Folk and Popular Culture
Culture:
 What people care about …
 What people take care of…
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2
Folk & Popular Culture: Terms
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HABIT

“a repetitive act that a particular individual performs”

“a repetitive act of a group, performed to the extent that it
becomes characteristic of the group”
CUSTOM
CULTURE
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DAILY NECESSITIES vs. LEISURE
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“the body of material traits, customary beliefs, and social forms
that constitute the distinct tradition of a group of people.”
“a collection of social customs produces a group’s material
culture.”
Every group has to survive – eat, find shelter, clothing – but
different groups have different ways of satisfying their needs.
Leisure – games, music, art – are universal, but different groups
express themselves in different ways.
THE GEOGRAPHY OF CULTURE

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Every activity has a distinct spatial distribution.
Every group takes elements from the environment into its
culture and builds their own unique landscapes
3
Folk vs. Popular
 We

can look at culture at two scales:
FOLK CULTURE
 Small,
fairly homogenous groups
 Today, mostly isolated in rural areas
 Spreads by relocation diffusion

POPULAR CULTURE
 Large,
diverse groups
 Widespread, urban
 Spreads through media
4
Origins
Every social custom develops in a
particular place – a hearth.
 Folk customs usually have anonymous
origins – they come from unknown places
(sometimes more than one place), from
unknown people, at unknown times.
 Popular customs are usually the product of
developed countries, and their origins are
often well known (and sometimes
copyrighted!)

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Origins: Folk Customs
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Folk Music

Every culture develops its own unique music.

In many cultures the distinction between “art” and “everyday
object” is unclear – decoration is “just the way things are done.”
Folk Art
Folk Housing
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“Folk Food”
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People adapt their food preferences based on the environment –
BUT beliefs and values strongly influence diet taboos.
Folk Sports
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Must be made from locally available building materials.
Distinctive forms – there is no “perfect” house design.
People everywhere enjoy recreation – many places have
developed unique forms of recreation and sports.
Folk Beliefs

How does the world work? How should we behave?
6
Folk Music
African mbira
Australian………
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Hearths, American country music
Usually composed
anonymously.
Usually transmitted orally.
Content usually comes
from everyday events in
people’s lives.
Possible
Paleolithic
flute, dated
to 43,000
BCE
Sources: http://helixmusic.com.au/posters/mbira.htm;
http://www.amol.org.au/; http://www.calacademy.org/calwild/sum98/horizons.htm
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Folk Art


Frequently, folk art
pieces are just
“traditional”; there is no
“designer,” no “artist” –
just craftspeople.
Often the “art” is
included as part of the
traditional way of
making something – not
specifically made as
“art.”
Pennsylvania Dutch blanket chest
Source: http://www.nga.gov/collection/gallery/iadpenn/iadpenn-29268.0.html
8
Folk Housing

Folk housing has several
fundamental characteristics:

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It must deal adequately with
the physical environment.
It must be designed in such a
way that people without
special equipment or
training can build it.
It must be constructed from
locally available materials.
Remember: there is no
“perfect” design.
Different traditional
house types from
Eastern North America
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Folk Housing:
Diffusion in
the Eastern
U.S.
10
Folk Housing Around the World
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Folk Housing in Western China
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Folk Food & Food Taboos
 Folk
customs are
always affected by
what’s available – but
also by culture.
 What is acceptable for
some cultures may be
unacceptable – taboo
– or even horrifying to
others.
Gathering tasty fly larvae,
Mono Lake, CA
13
Folk Food: Recipes

Nan tsao go zo (Chinese
stir-fried puppy)

