New UGP publication: Commensality and Cultural Heritage

The book Commensality and Cultural Heritage: Bringing the Foodways of the Middle East and Its Diasporas to the Table is now available online and open access at University of Groningen Press (UGP).

The book is edited by Heather J. Sharkey en Karène Sanchez Summerer.

About the book

Food holds an important place in people’s lives and in the social values of individuals and groups, shaping identities along religious, ethnic, linguistic, and national lines and according to gender, class, place (including identification with particular towns or landscapes), and other variables.

In the Middle East and among Middle Eastern diasporic communities today, culinary culture remains a source of deep pride, while reflecting ethical values that people place on sharing food with guests or with others in need. Regarding food as part of their cultural heritage, peoples of Middle Eastern origin are aware of illus­trious culinary traditions that go back centuries and even millennia to innovations in agriculture that benefitted human societies at large.

Commensality and Cultural Heritage explores the theme of “commensality,” which implies being at the same table while respecting differences among those who share a meal. At the same time, it considers the study of cultural heritage among Muslims, Christians, and Jews in the Middle East and in associated diasporas through foodways — customs regarding the preparation and consumption of food.

Taking an interdisciplinary approach, this book argues for the centrality and import of the Middle East and its diasporas within the flourishing field of Food Studies while setting agendas for future research.