Embarking on a ‘(birth)rite of passage’: exploring the role of liminality and youth transitions in diaspora tourism motivation

IF 3 Q2 HOSPITALITY, LEISURE, SPORT & TOURISM

Journal of Heritage Tourism Pub Date : 2023-06-05 DOI:10.1080/1743873X.2023.2219845

Julia Kantek

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

ABSTRACT Motivations to participate in diaspora tourism ‘birthright’ programs have widely encompassed themes of heritage exploration, including a desire to develop personalised attachments to people, places, and memories connected to ancestral heritage or a ‘homeland’. Despite the popularity of such programs among young members from the diaspora, the additional role that life course positioning plays in structuring motivation is less understood. In this paper, I analyse the motivations shared through semi-structured interviews with a group of young Hungarian-Australians who attended a 10-month ‘birthright’ diaspora program in Hungary. By applying a rite of passage lens to their stories, I highlight that uncertainties about the future, escaping the mundanity of everyday life, and the burden of impending adult responsibilities, were strong factors shaping their gap year motivations and overall view of the program. The paper thus encourages a more nuanced interpretation of diaspora tourism motivation through a liminal and youth transition context. It also prompts further thinking toward the role and representation of such programs as alternate rite of passage events, representing a critical point of transition between life stage endings and beginnings.

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着手“(出生)成人仪式”:探索阈限和青年过渡在散居旅游动机中的作用

参与散居旅游“与生俱来的权利”项目的动机广泛地涵盖了遗产探索的主题，包括对与祖先遗产或“家园”相关的人、地方和记忆建立个性化依恋的愿望。尽管这些项目在散居海外的年轻成员中很受欢迎，但人们对生命历程定位在构建动机方面所起的额外作用却知之甚少。在本文中，我通过对一群在匈牙利参加了为期10个月的“出生权”移民项目的年轻匈牙利裔澳大利亚人的半结构化访谈，分析了他们共同的动机。通过将成人仪式的镜头应用到他们的故事中，我强调了对未来的不确定性，逃离日常生活的世俗，以及即将到来的成人责任的负担，这些都是影响他们间隔年动机和对项目整体看法的重要因素。因此，本文鼓励通过阈限和青年过渡背景对侨民旅游动机进行更细致入微的解释。它也促使人们进一步思考这些节目的作用和表现，作为交替的成人仪式事件，代表着生命阶段结束和开始之间的过渡关键点。

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来源期刊

Journal of Heritage Tourism HOSPITALITY, LEISURE, SPORT & TOURISM-

CiteScore

6.50

自引率

11.10%

发文量

期刊介绍： The Journal of Heritage Tourism ( JHT ) is a peer-reviewed, international transdisciplinary journal. JHT focuses on exploring the many facets of one of the most notable and widespread types of tourism. Heritage tourism is among the very oldest forms of travel. Activities such as visits to sites of historical importance, including built environments and urban areas, rural and agricultural landscapes, natural regions, locations where historic events occurred and places where interesting and significant living cultures dominate are all forms of heritage tourism. As such, this form of tourism dominates the industry in many parts of the world and involves millions of people. During the past 20 years, the study of tourism has become highly fragmented and specialised into various theme areas, or concentrations. Within this context, heritage tourism is one of the most commonly investigated forms of tourism, and hundreds of scholars and industry workers are involved in researching its dynamics and concepts. This academic attention has resulted in the publication of hundreds of refereed articles in various scholarly media, yet, until now there has been no journal devoted specifically to heritage tourism; Journal of Heritage Tourism was launched to fill this gap. JHT seeks to critically examine all aspects of heritage tourism. Some of the topics to be explored within the context of heritage tourism will include colonial heritage, commodification, interpretation, urban renewal, religious tourism, genealogy, patriotism, nostalgia, folklore, power, funding, contested heritage, historic sites, identity, industrial heritage, marketing, conservation, ethnicity, education and indigenous heritage.