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Eviscerate and clean puppy.
Remove hair by singeing in a
rice-straw fire; continue heat
treatment until the skin is
golden brown.
Cut the meat into cubes and
dry-fry them in a wok.
Add oil, ginger, garlic, and
dried, salted black beans to
another wok and stir-fry for
10 minutes.
Add the meat, soy sauce,
green onions, and deep-fried
bean curd. Stir momentarily.
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Grasshopper Fritters
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Sources: http://home.att.net/~Storytellers/ucuisine.html;
http://digilander.libero.it/unno2/navighiamo/bugcuisine.html
3/4 cup sifted flower
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cups milk
1 egg slightly beaten
1 cup grasshoppers
Sift flour, baking powder and
salt together in a bowl. Slowly
add milk;beat until smooth.
Add egg and beat well. Pluck
off grasshopper wings and
legs; heads are optional.
Dip insects in egg batter and
deep fry. Salt and serve.
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Folk Games & Sports

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“Play is older than culture”
(Johan Huizinga, Homo
Ludens)
As far we know, sports
and games are a fundamental part of every
culture – playing games is
part of what it means to
be human.
Every culture develops
its own unique forms
of recreation.
“The Royal Game of Ur,”
about 5,000 years old
Egyptian ball
game, from the
tomb of Kheti
“Mistress of
Sport,” about
5,000 years old
Sources: http://web.ukonline.co.uk/james.masters/TraditionalGames/RoyalGameOfUr.htm;
http://www.personal.psu.edu/users/w/x/wxk116/trigon.html
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Folk Sports: Examples

Cornish Hurling
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“At [the village of] St Columb
the struggle is a physical battle
between "Town and Country"
with the shops in the town
barricading their windows and
doors for the start of the scrum
at 4.30 p.m. The ball is thrown
to the crowd from the market
square the objective to carry it
into either the town or country
goals set some two miles apart
or if this is not possible the ball
may be carried over the Parish
boundary . At 8.00 p.m. a
winner returns to declare a win
for Town or Country.”
Belarusian Hul'nia

“Players are divided into
two teams or "armies".
Each "army" chooses a
"big one" -- the
strongest person. This
person throws a wooden
wheel or a heavy round
stone towards another
"army". The other
"army" is supposed to
stop it as fast as possible
and reverse its direction.
The game is won when
the line is crossed on
one of the sides.”
Sources: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~cornwall/ball/corn.htm;
http://www.belarusguide.com/culture1/holidays/games.html
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Folk Beliefs
The Swiss answer the question:
"Where do babies come from?"

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How does the world work? How should you behave? What
should you do when someone is born? Or marries? Or dies?
How should you live your life?
Every culture has had to come up with answers to questions
like these -- answers that (more or less) work for that culture.
Folk beliefs are usually transmitted orally.
Source: http://whc.unesco.org/en/about/
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Folk Beliefs: Relocation Diffusion
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The Amish – originally a Swiss Mennonite group – have a
distinctive culture and are now found in 28 US States.
The Amish (and their beliefs) have spread by relocation
diffusion – which is just about the only way folk cultures
and their beliefs can spread. (other than hierarchical)
Source: http://digitalunion.osu.edu/r2/summer07/eellis/
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Folk Masterpieces:
World Heritage Sites
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As of 2013, the United Nations
Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Organization
(UNESCO) has proclaimed 981
places around the world as
“World Heritage Sites.”
These are places that
individual countries have
selected as “of outstanding
universal value.”
Though many of these are
natural or historical, some of
these are places where folk
culture is maintained or
preserved.

Included are a wide variety of
places:
 Khami Ruins (Zimbabwe)
 Jesuit Missions of the
Guaranis (Brazil)
 Ohrid Region (Macedonia)
Source: http://whc.unesco.org/en/about/
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Intangible Cultural Heritage

Since 1997 the
United Nations
Educational,
Scientific and
Cultural
Organization
(UNESCO) has
proclaimed 257
different examples
of “intangible
cultural heritage.”

