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Heritage is not a static object, it is a dynamic act of cultural becoming. Drawing on critical heritage studies, this research asserts that all heritage is fundamentally intangible, existing as an embodied performance through which contemporary societies negotiate identity, place, and memory. This thesis develops Heritage Translation as a theoretical model for living heritage preservation, reframing the discipline from the stasis of physical conservation toward the active management of change.
The research proposes that cultural meaning does not require a fixed form to survive, but necessitates continuous, intentional movement across generations. Through employing translation as a linguistic analogy for cultural continuity, the thesis argues that heritage remains alive only through ongoing recreation and response to contemporary social needs. The established three-pillar framework: Immateriality (the ontological condition of all heritage), Translation (design-led movement of meaning), and Living Circulation (preservation through contemporary use), provides a structure for the sustainable transmission of cultural meaning into modern contexts.
To operationalize this model, the research introduces a tri-layer symbolic transformation framework, comprising morphology (form), semantics (meaning), and behaviour (cultural action), ensuring that heritage meaning remains identifiable and generative as it moves across media and contexts. Through metaphorical blending, the study demonstrates how living heritage, particularly within African cultural traditions, can be integrated into contemporary lifestyles to spur cultural reflection and deepen user experience.
The model is tested against culturally inspired African design ventures that transmute heritage into global merchandise, fashion, art, and experiential products, examined not as acts of commodification, but as legitimate, community-centred acts of living heritage transmission that codify tacit craft knowledge into new and reproducible forms. The findings offer curators, designers, cultural practitioners, and heritage entrepreneurs a practical paradigm for keeping culture not merely remembered, but alive and not simply frozen in time.
Nota biográfica | Short Bio
I am a cultural researcher and writer with a background in Mass Communication, currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Managing Art and Cultural Heritage in Global Markets (MAGMA), a joint programme delivered by University of Glasgow, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, University of Bologna, and Université Paris Cité. I previously studied World Heritage Studies at Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg, where my work engaged critically with questions of heritage, memory, and cultural representation.
My research focuses on the preservation of living and intangible heritage, with particular interest in African cultural systems, design practices, and the role of creative industries in sustaining cultural meaning. Through my current work, I explore “Heritage Translation” as a framework for understanding how cultural knowledge can be continuously reinterpreted and circulated across contemporary contexts.
| Palavras-chave | Keywords | Heritage Translation, Living Heritage, Intangible Heritage, Design Preservation, Cultural Meaning |
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