. Through the lens of assembly issues, it seeks to uncover both the ruptures and continuities defining contemporary indigenous communities.

The Politics of Valuation

This article has two aims: First, the article proposes to sensitize our analytical minds to what we dub “value disjunctures”—clashes, in practice, between different valuations. The article proposes a strategy for analyzing value disjunctures—paying attention to how different value worlds de-cohere. We ask: What happens if we highlight the periods and situations when versions of the world are pulled apart? Second, the article aims to highlight how today’s bioethics can neither be read as a tale of democratization of ethics, nor as a tale solely driven by ethical disasters. What we offer is a story of how the bioethical yardsticks of today were established as dominant in fetal research. The sensitizing concepts we propose shine a light on how bioethicalization is a historical process that intertwines what is good, with what objects are seen as important, as well as how these objects are understood. Bioethicalization is a struggle about valuations, which yardsticks for the good that become salient, but also a struggle about which objects should be valued, as well as the nature of these valued objects. This article highlights how all matters of value—the ethical, the epistemic, and the economic—are intertwined with changing ontologies, thus highlighting how ontologies and values are enacted together.

OS ASPECTOS SOBRE A LEGITIMIDADE DA AÇÃO POLICIAL MILITAR E A RESPONSABILIDADE JUDICIAL: UMA ANÁLISE DA VIOLÊNCIA INSTITUCIONAL E DA IMPUNIDADE

The present study aimed to analyze aspects related to the legitimacy of military police actions and judicial accountability, focusing on institutional violence and impunity. The research begins by examining how the legitimacy of police actions is constructed and perceived by society, and it further investigates the legal consequences of police actions, especially when they involve abuse of authority or excessive use of force. In this context, it highlights the importance of assessing the legal and ethical boundaries of military police actions and the role of the justice system in holding these actions accountable. For the development of this study, a bibliographic and qualitative methodology was adopted. The analysis was based on existing literature on the topic, including legislation, academic articles, theses, dissertations, and other relevant documents. This approach allowed for an in-depth understanding of the historical, cultural, and institutional processes that influence both police conduct and the judicial system's response in cases of institutional violence.The results indicate that, in many cases, there is a gap between what is established by law and the actual practices on the streets, particularly regarding the use of force and abuses committed by certain security agents. It was observed that impunity in specific cases of police violence generates a perception of distrust in society toward the institutions responsible for enforcing the law, which directly impacts the legitimacy of police actions.

Promoting Good Governance Through Transnational Projects: A Study of Swedish Funding in Russia 1991–2005

ABSTRACTThis article explores how foreign funders may promote good governance in a country without a history of established democratic processes. It examines the travel of ideas of democracy and human rights from Sweden to Russia through transnational cooperation projects during the period 1991–2005. Considering these projects as forms of high‐stakes translations, the study finds that many of them engaged with Russian society only on a superficial level without embedding ideas in local organizational practices. Identifying the weaknesses often found in such translations, the study points to the difficulty of contributing to a democratic transformation of Russia by means of foreign‐funded projects lacking contextual anchorage.

(Mis)Governing World Football? Agency and (Non)Accountability in FIFA

Abstract —We identify the variables that have enabled the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) to evade internal and external legal and juridical rules and processes, allowing it to prioritise the interests of its leaders and staff rather than its stakeholders. An interdisciplinary theoretical framework highlights the weaknesses of the legal systems, democratic processes, market mechanisms and regulatory regimes governing FIFA’s activities since its foundation. The historical processes transforming FIFA into a wealthy enterprise whose leaders could abuse their power with impunity are reviewed. An evaluation of the structural reforms introduced in 2016 following the exposure of FIFA corruption by US authorities in 2015 then shows how they have strengthened the internal and external rules and procedures enabling stakeholders to hold FIFA to account, whilst arguing that the reforms have not eliminated the leadership’s ability to ‘capture’ its democratic processes, exploit its monopolistic controls over lucrative contracts and evade regulatory controls.

Historicizing Latin American urban politics and governments

ABSTRACT Existing studies about the politics of southern cities, particularly Latin American cities, need to pay more attention to the political institutions behind urban governance. These institutions, additionally, were not created by design but are a product of intertwined historical processes. This article analyzes the main features and transformations of Latin American local governments, their politics, and governance, looked at from the angle of their historical formation. Mobilizing arguments from urban studies and political science usually developed apart, I start with the legacies of two intertwined historical processes—urbanization(s) and state formation(s)—to later observe their recent transformations since the recent return(s) to democracy. The reconstruction of these intertwined historical trajectories and of the effects of the present democratic period help to jointly explain the most important features of the politics of local governments in Latin America that influence their governance and actions—capacities, political grammars, actors, and coalitions—as well as their recent transformations.

