From universal to local: perspectives on cultural landscape heritage in South Africa

Abstract

The concept of cultural landscapes relates to the multifaceted links between people, place and identity. From a professional perspective, the concept refers to a category of designated conservation areas with specific biocultural heritage values. From a local perspective, it may refer to a landscape that is associated with the provision of a culturally-specific sense of identity and belonging. We explore these two perspectives through a comparative analysis of three cultural landscapes in South Africa, the ‘expert’ designated Mapungubwe Cultural Landscape and the Richtersveld Cultural and Botanical Landscape, and the local associative landscape of emaXhoseni, which is not formally recognised. We propose that a biocultural diversity perspective of heritage not only recognises the inextricable relationship between nature and culture, but it also gives prominence to the beliefs, values and practices of local people, and to strengthening their agency to safeguard their heritage in ways and forms that are relevant to them.

Keywords:

• Biocultural diversity
• cultural landscapes
• Mapungubwe
• World Heritage Sites
• Richtersveld Cultural and Botanical Landscape
• South Africa

Acknowledgements

We would also like to thank our anonymous reviewers for their comments that helped improve our manuscript.

Notes

1. Initial studies focused on the use and cultural significance of wild harvested material in rural and peri-urban communities in the former Ciskei and adjacent urban centres (Cocks 2006a). This was followed by case studies to determine the values attributed to different vegetation and the types of interactions and activities carried out within them (Cocks, Dold, and Vetter 2012; McAllister 2012; Mogano 2013; Cocks and Wiersum 2014; Njwambe 2017). Additional in-depth case studies were carried out among adults and children living in rural, peri-urban and urban areas to determine the significance they attach to various natural components in the surrounding landscapes (Alexander, Cocks, and Shackleton 2015; Cocks et al. 2016).