National Symbols Research Articles

Imperial Material: National Symbols in the U.S. Colonial Empire by Alvita Akiboh (review)

Imperial Material: National Symbols in the U.S. Colonial Empire by Alvita Akiboh (review)

A “Democrat” from the Start: Theobald Wolfe Tone, Emblematic Founder of Irish Republicanism, Anti-Monarchism, and the “Baneful Influence of England”

Theobald Wolfe Tone (1763-98), an Irish radical and revolutionary remembered in collective memory as the founding father of Irish republicanism, left behind more writings than all his radical associates combined. A founder of the Society of United Irishmen in 1791, he helped drive their democratic campaign to end religious discriminations in Ireland through a total reform of electoral representation in the Irish parliament. Tone’s adolescence and national identity had been shaped during the American War of Independence, when Irish patriotic culture began to truly question the connection to Britain. When reform campaigns failed, Tone became a separatist first, and a democrat inspired by the French Revolution and Painite republicanism. He conspired with France for a military invasion of Ireland that would support a revolution and achieve independence. The Irish republic he imagined would be free from the “baneful influence of England”, as would be its national symbols which he reconfigured to subvert British dominion. Yet his political language, only recently analysed by scholars, is not driven nor dominated by anti-monarchism. This essay explores that paradox, and how Tone’s vocabulary, in his private writings included, inspired future generations, particularly during the 1916 Rising.

The Meaning of the Mamuthones: Tradition Meets Heritage in the Highlands of Sardinia

Abstract: This article deals with the effects of commercialization on the essentially local and seemingly long-standing Mamuthones masking tradition based in the village of Mamoiada in the Sardinian highlands, a tradition customarily set on January 17. The tradition involves adult males clad in dark skin costumes, scarves, and hand-carved black masks, along with between twenty-five and thirty kilograms of bells. The figures in question annually process through the town, led by other figures ( Issohadores ) dressed in red with white masks. The tradition has recently found itself being turned not only into a national symbol, but also a model for other similar masking traditions in other villages. Today, all over the island, one encounters numerous souvenirs based on the Mamuthones tradition which also attracts a number of tourists, seemingly turning what was once a local event into a more public heritage performance. This article is based on interviews taken with a number of those involved in the tradition at different levels and discusses what local people feel about these changes. Particular attention is paid to the question of how the local people feel they can preserve the “original” local meaning of the tradition in the face of these recent developments.

Между дегерманизацией и славянизацией: концепции интеграции Возвращенных польских земель после Второй мировой войны

The article examines the integration concepts of “recovered territories” (former German lands) as part of the post-war Poland, proposed by various political forces represented in the Polish Resistance Movement during World War II, in order to determine their influence on the subsequent development of the state, whose borders in 1945 changed radically. This study is based on acts and memoranda of the Polish government in exile, documents of new authorities created by the Communists and their allies in the liberated territory, programs of political and public organizations, press materials, and memoirs. The author pays special attention to the terms “de-Germanisation” and “Slavianisation”, which the program settings of the government in exile in London and its supporters, as well as the plans of the Polish communists, contain. The article traces the gradual transition to a common understanding of the mechanism of future integration processes as “re-Polonisation”. First of all, it was a radical change of population in the newly annexed territories and at the same time the forced deportation of German citizens to Germany and the settlement of the vacated spaces by Poles from the central voivodships of the country and repatriates from the USSR. On the other hand, the local Poles (former German citizens) were not deported. According to the Polish authorities, this autochthonous Polish population was subjected to forced Germanisation for many centuries, they needed to return their native language and Polish appearance in full. As a result, various groups of inhabitants of Polish origin with diverse cultural backgrounds had to transform into a homogeneous ethnocultural community, which was to become part of a single Polish nation. Re-Polonisation also implied a whole range of measures aimed at changing the cultural landscape and national symbols, restoring the former Slavic toponyms, and identifying and consolidating historical and cultural evidence of the Polish past of the new territories in the public consciousness. However, the analysis of the integration concepts of the opposing Polish political movements shows serious differences in the understanding of the term “re-Polonisation”, in the development and application of specific mechanisms for its implementation in the new Polish territories. Polish emigrant circles in London gave priority to the national-cultural aspects of integration, while the left-wing forces finally came to the conclusion that socialist-type transformations would become a universal means of integration for all groups of Polish society. With the victory of the Communists, the latter approach prevailed, which led to the underestimation of many factors and errors in the sphere of the national-cultural policy in the newly annexed lands in the first post-war years.

