Miriam Al-Hussona (KCL) - 2023-24 Students
miriam.al-hussona@kcl.ac.uk

Marginalised Southern Iraqi Dances: Politics and Production in the 1980s

I aim to conduct an ethnographic and historical project examining the folkloric industry in Iraq as a tool for upholding nation-state narratives in the 1980s. As an entry point, I will look at marginalised dance forms in southern Iraq which are especially stratified along gendered, classed, racial and ethnic lines. Although there is a lack of official archives on such dances, YouTube holds “unofficial” archives dating back to the 80s when there was a heavier investment in cultural production. I aim to trace the various power dynamics that stratify these forms of “unofficial” representation and look at structures being reproduced/dismantled.

Primary supervisor: Dr Aqeel Abdulla

Secondary supervisor: Dr Christina Scharff