engleski

Two Islands in One: The Island of Hvar

In the 8th chapter of the book, the authors discuss the division of island space, real and imaginary boundaries, migrations, identifications, and representations of local identities on the central Dalmatian island of Hvar from the anthropological perspective. The complex arrangement of island borders, real and imaginary, shows that the islands are not homogeneous and that they have their own geography. The island of Hvar and its islanders show a spatial and identity-related heterogeneity that is complex and multilayered. It is the result of the island’s complex history of settlement, migration and changes in rulers and systems, and its real and imagined isolation. The specific nature of Hvar as a larger Croatian island is the binary geocultural division between east and west. An awareness of newcomers on islands, those who arrived later, constantly emphasising and highlighting their otherness, is also part of island history, heritage, culture and identity. “Other” islanders and island communities are perceived as having a diverse, often detailed spectrum of distinctive features, real or imaginary differences, boundaries and frameworks that define, separate or isolate them. Authors diachronically presented examples of discursive formation of island stereotypes about “otherness” from the 16th to the 18th century. In second part of research, they presented results of qualitative research based on extensive ethnographic fieldwork about complex identification processes of Hvar in the 21st century. The border system and discourse of “otherness” have persisted for 400 years. In spite of their variability, their permanence has become an integral part of the Hvar island identity. The essence of islandness is structured by pulling back the boundaries, emphasising the island peculiarities and contesting the right to belong to the island on the part of those who have moved there from the mainland or remain connected with it in any way. Some stereotypes and representations of “otherness” have remained unchanged for centuries, while others have changed and even increased in response to social and cultural factors. They have also influenced the current, palpable lack of perception of the island as a whole by most islanders, and the tendency toward perceiving their own, narrow island space or dependence on the mainland. Due to these divisions and dichotomies, Hvar has also been one of the most studied islands, especially in terms of the number and variety of anthropological research projects. Hvar has become a kind of model on which, during the last 45 years, according to the already established strategy for researching the island population of following a holistic approach, a thorough insight has been gained into the biological-anthropological and other sociocultural characteristics of the Hvar population.Hvar today is an example of a divided island whose strong, set boundaries permeate its interior. Often, they are harder to breach in mental and real terms than the actual island rim.

Hvar, island identities, divided island, archipelago, anthropological resarch

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