Nine US Symbols to Revisit Some American Civilization Aspects

American civilization is part of academic study programs worldwide, especially those dedicated to general American studies. Being one of the most powerful countries in the world in the economic and military spheres, the USA is distinguished through its colorful plurality in terms of race, culture and origin, but also in terms of its tolerance vis-à-vis its opportunity doors open to all without discrimination. Over several decades, the USA has been influencing both third world countries and developed countries thanks to the American dream of being the land of the free and the home of the brave. But as far as geopolitics is concerned, the USA is also facing challenges relating to illegal immigration, and humanitarian crises through direct wars or wars by proxy in the Middle East especially. This paper presents nine national symbols that portray some aspects of American civilization.

Проявление этнического возрождения через национальные элементы в одежде

This article is devoted to the signs of the manifestation of ethnic revival through national symbols in the elements of clothing of modern Kazakh society. The object of the study is Kazakhstanis living in the city of Astana, the age of the study participants: 16 - 30 years, which corresponds to the age qualification of the youth of the republic in the law on youth. The purpose of the study: to study the semantic features of the use of national symbols in the clothes of modern Kazakh youth. To achieve the purpose of the study, an applied empirical study was conducted using the Google Forms. Based on the theoretical analysis and analysis of the data obtained on this study, it was concluded that the ethnic revival of modern Kazakh society manifests itself vividly through the use of national symbols in the clothes of Kazakhstanis, for self-identification, self-manifestation and the construction of their own image with distinctive characteristics. This phenomenon of self-determination and demonstration of one's ethnic uniqueness is a transformation of Kazakh society due to changes in the standards of successful socialization of young people through the adoption of ethnic characteristics, new ideas and an increase in the importance of ethno-cultural values, ethnic self-identification manifested in interaction, the choice of external attributes emphasizing uniqueness and ethnicity. The analysis of the manifestation of ethnic revival through symbolic images used in clothing today is one of the important elements of the study of the peculiarities of social interaction in the country, not only for Kazakhstani researchers but also for foreign colleagues focused on the peculiarities of the development and change of social groups.

Фразеологічний портрет оповідача в романі Ольги Слоньовської «Інстинкт саранчі»

The article describes the system of phraseological units used by the narrator of O. Slonovska’s novel «Instinct of the Locust» (Kyiv: Ukrainian Priority Publishing House, 2019), who is a journalist. A set of these phraseological means is called a phraseological portrait. We understand it as a stable combinations of words inherent to a certain person, which are used in the personal speech to communicate, analyse the behaviour of interlocutors or characterize their character traits. In the analysed novel, the narrator uses phrasemes, which primarily perform a textual, stylistic, and plot-creating function. Book idioms play a leading role in the system of language means of the journalist’s artistic understanding of reality. They define this style as a person of high intelligence, an elite linguistic personality, capable of creating texts that are perfect in terms of content and form. The narrator achieves the localisation of the presentation, evidentiality, argumentativeness of the statement thanks to the skilful combination of book and colloquial phrases in the same context. The expressiveness of the statement is enhanced in connection with the use of imagery and emotionality natural for phraseological units, the creation of contextual conditions for synonymy, antonymy, oxymoron, synecdoche, as well as the use of stable combinations of words with figurative concretizers that have archaic symbolism. The most phraseologically loaded nouns in the text are the nouns leg, eye, hand, world, word, tongue, which perform the function of figurative concretizers of several phrasemes. Often, stable combinations of words in the narrator’s speech can play the role of standards, stereotypes of the cultural and national worldview or indicate their symbolic nature.

