Description
JOANA VIDAL, FOLKLORIST
Book summary
This book explores the figure of Joana Vidal, a woman ahead of her time who, more than a century ago, traveled through villages collecting proverbs, songs, prayers, legends, and folk tales. Through family memories and documents preserved by her descendants, the author reconstructs the passionate work of a folklorist who worked under the tutelage of the master Rossend Serra i Pagès. A work that asserts the value of a unique ethnographic collection and the role of a woman in the preservation of Catalan popular culture.
What is it about?
Joana Vidal, known in the family circle as "l'àvia Juanita" (Grandma Juanita), was a tireless collector of oral tradition. Armed with a notepad and pencil, she gathered a vast heritage of proverbs, songs, prayers, legends, and folk tales, which she faithfully delivered to her teacher, Rossend Serra i Pagès. For decades, this legacy remained within the family circle, without its importance being fully recognized. The author, Joana Vidal's grandson and a specialist in folklore and ethnology, revisits this material in light of evaluations by experts such as Carme Oriol and Josefina Roma. The result is a story that combines personal memory with academic rigor, making known the work of a folklorist who knew how to capture the essence of the popular culture of her time.
Main themes
- Compilation of Catalan oral tradition: proverbs, songs, prayers, legends, and folk tales.
- The figure of the folklorist and her fieldwork in the first half of the 20th century.
- The role of women in the preservation of intangible cultural heritage.
- The relationship between master and student in the field of folklore studies.
- Family memory and the revaluation of an ethnographic legacy.
Who is it recommended for?
This work is aimed at readers interested in ethnography, folklore, and Catalan popular culture, as well as those who study the history of women and their contribution to knowledge. It will also be of great interest to those who appreciate biographies that rescue forgotten figures and to lovers of oral traditions and their transmission.
What this book offers
- Discovers the figure of a pioneering folklorist, until now little known outside the family sphere.
- Offers a valuable testimony of the richness of Catalan oral tradition through unpublished materials.
- Provides an intimate and documented vision of the ethnographic collection process of the early 20th century.
- Asserts the importance of fieldwork carried out by women in the conservation of intangible heritage.
- Combines personal memory with academic analysis, offering an enjoyable and rigorous reading.
Technical specifications
- Author: SOLER I AMIGO, JOAN
- Publisher: COSSETANIA
- Language: cat
- Topic: BIOGRAPHY: GENERAL
- Collection: PERFILS
- Binding: Paperback
- Edition date: June 2010
- Number of pages: 160
- Weight: 396 g
Editorial review
This is a work that fulfills the dual objective of paying tribute to a family figure and contributing to the knowledge of Catalan folklore. The combination of personal memory with an academic perspective gives it an accessible yet rigorous tone, ideal for those seeking a read that unites history, ethnography, and advocacy. It is, without a doubt, a reference title for those interested in popular culture and the role of women in its preservation.