1 - Crossing people and time: a long-term approach of Moken nomadic identity and resilience

The Moken are a sea-nomadic population living in the Mergui Archipelago, where they remained out of States’ reach though developing clientelist relationships with dominant societies during several centuries. Starting in the mid-twentieth century, liberal developments and the Burmese colonization of the islands led the Moken to face major transformations of their territory and way of life. This paper takes a long-term approach of Moken resilience by examining their oral literature, rituals and mobility in link with the populations they live alongside with. It shows that a ‘core nomadic identity’ enables the Moken to constantly reconnect their identity to the blows of history.


Co-Author 1
Ivanoff Jacques, French National Research Council (CNRS)