THE EMPEROR MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS ELAGABALUS AND THE TRIAD OF EMESA: AZIZOS AND MONIMOS, COMPA-NIONS OF SOL INVICTUS ELAGABAL

Through the analysis of the structure of the religious pantheon of the city of Emesa and of several coins specific to the emperor Elagabalus, in this paper we shall try to check whether the individual stars present in these coins could be identified as concrete astronomical facts with a religious significance, applying the parameters established for these studies. In Roman coins, the presence of sym bols of an astronomical nature is very common and has received different interpre tations. More precisely, the symbol of the star appears in the coins of different em perors, individually or in greater or lesser numbers. In light of the religious policy of Elagabalus, we might conclude that these stars, depending on their position on the reverses of the studied coins, could be identified with the god Azizos – the mor ning star – or with the god Monimos – the evening star –, gods accompanying the Sun Invictus Elagabal in the triad of Emesa.

Tripathi's Sita: A Symbol of Feminist Revisionist Nationhood

Amish Tripathi's novel Sita: Warrior of Mithila (2017) is the second installment in the Rama Chandra Series, offering a reimagined portrayal of Lord Rama and other key figures from the Ramayana in a modernized context. Through its exploration of human nature, politics, and morality, the series captivates readers both in India and internationally. Tripathi's adept fusion of Indian mythology and history has garnered widespread acclaim, with his books consistently ranking as bestsellers. The title, Sita: Warrior of Mithila, aptly reflects the central character's portrayal as a formidable female warrior. While the narrative begins with Sita's demonstration of courage during her abduction, it evolves to delve deeper into her transformation into a warrior princess. Sita embodies a form of feminist nationalism, championing altruistic warrior ideals. Guided by her mother's wisdom, she emerges as a symbol of this novel feminist nationalism, challenging traditional gender roles within the political sphere. Through Sita's journey, the narrative dismantles gender-based political norms, offering a fresh perspective on nation-building and the role of women within it. In contrast to conventional mythology, the revisionist approach taken by Tripathi actively engages with the development of women's political identities, highlighting their significance in the broader context of nationhood. The research question for the current study is: How does Amish Tripathi's novel Sita: Warrior of Mithila depict the development of Sita's feminist ideology, challenge traditional portrayals of Sita in the Ramayana, and explore the connection between Sita's transformation and the concept of feminist nation-building?

ТРАДИЦИОННЫЕ СИМВОЛЫ КИТАЙСКОЙ КУЛЬТУРЫ: ЗНАЧЕНИЕ ДЛЯ ПРОСТРАНСТВА ОБЩЕСТВЕННОГО ПИТАНИЯ

The article traces how the decorative nature of traditional cultural symbols in the design of public dining spaces gradually acquires diversified characteristics. This article deeply analyzes three styles of public catering spaces, to reveal the characteristics of using a number of traditional symbols in Chinese national culture. It analyzes the intrinsic value and “metaphorical” meaning, reconstructs the aesthetics of public catering space, realizes the perceptual and experiential needs of people at the spiritual level.

Old Wusum and New Rumuz: a Note on the Visualisation of the Identity of the Sinai Bedouins

The paper investigates the visualisation of Bedouin tribal identity over time. The first part provides a detailed account of the phenomenon of wasm in the Arabian Peninsula within Bedouin culture. For centuries, wasm has served as a distinguishing sign among the Bedouins, and has been used mainly for camel and cattle branding, but also in rock art, carpet weaving, tattooing, etc. The second part is an attempt to lay the foundations for future research into the new phenomenon of tribal codes consisting of Arabic numerals and Latin letters. These codes are said to have gained popularity in Saudi Arabia in the early 21st century and subsequently spread to neighbouring regions. While these codes have an obscure origin and may not have a direct connection to wasm, they are nevertheless intertwined with it in discussions of the nature and functions of such symbols. The paper does not provide a comprehensive account of this subject, which would require more extensive fieldwork. Instead, it offers a perspective on how these codes are used in South Sinai as a means of asserting the visibility and presence of the Bedouin community among Egyptians and foreign lifestyle migrants.