Included are a wide variety of
activities:


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The Oral and Graphic Expressions of the
Wajapi (Brazil)
The Tradition of Vedic Chanting (India)
Cross Crafting and its Symbolism (Latvia
& Lithuania)
Source: http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/index.php?lg=EN
20
Popular Music
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Popular music is (usually)
written or performed by known
individuals who "own" it.
Popular music is (usually)
produced as a kind of
commodity – for sale.
Popular music tends to vary a
lot more over time than from
place to place.
Modern popular music began
about 100 years ago:



Performed in English "music halls"
and in American “vaudeville," and
composed (and sold) by professionals
in places like "Tin Pan Alley."
Global-scale diffusion during the First
and Second World Wars.
Continued and increasing diffusion by
global mass media. (Could argue
contagious)
Popular music clusters
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Owning Popular Music:
Copyright – “Happy Birthday to You”
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

Popular music belongs
to the copyright
holder.
Sometimes people
don’t realize a song is
owned – “Happy
Birthday to You” will
not be in the Public
Domain in the US until
2030.
Until then, public
income-generating
performances have to
pay a royalty to
Warner/Chappell
Music, Inc. (in some
cases thousands of
dollars!)
Source: http://www.warnerchappell.com/wcm_2/song_search/song_detail/songview_2.jsp?esongId=126621000&view=fulllyrics
22
Popular Housing


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Housing in popular culture is
designed and built by
professionals – not by the
people who live in the
houses.
Popular housing is not
limited to locally available
building materials.
Popular housing styles vary
more over time than
regionally — houses built in
the 1950s, for example, tend
to look alike, regardless of
where in the US they were
built.
Source: http://www.capitalcentury.com/1950sindex.html
23
Popular Food


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In popular culture modern transportation methods
mean that a wide variety of different kinds of food
are available year-round – people are not limited
to locally available crops.
Food fads and food trends can change diets, so
that what people prefer tends to vary more over
time than over space.
However, there certainly are variations in food
preferences and consumption.
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Popular
Food
Variations:
US Alcohol
Preferences
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Popular Food Variations: Barbecue
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It’s hard to imagine something simpler than barbecue
– meat cooked slowly by indirect heat. But barbecue
has deep and varied cultural roots in the US.
This map shows the barbecue regions of the State of
South Carolina.
In the US generally, there are many styles:
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North Carolina (east): Pork; vinegar-based sauce
North Carolina (west): Pork shoulder; vinegar and
ketchup
Texas: beef; no sauce (varies)
Kansas City: beef or pork; thick sweet tomato-based
sauce
Memphis: pork; ketchup-based
South Carolina: pork; four styles of sauce
Alabama: pork, chicken, turkey; mayonnaise-based
Kentucky (west): lamb; Worcestershire and vinegar
sauce
Sources: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9120357/; http://www.bbqreport.com/archives/barbecue/2005/08/29/a-regional-barbecuecheat-sheet/; http://strangemaps.wordpress.com/2008/02/19/246-southern-sauce-sources/
26
Popular Sports:
Variations

As with food,
sports in popular
culture are
extremely
widespread – but
there are regional
variations in
popularity.
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Popular Clothing
In popular culture, clothing
may reflect occupation, and
must (of course) protect the
wearer from the environment.
But clothing in popular
culture is affected by fashion
and trends.
Just as with music,
housing and other aspects
of culture, popular
clothing tends to vary
more over time than from
place to place.
Welcome to the 1970s!
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Popular Beliefs


Beliefs about the world and how people
should live and behave are widely shared in
popular culture.
Widely shared concepts today:


Democracy; free markets; individualism; rule
of law; private property; family; work; the
weekend; education; etc.
Popular beliefs are spread by media -newspapers, magazines, radio and
TELEVISION!!!!
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1954
The Diffusion
of TV


In the US most TV
stations are privately
owned.
Traditionally, other
countries controlled TV,
but satellite dishes and
other technologies have
made government control
much more difficult.
1970
2005
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TV Around the World
Watching TV in Niger
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Category 1: Countries where most households (more than
50%) own at least one TV set (US, Japan).
Category 2: Countries where TVs are common, but not
universal (25%-49%) (Mexico, Thailand).
Category 3: Countries where television exists, but is
uncommon (5%-24%); few individuals own sets (Mongolia,
Laos).
Category 4: Countries where television is rare or nonexistent (less than 5%); virtually no TV sets (Bhutan, Chad).
Data Source: World Bank Development and Data Statistics Table 5.11: http://www.worldbank.org/
31
The Internet