Religious pluralism of Muslim practices in China: the cases of ritual participation from Hui and Uyghur societies

Abstract In this article we explore the practical conditions of ritual practices of Hui and Uyghur Muslims in China. Ceaseless conflicts among different religious ideas and elements exist, but they are integrated into religious pluralism, which meets the needs of Muslims' daily practices. Furthermore, we probe the reasons for the resulting religious harmony through investigating the historical process of the formation of religious pluralism, and showing present ritual performances in which there is a hierarchically built ritual structure functioning to make religious integration possible, though different opinions regarding diverse religious elements occur elsewhere among Hui and Uyghur Muslims. Finally, the discussion supports the related assertion that rituals can be reliable and effective ways of understanding the sociological and psychological functions of religions, or religious beliefs, and other related socio-cultural realities.

Linking past insights with contemporary understanding: an ontological and knowledge graph approach to the transmission of ancient Chinese classics

Ancient Chinese classics embody and transmit the intellectual heritage of China across generations. These texts, rich in enduring ideas, narratives, and insights, have been passed down through a lengthy historical process. While digital modeling of cultural heritage has advanced, research that integrates both the unique characteristics of these classics and their transmission processes remains limited. This study introduces ClaOnto, an ontology specifically designed for ancient Chinese classics. It captures the various versions of these texts and their interrelations, contents, related individuals, locations, periods, and languages. It also emphasizes the processes and evaluations involved in their transmission. This contributes to a more nuanced understanding and increased awareness of preserving ancient classics. ClaOnto comprises three modules: Basic Information, Transmission Information, and Evaluation Information. Its development involved adapting and enhancing existing mature ontologies, as well as designing new concepts and relationships to articulate the knowledge and intangible values transmitted through these classics across generations. Additionally, by employing methods such as data mining, text analysis, and data visualization, this study outlines a workflow for implementing this ontology-based knowledge graph, demonstrated using the Tao Te Ching as a case study. The methodological enhancement enriches the analysis of how the intangible value in classics manifests through transmission.

Wavelength selection enables robust quantification of oil content with near-infrared spectroscopy in pea protein gels produced under varying heating conditions

Thermal processing influences the near-infrared (NIR) spectra of food products, causing inaccuracy when quantifying the composition of the product. In this study, the effect of thermal processing on NIR measurements of the oil content in pea protein isolate (PPI) gels was investigated. Analysis of variance showed that the heating temperature (30°C–120 °C) during the production of PPI gels influenced large parts of the NIR spectra and time (2.5–15 min) only had a limited effect. Stepwise multiple linear regression was used to select a combination of 5 wavelengths that was suitable to create a robust model for the prediction of oil content (Q2 = 0.9928 ± 0.002, root mean standard error of prediction = 0.2806 ± 0.0423 wt%). This combination of wavelengths was shown to reduce the effect of the history of thermal processing on the measurement, improving the accuracy of oil content quantification. This approach can be applied for in-line quantification of the oil content of food products subjected to varying heating conditions using specialized sensors.

The Changing Role of the Architect from Craftsmanship to Artificial Intelligence Environment in Historical Context

Architects differentiated themselves from master builders, craftsmen, and engineers, acquiring a distinct identity, social status, and position with modernity. The observation of this study indicates the presence of signs that a similar radical change is beginning to emerge. The knowledge and skills that contemporary architects need to possess are diverging with the incorporation of systems such as artificial intelligence, metaverse, blockchain, machine learning, and digital twins into the process, thereby transforming the ways architects design and represent. In this context, the study attempts to identify changes in the architect's identity through the evolving role of the architect in the historical process. It concludes that the role of the architect throughout the historical process is not stable but subject to continuous and dynamic change.