The Universal Symbolism of River Narratives in Modern Literature

This article analyzes the use of river narratives as a symbol in literature from various regions of the world. Through the examination of works by authors such as Manuel María Madiedo (Colombia), George Eliot (United Kingdom), and Zhang Chengzhi (China), this paper demonstrates the universal nature of river symbolism and how it reflects human experiences and social realities. The authors employ literary techniques such as foreshadowing, symbolism, and metaphor to convey multifaceted images of the region and its people, exploring larger societal issues such as the struggle for individual agency, national identity, and cultural ideals. Ultimately, this paper argues that river narratives have the potential to resonate with the collective consciousness, contributing to a broader dialogue between Colombian and world literature.

Symbolism of celestial bodies in the poetic text of Anna Akhmatova: moon symbols

The article reveals the main functions of the symbolism of the moon in the poetry of A. Akhmatova by means of a complex description of direct and secondary (month, moonbeam) names of celestial bodies from the standpoint of functional originality of "cosmism" that existed in the era of Silver Age. The main semantic groups are singled out taking into account cultural and individual-author specificity, the specificity of direct ("moon", "month") and semantically related ("night light", "moon ray") construct of the celestial body are revealed, the individual-author concept of "psychological landscape" acting as a relay of emotions of the lyrical hero is reproduced. The images of celestial luminaries as a purely important component of the national picture of the world, as well as the system of moral and poetic attitudes are substantiating. The nomination of celestial bodies interpret as an interrelation of traditional and poetic perception of the worldview, realised in the works of Anna Akhmatova, a representative of Acmeism. The hypothesis introduces that solar-lunar images are an integral part of Anna Akhmatova's poetry, an important element of "psychology". Akhmatova, an important element of "psychological landscape", metaphorical comprehension of the historical context. Meanwhile, the image of "moon" that is read as a conceptual and semantic unity in several thematic groups and represented by a wide range of lexical units. A comparative analysis of similar and opposite aspects is carried out, the influence of the shape (crescent, disk) and color (green, pink, silver) of the night luminary on the interpretation of mythopoetic representations is determined, individual author's concepts in the interpretation of the negative lunar space, the interrelation of the real and otherworld are substantiated, the idea of ghostliness and illusory nature of what happens at night is actualised. The poetry of Anna Akhmatova distinguishes individual mythopoetic interpretations of the “moon” as an apocalyptic symbol of the mystical otherworldly nature. The statistics of references to the concept "moon" in the poetic text is given. Akhmatova's poetry explores the personal meanings of the concept 'moon', which include it as a background landscape and a symbol of creativity. It says about the fruitfulness of further observations on the interpretation of celestial luminaries and other cosmic objects in Anna Akhmatova's work in the aspect of building an artistic model.

Representations of Palestinian Culture in the Digital Public Sphere: A Semiotic Analysis of the Thobe and the Keffiyeh

Palestinian cultural identity has always been the flip side of the Palestinian people’s political resistance. While many studies have examined Palestinian culture from political and historical perspectives, limited academic works have investigated how social media plays a role in providing opportunities for Palestinians to resist negative stereotypes and provide alternative representations of their cultural symbols, including traditional customs. In its attempt to fill a gap in the existing body of knowledge, this article examines the contemporary representation of Palestinian culture, in particular, national garments—the thobe and keffiyeh —in the digital public sphere. Through employing theories of representation, the digital public sphere and applying semiotic analysis, this article follows four main X (formerly known as Twitter) hashtag-based trends that highlight traditional Palestinian garments (thobe and keffiyeh): #MyHistoricalThobe, #TweetYourThobe, #WorldKeffiyehDay, and #KeffiyehDay. Forty tweets extracted from top 10 X accounts, which first appeared in a hashtag search and were tweeted using these hashtags, were selected and coded. Using a semiotic analysis, the article deconstructed the tweets into connotation and denotation elements to better understand what the thobe and the keffiyeh mean collectively in the context of Palestinian cultural narrative. This research contributes to the debate concerning the relationship between interactive digital platforms and contemporary cultural resistance. It pushes forth the argument that shared representations of national cultural symbols are noticed when examining, and collectively reading, particular social media-based campaigns.

