Measuring the Tibetan Nation: Anthropometry in 1950s’ Kalimpong

Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review

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Measuring the Tibetan Nation : Anthropometry in 1950s’ Kalimpong. / Zeitzen, Miriam Koktvedgaard; Brox, Trine.

In: Modern Asian Studies, Vol. 56, No. 6, 2022, p. 1715-1740.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review

Harvard

Zeitzen, MK & Brox, T 2022, 'Measuring the Tibetan Nation: Anthropometry in 1950s’ Kalimpong', Modern Asian Studies, vol. 56, no. 6, pp. 1715-1740. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0026749X21000421

APA

Zeitzen, M. K., & Brox, T. (2022). Measuring the Tibetan Nation: Anthropometry in 1950s’ Kalimpong. Modern Asian Studies, 56(6), 1715-1740. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0026749X21000421

Vancouver

Zeitzen MK, Brox T. Measuring the Tibetan Nation: Anthropometry in 1950s’ Kalimpong. Modern Asian Studies. 2022;56(6):1715-1740. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0026749X21000421

Author

Zeitzen, Miriam Koktvedgaard ; Brox, Trine. / Measuring the Tibetan Nation : Anthropometry in 1950s’ Kalimpong. In: Modern Asian Studies. 2022 ; Vol. 56, No. 6. pp. 1715-1740.

Bibtex

@article{76d2f6fe28044cc490126abe3642794e,
title = "Measuring the Tibetan Nation: Anthropometry in 1950s{\textquoteright} Kalimpong",
abstract = "This article explores the anthropometric survey of 5,000 Tibetans by the ethnographer HRH Prince Peter of Greece and Denmark in the northeast Indian Himalayan town of Kalimpong in the 1950s, as part of the Third Danish Expedition to Central Asia. In the context of the crisis created by the Chinese incursion into Tibet in 1950, which pushed thousands of Tibetans into India, stationary field anthropometry, rather than a mobile expedition, became Prince Peter's principal entry into Tibetan worlds. This article explores the scientific paradigms underpinning his anthropometric survey at a time when anthropology had seemingly moved on theoretically and ethically, the historical conditions and contingencies of Prince Peter's research, and the survey's representations of Tibetan peoples and places. We argue that, while Prince Peter's understanding was in essence primordialist, linking particular peoples to particular places, in practice he took a more modernist approach to {\textquoteleft}Tibetaness{\textquoteright} as contingent upon historical processes. The article concludes by reflecting on the potential significance of this vast and unique collection of historic anthropometric data for Tibetans today.",
author = "Zeitzen, {Miriam Koktvedgaard} and Trine Brox",
year = "2022",
doi = "10.1017/S0026749X21000421",
language = "English",
volume = "56",
pages = "1715--1740",
journal = "Modern Asian Studies",
issn = "0026-749X",
publisher = "Cambridge University Press",
number = "6",

}

RIS

TY - JOUR

T1 - Measuring the Tibetan Nation

T2 - Anthropometry in 1950s’ Kalimpong

AU - Zeitzen, Miriam Koktvedgaard

AU - Brox, Trine

PY - 2022

Y1 - 2022

N2 - This article explores the anthropometric survey of 5,000 Tibetans by the ethnographer HRH Prince Peter of Greece and Denmark in the northeast Indian Himalayan town of Kalimpong in the 1950s, as part of the Third Danish Expedition to Central Asia. In the context of the crisis created by the Chinese incursion into Tibet in 1950, which pushed thousands of Tibetans into India, stationary field anthropometry, rather than a mobile expedition, became Prince Peter's principal entry into Tibetan worlds. This article explores the scientific paradigms underpinning his anthropometric survey at a time when anthropology had seemingly moved on theoretically and ethically, the historical conditions and contingencies of Prince Peter's research, and the survey's representations of Tibetan peoples and places. We argue that, while Prince Peter's understanding was in essence primordialist, linking particular peoples to particular places, in practice he took a more modernist approach to ‘Tibetaness’ as contingent upon historical processes. The article concludes by reflecting on the potential significance of this vast and unique collection of historic anthropometric data for Tibetans today.

AB - This article explores the anthropometric survey of 5,000 Tibetans by the ethnographer HRH Prince Peter of Greece and Denmark in the northeast Indian Himalayan town of Kalimpong in the 1950s, as part of the Third Danish Expedition to Central Asia. In the context of the crisis created by the Chinese incursion into Tibet in 1950, which pushed thousands of Tibetans into India, stationary field anthropometry, rather than a mobile expedition, became Prince Peter's principal entry into Tibetan worlds. This article explores the scientific paradigms underpinning his anthropometric survey at a time when anthropology had seemingly moved on theoretically and ethically, the historical conditions and contingencies of Prince Peter's research, and the survey's representations of Tibetan peoples and places. We argue that, while Prince Peter's understanding was in essence primordialist, linking particular peoples to particular places, in practice he took a more modernist approach to ‘Tibetaness’ as contingent upon historical processes. The article concludes by reflecting on the potential significance of this vast and unique collection of historic anthropometric data for Tibetans today.

U2 - 10.1017/S0026749X21000421

DO - 10.1017/S0026749X21000421

M3 - Journal article

VL - 56

SP - 1715

EP - 1740

JO - Modern Asian Studies

JF - Modern Asian Studies

SN - 0026-749X

IS - 6

ER -

ID: 328901939