AT THE BORDER OF TWO WORLDS Role options of the “distantiated spectator” in Vadoma by Anna Vörös

The debut volume of Anna Vörös is a unique and solitary voice in contemporary Hungarian literature referring to the representation of refugees. The author is actively practicing psychology and worked as a volunteer in hot zones of the migrant crisis, so she had the chance to learn about different aspects of the crisis from the inside. By collecting experiences, she built out a literary universe with an authentic voice. Her narrative can be defined as close to the triple structure of distant suffering theory by Luc Boltanski. The model of Boltanski features three categories of which the third is the “distantiated spectator”: who instead of playing the role of furious and delivering justice, rather interprets and experiences mediatized suffering in its historical context and process. The cycle of prose featuring the Syrian heroine in its metaphors and symbols avoids the traps of topoi and common places of storytelling based on “contentless pathos” and “colonizing, colonial and postcolonial point of view”. Anna Vörös in a revealing and documentarist tone approaches the arrival experience of masses coming to Europe – this experience may be described by sociological, cultural anthropological, and spatial theories while using various topics and situations. In her model motifs like the moment of spotting the sea or land, crossing them, and winning the battle over physical barriers, are melted into contemporary European refugee literature as well as tendencies in film, fine art, as well as media representations of the topic. The paper is an attempt to discover this question in its complexity.

“LIKE A STONE SITTING IN HIS MOUTH” Forms of foreignness in Andrea Tompa’s novel

It is no exaggeration to state that Andrea Tompa places the individual and collective experiences of otherness and foreignness at the center of all her novels. The many tensions arising from the coexistence of various ethnic groups, the historical and social situations and processes of minority existence, and the linguistic and cultural diversity are manifested in various structural, narrative, and linguistic forms in her texts. By examining various forms of foreignness and otherness, my study tries to show the common points, clusters of content and thought, questions (partly) better left undisclosed that intertwine her novels, and this can best be approached with the phenomena and set of concepts of transnationalism, multi- and transculturalism, hybrid language and trauma theories, starting from the Cluj – Carpathian Basin – Central Europe route and arriving at current global events.

THE MAIN FACTORS OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF POTTERY CRAFTS OF CENTRAL SOGD

This article describes the changes that occurred in the pottery craft of the ancient Central Sugdian world. In general, with the introduction of the Hellenistic culture into the Sogd region, the shape of pottery changes radically. Bowls, plates, and glasses of various sizes are produced, and most of the vessels are given red angob on the inside and outside, and the surface is scratched and polished on special pottery tools. Such dishes can be found not only in Central Asia, but also in the countries of the Caucasus, Afghanistan, Iran, India, and the Middle East. In this period, the impact of the changes in the political, social, economic, and spiritual life of Central Sogd on the pottery craft, as well as the main reasons and characteristics of the development of the pottery craft, and the impact of historical processes on these changes are discussed.

Erosional Response to Pleistocene Climate Changes in the Brazilian Highlands

AbstractPlio‐Quaternary climatic changes are considered to be a key driver of landscape evolution, but many unresolved questions remain, such as the extent of the impact of major climatic shifts such as the Mid‐Pleistocene Transition (MPT). Various geochronological methods are available to infer changes in surface processes over the Plio‐Quaternary, and Terrestrial Cosmogenic Nuclides (TCN) have proven to be one of the most efficient tools to reconstruct paleo‐denudation. Implementing these approaches requires very specific conditions, such as well‐preserved and extensive sediment sequences. Developing alternative methods to document the evolution of denudation is thus of major interest to retrieve information on the evolution of denudation in places where recent detrital sediment records are absent. We explore the evolution of landscape erosion over a 1 Ma timescale in an intra‐cratonic setting, the Espinhaço mountain range (Brazil), with a new data set of detrital cosmogenic nuclide concentrations (26Al–10Be). We observe a systematic disequilibrium in the 26Al/10Be ratio, which we interpret as resulting from the combination of soil mixing and a significant increase in the intensity of surface processes, close to the MPT. We discuss the different scenarios with respect to available local and global data concerning the relationships between climate evolution and erosion over this time period. Our results have important implications for the interpretation of the denudation rates derived from TCN concentrations under steady states assumption, in landscapes with low erosion rates, which have a long memory for surface processes history.

Beverage Culture in The Ottoman Palace Cuisine

Traditional Turkish cuisine has a very rich cultural accumulation with its food and beverages in the historical process from past to present. In the Ottoman period, which hosted the important processes in the shaping of Turkish cuisine, the infrastructure of many elements of culinary culture was created. One of them is the traditional beverage culture. The meaning of beverage or drink is the liquids obtained from food and prepared by adding some nutrients. The most important liquids mentioned in the Ottoman palace cuisine are; It consists of liquids such as water and flavored waters, coffee, boza, tea, salep, compote, hardaliye and sherbet. In the study, which aims to provide information about the place, importance and types of traditional beverages belonging to the Ottoman palace cuisine, its also aimed to transfer the beverages in the Ottoman palace cuisine to future generations in order to increase their awareness and ensure their sustainability.

