Oral Tradition of Zanskar

Series

Namgail, Stanzin, Dolma, Nima, Lamo, Tashi, Tonyot, Phuntsog (Amchi), Nurboo, Nima (Gyalses), Wangail (Lurspon, or semi-professional wedding singer), Falke, Tsultrim, Angmo, Tsetan, Norzom, Tsewang

This collection documents the endangered oral tradition of the Zanskar Valley in Northern India and covers a variety of genres from traditional songs to oral history.

The Zanskar Valley lies high in the Indian Himalayas (also known as Western Tibet), in Jammu and Kashmir states. Isolated from the rest of the world by high mountain ranges, it retained its unique local culture well into the second half of the twentieth century. In the past few decades, the construction of roads linking it to the outside word, the arrival of tourism and the socio-economic transformation driven by various aspects of modernization have led to a swift decline of traditional Zanskari culture, including its rich oral tradition. The recordings were made in the summer of 2018 by Stanzin Namgail, a native of Zangla village in the Zanskar Valley and an MA graduate of the Cultural Heritage Studies Program at Central European University.

Expected

Not Restricted

Third party rights are to be cleared.

Processed by Mark László-Herbert, October 31, 2020.