Gandhi's Mira: Debating “Female” Suffering and the Politics of Iconography

AbstractDuring the first decades of the twentieth century when the Indian freedom struggle movement gained momentum, M. K. Gandhi often evoked Mirabai—the sixteenth-century bhakti poet-saint—in his public speeches and voluminous letters. This article demonstrates the degree to which Gandhi's maneuver fundamentally altered Mirabai's image as a national and cultural symbol, and how it prompted the mobilization of women in the larger nationalist movement. Through the process of appropriation, Mirabai's image evolved in the Indian cultural realm from a woman charged with promiscuity into an ideal “chaste” woman. Gandhi's intervention further initiated a moral renaissance parallel to the nationalist current where women transgressed the thresholds of traditional domesticity and became active agents of non-violent resistance—Hindu/spiritual in essence—inspired by Mirabai's suffering and compositions. Gandhi's Mira emerged as a literary-cultural hybrid that circulated in public spheres, as Mirabai became a public icon and a vehicle for women's emancipation alongside national liberation.

Мотиваційні пріоритети у вихованні почуття національної самосвідомості учнів, студентів і курсантів засобами бойового хортингу

The article focuses on the priority tasks of the research topic, including increase of motivation for physical culture lessons, physical education and sports, development of a sense of national identity of schoolchildren, university students and cadets by means of combat horting, popularisation and preservation of national traditions and values of Ukrainians. The authors provide an analysis and synthesis of the concepts of ‘motivation’, ‘national identity’, identify motivational priorities, conduct a survey and provide recommendations for developing a sense of national identity in schoolchildren, university students and cadets, including as follows: 1. Patriotism and love for the Motherland (respect for national symbols and traditions, competitors and coaches; preservation of cultural heritage. 2. Formation of national identity and self-awareness (sense of belonging: horting promotes a sense of belonging to the nation, emphasising the originality and uniqueness of Ukrainian culture; pride in national achievements: participation in competitions and victories in international arenas creates a sense of pride in one's country. 3. Development of civic consciousness: active citizenship: Young people involved in horting often participate in social projects and volunteer initiatives, which promotes active citizenship. 4. Responsibility for the society: horting activities develop a sense of responsibility for the safety and well-being of their community and country as a whole. 5. Personal development and self-improvement: training willpower and self-discipline: Regular training contributes to the development of willpower, selfdiscipline and perseverance. 6. Developing leadership skills: Horting develops leadership skills, the ability to make decisions and lead others. 7. Social integration and cohesion: development of team spirit: Team training and competitions contribute to the development of skills of cooperation, mutual support and team spirit. 8. Social support and mutual help: Participants in a horting club often support each other not only during training, but also in everyday life, forming strong social bonds. 9. Physical health and safety: Improving health: Regular physical activity improves the health of young people, contributing to a healthy lifestyle. 10. Self-defence skills: Horting teaches young people self-defence skills that increase their self-confidence and safety in everyday life.

Discourse of trauma and transformation of memory in the novel of J. S. Foer’s “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close”