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In 1995 less than 10% of American adults were online;
today more than 90% have online access.
Worldwide, nearly three billion people have internet
access – but access is still very limited in less developed
areas.
Source: http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm
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The Internet:
Access 2011

Lowest access rates:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
EAST TIMOR
MYANMAR
LIBERIA
ETHIOPIA
NIGER
GUINEA
SIERRA LEONE
SOMALIA
D.R. CONGO
BURKINA FASO
MADAGASCAR
BURUNDI
CHAD
PAPUA N.G.
TURKMENISTAN
0.2%
0.2%
0.5%
0.7%
0.8%
0.9%
0.9%
1.1%
1.3%
1.4%
1.6%
1.7%
1.8%
2.0%
2.2%
Penetration
Country or Region
(% Population)
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
Iceland
Norway
Sweden
Falkland Islands
Luxembourg
Greenland
Australia
Netherlands
Denmark
Finland
Saint Lucia
New Zealand
Switzerland
United Kingdom
Niue
Germany
Korea, South
Liechtenstein
Canada
Belgium
Andorra
97.8 %
97.2 %
92.9 %
92.4 %
91.4 %
90.2 %
89.8 %
89.5 %
89.0 %
88.6 %
88.5 %
84.5 %
84.2 %
84.1 %
83.9 %
82.7 %
82.7 %
81.8 %
81.6 %
81.4 %
81.0 %
Internet
Population
Users
( 2011 Est. )
Latest Data
304,129
311,058
4,560,572
4,691,849
8,441,718
9,088,728
2,900
3,140
459,833
503,302
52,000
57,670
19,554,832 21,766,711
15,071,191 16,847,007
4,923,824
5,529,888
4,661,265
5,259,250
142,900
161,557
3,625,553
4,290,347
6,430,363
7,639,961
52,731,209 62,698,362
1,100
1,311
67,364,898 81,471,834
40,329,660 48,754,657
28,826
35,236
27,757,540 34,030,589
8,489,901 10,431,477
68,740
84,825
Source: http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm
33
Technology in the Developing World

The growth of cell phone use in Africa has been
amazing:

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In 2000 Nigeria had 100,000 telephones. Today it has
100 million (almost all cellular phones).
Kenya has seen cell phone use grown 500-fold
between 2000 and 2010.
Rwanda phone use grew 50% in 2010 alone.
Smart phones are rapidly increasing in popularity.
Google plans to sell 200 million phones in Africa in the
next few years.
Some of the ways cell phones are changing Africa:

BANKING: 50% of adults in Kenya, Sudan and Gabon
bank online using their phones, and this is spreading.

ACTIVISM: The Arab Spring is just one example of

EDUCATION: In South Africa 10 million students are

ENTERTAINMENT: Games, online chat, music, and

EMERGENCIES: Used to mobilize and organize

AGRICULTURE: From rapidly updating weather

HEALTH: Alerts and updates, disease tracking, getting
the use of mobile media to influence change in Africa.
learning mathematics through text messaging.
specialized "channels" for movies and television.
disaster services, help with refugees and find missing
relatives.
information to helping farmers with crop sales and
marketing, to coordinating veterinary services.
fake medicines out of the market, finding doctors -cell services are transforming health care in Africa.

There are more cell phone users in
Africa today than there are in North
America.
Sources: http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/25/international/africa/25africa.html?_r=1; http://www.cnn.com/2012/09/13/world/africa/mobile-phones-change-africa/index.html?hpt=hp_c2;
http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/newsdesk/2011/03/africa-cell-phone-revolution.html; http://paidcontent.org/2012/04/03/e-books-for-smart-kids-on-dumb-phones/
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Threats to Folk Cultures

Why worry? Why should
we care?



When people turn away
from traditional culture and
customs, they may also turn
away from a society’s
traditional values.
The ways of living and
behaving that work in
popular culture may not
work so well in other
cultures.
On the other hand –
traditional ways of living are
not necessarily ideal either!

