Contested Hierarchies: A Collaborative Ethnography of Caste Among the Newars of the Kathmandu Valley, Nepal (Oxford Studies in Social and Cultural Anthropology) - Softcover

Gellner, David N.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 019564848X ISBN 13: 9780195648485

Publisher: OUP India, 1999

Synopsis

"Contested Hierarchies" is a collaborative study by six anthroplogists (two British, one American, one French, one Japanese and one Nepali) of a famously complex society, that of the Newars of the Kathmandu Valley, Nepal. Focusing on the core institutions of kinship and intercaste relations, the different contributions to this study analyze the cultural specificities of Newar society.

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Review

The ten papers in this volume approach the Newars through an examination of individual castes ... Along the way many fascinating details of the life of the Kathmandu Valley emerge ... This volume is the most comprehensive ethnographic account of the Newars so far, lent extra richness by the differing perspectives the contributors bring to it. The editors present their arguments for the salience of the Newars in re-assessing the wider debate on caste in the subcontinent with admirable clarity. Students of Nepal, of South Asia and of Hinduism, as much as professional anthropologists, will find this a thoroughly rewarding work. (Asian Affairs)

This volume is the most comprehensive ethnographic account of the Newars so far, lent extra richness by the differing perspectives the contributors bring to it ... Students of Nepal, of South Asia and of Hinduism, as much as professional anthropologists, will find this a thoroughly rewarding work. (Asian Affairs)

Not only provides an innovative study into the role caste plays in the Kathmandu Valley, but also develops a systematic approach for the study of caste in general. The book is a well-rounded and balanced work. (Himalayan Research Bulletin)

From the Back Cover

The urban civilization of the Newars of the Kathmandu Valley provides a paradigm for the study of caste and Hindu kingship. In this innovative study six anthropologists, in a genuinely collaborative international endeavour, pool their knowledge of the three ancient royal cities of Kathmandu, Lalitpur, and Bhaktapur, and the nearby settlements which once formed part of their respective kingdoms. Contested Hierarchies opens with an introduction outlining the historical background and contemporary context of Newar society. In the central chapters of the book the social institutions of all the main caste groups - Hindu and Buddhist priests, patrons, artisans, farmers, and low castes - are given extended consideration. A comparative conclusion, which locates controversies about the Newars within wider theoretical debates over the nature of caste, demonstrates how the fundamental principles underlying all caste systems are particularly clearly exemplified by the Newar case.

Edition details

• Publisher: OUP India
• Publication date: 1999
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 019564848X
• ISBN 13: 9780195648485
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 384