Cultural Animal Studies: Contributions from Literary Studies, Folklore Research, Ethnology and Cultural Anthropology

Principal researcher: Antonija Zaradija-Kiš, PhD
Researchers and associates: Zoran Čiča, Dragica Haramija, Suzana Marjanić, Mirjam Mencej, Maja Pasarić, Nikola Visković, Pieter Plas

This project is the first systematic cultural animal studies (cultural animalistics) research project in Croatia based on highlighting the importance of examining cultural animal studies topics in literature (literary anthropology), folklore research, ethnology and cultural anthropology. The 2007 book Kulturni bestijarij [Cultural Bestiary] is the first step in this project, and is a result of interdisciplinary animal studies research by 37 scholars. The aim of the project is to study animalistic phenomena in literary and folklore texts (oral, folk literature) and in ethnographic material (beliefs, ritual and customary practices). Research activities include translating influential books into Croatian, publishing collections containing reprints of older papers, organizing an international animal studies conference accompanied by a small exhibition. All of the archive and field research will be brought together in the Institute’s archive database, making up a starting point for further research, and leading to the publication of a systematic research monograph dealing with animalistic phenomena in literary and folklore texts (oral, folk literature) and in ethnographic material (beliefs, ritual and customary practices).