There are five basic kinds
of threats to folk culture
today:
1. Loss of traditional
values
2. Foreign media
imperialism
3. Adoption &
commodification
4. Environmental
threats
5. “Placelessness”
35
Threats to Folk Culture:
Loss of Traditional Values

Changes in the role of women
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In many cultures it is traditional for women to be
subservient to men (this was true here until quite recently!)
In some cases, awareness of popular culture has meant that
women can seek advancement, education, new roles.
On the other hand, contact with popular culture almost
always results in increased rates of prostitution and
exploitation.
Women who try to change their roles or status may be
subject to harassment and violence – although that certainly
isn’t unique to folk cultures!
36
Violence
Towards
Women:
Traditional
Cultural
Attitudes
Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/1028228.stm
37
Threats to Folk Culture: Women’s Pants???
Source: http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=oddlyEnoughNews&storyID=2862290
38
Threats to Folk Culture:
Foreign Media Imperialism

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Media from just three countries – the US, the UK and Japan –
dominate entertainment and news in much of the less
developed world. What they show may be offensive to (or
subversive of) traditional values.
Western news media dominate international news. News
media within most less developed countries is largely
government controlled. News networks tend to represent
Western values and ideas – and may not present the points of
view of less developed countries (or their governments).
Western media are largely interested in disasters.
Note that newspapers and radio stations are usually locally
owned and operated – not foreign owned or controlled.
39
Al Jazeera: An Alternative Network?
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Al Jazeera is a
broadcasting network
headquartered in
Doha, Qatar.
One of its goals is to
present a view of the
world that is different
from that available
from most international broadcasters
– but still “Adhere to
the journalistic
values.”
Al Jazeera is not
currently available on
any cable or satellite
system in the US (but
may be soon, with its
purchase of “Current
TV”).
Sources: http://www.aljazeera.com/aboutus/2006/11/2008525185733692771.html;
http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2009/10/why-i-love-al-jazeera/307665/; http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/03/03/hillaryclinton-calls-al-_n_830890.html
40
Threats to Folk Culture:
Adoption & Commodification


Popular culture is
constantly looking
for new, exciting
things and ideas.
Often, it takes
them from folk
cultures – but
things are usually
altered as part of
 Portraits of Nicholas of Patara (270-346), Bishop of
the process, and
Myra. Patron Saint of sailors, children, against
thieves, for prisoners, bakers, barrel makers,
the original
brewers, dock workers, students, unmarried girls;
meaning is often
and of Bari, Italy; Loraine, France; Greece; Russia.
lost.
Sources: http://www.catholic-forum.com/saints/saintn01.htm;
http://www.stnicholascenter.org/; http://www.wildwestweb.net/cwp/thomasnast.html
41
Threats to Folk Culture:
The Environment

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
Folk cultures are dependent on the local
environment. Although they may modify it, if they
survive, they must be in some sense “in balance.”
Popular culture is much more likely to create
pollution – toxic chemicals, sewage, etc.
Popular culture is far less dependent on local
conditions. Food can be imported; air conditioning
can keep things pleasant. So popular culture is
much more likely to modify the natural
environment – sometimes in ways that may be
disastrous for people trying to live a traditional life.
42
Modifying the Environment:
Increased Demand for Resources


Popular culture needs
access to large quantities of
raw materials – minerals,
petroleum, lumber,
agricultural land, etc.
Increased demand for these
resources can severely
impact the environment –
in ways that traditional
cultures never would.
Feedlot, Roman L. Hruska U.S.
Meat Animal Research Center,
Clay Center, Nebraska
Source: http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/AR/archive/oct98/odor1098.htm
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Modifying the Environment: Recreation


Each golf course
covers at least 200
acres (81 hectares)
and requires
enormous quantities
of fertilizers, pesticides and irrigation
water.
About 200 new golf
courses open every
year in the US;
thousands open
around the world.
44
Placelessness


Popular culture is
characterized by uniform
styles of art, architecture,
food, behavior, etc.
When every place is
indistinguishable from every
other place – then how can
any place be special or
unique? Why put any
particular value on a place
when it’s just like everywhere
else?