Interpreting the Galway Hooker: Ecomuseology, Living heritage and sustainable heritage Management

ABSTRACT

This article explores the Galway Hooker’s history, cultural heritage, and interpretive potential as an iconic workboat and fishing vessel rooted in Claddagh, a historical fishing village in Galway City. It examines the work of the Galway Hooker Sailing Club and their restoration of one boat, known as Loveen. By contextualizing the Club’s work within a living heritage framework, it advocates for an ecomuseum as an interpretative approach. Ecomuseology, a dynamic concept, focuses on preserving local cultural heritage and promoting sustainable development across social, environmental, and economic dimensions. This study combines desk research with fieldwork, including interviews with Sailing Club members.

KEYWORDS:

• Galway Hooker
• maritime heritage
• living heritage
• community engagement
• restoration
• ecomuseums
• sustainable development

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

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11. Ibid, p. 170.

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16. Ibid p. 293.

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24. Interview conducted with C. Oliver, 30 May 2022.

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27. Scott, p. 49.

28. Interview conducted with C. Oliver, 30 May 2022.

29. Interview conducted with Ciaran Oliver, 30 May 2022.

30. Galway Hooker Sailing Club, ‘Loveen’, www.galwayhookersailingclub.ie/loveen, (Accessed 18 June 2022).

31. UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage, 2003, https://ich.unesco.org/doc/src/2003_Convention_Basic_Texts-_2020_version-EN.pdf.

32. UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage, Article 2.1, (2003), https://ich.unesco.org/doc/src/2003_Convention_Basic_Texts-_2020_version-EN.pdf, p. 5.

33. Ibid, p. 5.

34. Poulios, p.21.

35. UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage, Article 2.1, (2003), p.6.

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37. Interview conducted with C. Oliver, 30 May 2022.

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40. Galway Hooker Sailing Club, Training Courses, (https://www.galwayhookersailingclub.ie/training-courses), [accessed 26 June 2022].

41. Galway Hooker Sailing Club, Join our club, https://www.galwayhookersailingclub.ie/join-our-club, [accessed 26 June 2022].

42. Ibid.

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44. Interview conducted with Ciaran Oliver, 30 May 2022.

45. Interview conducted with Tina Concannon, 30 May 2022.

46. Interview conducted with Collette Furey, 3 June 2022.

47. Ibid.

48. M. Alivizatou, Intangible heritage and the museum: A new perspective, (New York, Routledge, 2012), p. 16.

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55. H. de Varine, ‘Ecomuseology and sustainable development’, Museums and social issues, 1(2) (2006), p. 227.