The Evolution of the Theory of Antitrust Regulation: From Ancient Philosophy to Economic Concepts of Competition and Monopoly

Effectiveness of antitrust policy is actively discussed within the framework of both economic theory and practice of government regulation. Although the antimonopoly legislation in the modern sense has formed relatively recently, the theory of antimonopoly regulation was established over centuries under the influence of the greatest economists of the past and historical processes. The most important stages in the development of this theory are examined. The contribution of ancient philosophy and politics in the formation of basic ideas on competition and monopoly is analyzed. The revolution produced by classical political economy is studied. Specific (but historically important) Marxist and socialist positions on competition, free trade and monopolization are demonstrated. It is shown that these complicated historical discussions are important for solving current problems in the field of competition.

Sudan's catastrophe: the role of changing dynamics of food and power in the Gezira agricultural scheme.

This article explores the role of historical, political, and economic processes in understanding war and famine in Sudan after 2023. The focus is on Al-Gezira, the site of Sudan's largest agricultural scheme. Using ethnography, interviews, and document reviews, the study analyses the Gezira irrigation project in three phases. First, the 1980s and 1990s, when patronage politics dominated its management. Second, the neoliberal strategies of the Gezira Scheme Act of 2005, which enabled Islamist profiteering while increasing vulnerability among farmers and labourers and tensions between them. Third, post 2018, when political movements used evidence of the scheme's deterioration to call for revolution, but once achieved, previous tensions grew and have been manipulated during the war. Sudan provides an example of how decades of war and neoliberal economic strategies have led to a deeply-rooted, violent, and extractive political economy. This has been to the benefit of business and elites, leaving many to a life of precarity, exploitation, and hunger.

The Temporal Continuity: Temple, Theatre and Anthropology

Traditionally, temples have been spaces meant for religious and spiritual activities— meditation, sacrifice, devotion and worship. Historically, temples have been understood as the dwelling spaces of spirits/gods. Therefore, they were natural sites of the community socialisation and exchanges. In Hinduism, temples are designed to bring human beings and gods together in a spiritual destination. Gradually, temples evolved and represented the economy, art, belief, faith and traditions of community or communities. All of these elements of the cosmic world such as good, evil and human are incorporated in temples. Basically, these are for reflecting the powers of unknown forces that are present in nature. These elements of the cosmic world are incorporated in the temples along with the cyclic notion of time. The essence of life was represented symbolically through dharma, kama, artha, moksa and karma, and temples became naturally chosen sites to represent these aspects. However, throughout the ages, temples have undergone transformations. Due to this, temples are historical sites for understanding the historical processes and happenings around the temple structures. As time passed, temples became the surviving examples of temporal continuity. Through this article, an attempt has been made to highlight the temporal continuity around a few temples, cultures and shrines of Rajasthan. The constant—continuity and change—pushed temporality as an essential feature which needs to be highlighted for a fuller understanding of the heterogeneous nature of the Thar Desert and its society.

Why is Building a Community with a Shared Future for Mankind Become the Essential Requirement of Chinese-style Modernization?

Building a community with a shared future for mankind is the inherent requirement of Chinese modernization, which reflects the interconnection between the two in terms of connotation, practical path and value orientation. Promoting the building of a community with a shared future for mankind guided by Chinese-style modernization is conducive to the historical process of the CPC in accelerating its modernization drive, which is also a concrete and profound expression of the CPC in the practice of socialism with Chinese characteristics. This initiative will help accelerate the realization of national rejuvenation and building China into a great modern country, reflect the inherent requirements of socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new era, and promote the building of a new world order and world governance system. Chinese-style modernization is one that stands on the right side of history. Promoting the building of a community with a shared future for mankind is conducive to the elimination of anti-globalization thoughts. Chinese-style modernization is the socialist modernization under the leadership of the Communist Party of China. It also vividly embodies the spiritual realm of the Communist Party of China with the world in mind, and promotes the realization of comprehensive and free individual development and the great cause of common liberation of all mankind.