Introduction

This chapter aims to tackle three themes: archaeology, nationalism/politics and tourism. These themes regularly overlap given the realities of archaeological heritage management in the 21st century, and therefore their interaction demands a broader examination. Within the context of this volume, this chapter provides an overview of the state of the scholarship on that interaction and aims to be a literature-rich synopsis of the junction of the three themes, albeit with certain references to wider examples to highlight the points made. Constraints of length demand only a selective gaze to the literature and sources, which are by now very extensive in these three areas. The chapter also looks at these in an international context, with involvement of broader themes such as World Heritage and global tourism.

Archaeology and Nationalism

The use of archaeology for the purposes of nation-building or nationalism is not a new phenomenon, as Chapter 11 illustrates. Cases from different parts of the world are plentiful in modern literature (e.g. Champion & Díaz-Andreu, 1996; Fowler, 1987; Knapp & Antoniadou, 1998; Kohl, 1998; Kohl & Fawcett, 1996; Kohl et al. , 2007; Meskell, 1998, 2002; Newell, 2008; Shnirelman, 2009; Trigger, 1984), and archaeology, especially archaeological interpretations, are expected to play an important role in strengthening national identity and revealing the narratives of the people in power. The study of nationalism in the last few decades is rich and influenced by several major theories (Hutchinson & Smith, 1994).

Four key works (i.e. Anderson, 1983; Gellner, 1983; Hobsbawm & Ranger, 1983; Smith, 1991) and their later editions influenced research on nationalism as part of many disciplines, including archaeology and heritage studies (Askew, 2010; Winter, 2012).