Bamboo in Vietnam: An Anthropological and Historical Approach (Needham Research Institute Series)

This book presents interdisciplinary research on bamboo in Vietnam, drawing on the anthropology of gesture, ethnobotany and the history of technology. The authors have adopted a technological approach which reviews how the terminology of different parts of the bamboo plant in the dictionaries in Romanized Vietnamese or in Vietnamese vernacular writing (nôm) enabled the authors to identify not only the plant but also each technical gesture for its appropriation by the artisan. Lithographic, literary and historical sources from the chronicles have been mobilized to illustrate the many uses of this versatile plant. Richly illustrated throughout, this book will appeal to students and scholars of Vietnam, anthropology, the history of science and technology, environmental history and architecture. It will also be of great value to those interested in the applications of bamboo in the contemporary world. Cover Half Title Series Title Copyright Contents Table of illustrations Conventions List of abbreviations Introduction: bamboo – tree or grass? Part 1 Bamboo: an anthropological and historical approach 1 Bamboo, man, landscape 2 Terminology and technology: identification, uses, names – from naming to datation 3 Uses of bamboo according to its qualities 4 Bamboo as symbol 5 Bamboo and power Part 2 Bamboo iconography 6 Bamboo used as it is, after felling 7 Uses of bamboo tube 8 Use of split bamboo cut into lengths 9 Basket-making 10 The Gia Định Art School contribution Part 3 Contemporary bamboo 11 Bamboo at present Conclusion: what status for bamboo? Annexes Bibliography Index