The article is devoted to considering the peculiarities of trauma discourse in the context of dynamics and transformations of individual and collective memory based on the material of the novel by the modern American writer J. S. Foer “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close”. Sociocultural dynamics of the first quarter of the 21st century causes significant changes in the spheres of collective imagination and memory, which finds its expression in the literary discourse, one of the significant types of which is currently the discourse of trauma. In turn, the category of trauma acquires universal status in modern humanitarianism. This determines the relevance of the research topic. The purpose of the article is to consider the discursive specificity of J. S. Foer’s novel «Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close» in the context of trauma, individual and collective memory. The subject of consideration is the peculiarities of the representation of trauma in the context of the transformation of memory in the novel by J. S. Foer. The novelty of the study consists in the attempt to distinguish the discourse of trauma related to the peculiarities of the narrator’s vision of reality and the socio-cultural determinations of trauma that affect the entire society, that is, to isolate the universal discourse of social trauma in the novel compared to individual trauma. The task of the research: to analyse the specific features of the discourse of trauma in J. S. Foer’s novel; find out the correlation between trauma discourse and transformations of individual and collective memory; to justify the universal nature of the trauma discourse in the novel. Historical-cultural, hermeneutic and discursive methods were used in the research process. The discourse of trauma in the novel acquires universal features and concerns all the narrators of the novel, who form its plot. The visual component that forms the visual-symbolic narrative of the novel actualizes the synesthetic perception of the trauma and its totality, spread not only to the family of the main character, but also to the entire society. At the same time, the graphic and visual experiments and findings of the author allow us to interpret the text as a complex postmodern and metamodern whole. The trauma discourse in the novel captures the transformations of individual and collective memory, which are aimed at restoring the functionality of the existence of people and communities on both the cognitive and emotional-affective levels. The discourse of trauma acquires features of totality, while remaining rational and avoiding signs of self-obsession, which enables catharsis as life after and with trauma. The symbolic nature of the processes taking place in the collective consciousness and imagination represents itself through the transformations of discourse, which record the transformations of memory. Prospects for further research are outlined by the possibility of considering the discourse of trauma in a wider cultural, linguistic and sociological context.

Peirce’s Semiotics and the Background of Whitehead’s Symbolism

The aim of this paper is to present Peirce’s semiotics as an important factor in the genesis of Alfred North Whitehead’s doctrine of symbolism. I argue that Peirce had a direct impact on Whitehead’s earliest reflections on symbolism generally and mathematical symbolism particularly. From his first encounter with Charles Sanders Peirce’s semiotic doctrine, contrasted to that of George F. Stout, Whitehead derived a general doctrine of signs which he never abandoned and which formed the basis of his mature doctrine of symbolism. While in the first years of his Harvard professorship, Whitehead suffered a second, indirect, influence from Peirce, through the American philosophers he interacted with. His mature philosophy of perception is both the development and application of the doctrine derived from Peirce and Stout thirty years before, and a reply to the realist doctrines which stressed the symbolic nature of perceptual knowledge, most importantly Santayana’s. Whitehead’s own brand of realism rests on the assumption of a pansemiotic principle, obscurely and mediately derived from Peirce.

ГАСТРОНОМИЯ КАК СИМВОЛИЧЕСКИЙ ФЕНОМЕН

The article considers gastronomy/gastronomic culture as a symbolic phenomenon. Within the framework of intercultural communication the attitude to food is expressed symbolically as well. The symbolism of gastronomic culture reflects the peculiarities of a particular epoch in the development of both mankind and a separate state. Thus, primitive people, eating the meat of a predator, acquired its strength, hence strength became the symbol of food; etc., or in the Soviet period the symbols and signs of gastronomic culture reflected the existing political system.From linguistic and cultural point of view, gastronomic culture is a certain set of characteristic groups of words that denote symbols, signs and codes of gastronomic culture. It is in the symbolic nature of this culture, expressed by symbols and signs, that the most important difference between culture itself and its components (for example, cooking), which are taken by ordinary people for gastronomy.

СООТНОШЕНИЕ ВЕРБАЛЬНОГО И ВИЗУАЛЬНОГО КОДОВ В ПОЛИТИЧЕСКОЙ МЕТАФОРЕ (НА МАТЕРИАЛЕ МОНО- И ПОЛИМОДАЛЬНЫХ ТЕКСТОВ ПОЛИТИЧЕСКИХ КАРИКАТУР)

The article depicts the interrelation between verbal and visual codes in a political metaphor from the perspective of linguosemiotics and cognitive linguistics exemplified by the integration of image and word in the representation of the meanings of political reality. The study is based on the mono- and polymodal texts of political caricatures. The research aims to describe metaphorical models of national leaders of two linguistic cultures – Great Britain (B. Johnson) and the USA (D. Trump). The schemes of interaction between verbal and nonverbal codes represented by substitution, comparison and hybridization, as well as their role in the formation of a metaphorical image of politician are revealed. The symbolic nature of polymodal texts of political caricatures is analyzed from the perspective of meaning formation by the interpretive consciousness, and the suggestive potential of political texts.