Dugout boat heritage and place identity - case of Soomaa national park

Dugout boat heritage and place identity - case of Soomaa national park. Presentation on the International conference "Heritage in the Service of Resilient Communities" in Viljandi.

1. Dugout boat heritage and place identity :
case of Soomaa national park
Aivar Ruukel

Viljandi Heritage Festival
02.October 2024

2. Building and use of expanded dugout boat in Soomaa region
The building and use of expanded dugout boats in Estonia's Soomaa
region was added to UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need
of Urgent Safeguarding list in December 2021.

3. Place : Soomaa (Land of Mires)

4. Place Identity .
Place identity refers to the elements of nature, culture and regional life (people)
that distinguish a region from others (Paasi 2001).
Soomaa is known for its “fifth season” -
flooding periods occurring several times a year.

5. Place : Pärnu river basin
The regular floods are a combined
result of the flat relief, small height
differences in the lower reaches of
the rivers and many small streams
discharging their water close
together.

6. Oldest human settlements
in Estonia

7. Source:
Marika Mägi
Before the roads and rails

8. 1993 Soomaa
National Park

9. Photo: Ilmar Roosmaa
Soomaa is an extensive, flat area of five
large bog complexes separated by
unregulated rivers with floodplain meadows,
alluvial forests and wooded meadows and
surrounded by extensive forests.

10. The Fifth Season of Soomaa

11. Expanded Logboats in Estonia in 1920ies

12. Use of the dugout boats

14. The social function of dugout boats has changed

15. Long-term sustainability of heritage has four main threats
1)Insufficient succession of masters

16. Long-term sustainability of heritage has four main threats
2) Weak demand for building and using dugout boats

17. Long-term sustainability of heritage has four main threats
3) Risks related to raw material

18. Long-term sustainability of heritage has four main threats
4) Soomaa community’s demographic situation

19. https://kaart.unesco.ee/en
UNESCO network in Estonia

20. The creation of the national park in
1993 led to the beginning of tourism,
and UNESCO gives it a mark of
quality.

21. ●Living Heritage contributes to Place
Identity
●Place Identity contributes to the
Tourism Development
●Tourism Development contributes to
the preservation of Living Heritage

TD
LH
PI
“Vicious circle”

22. Tack sa mycket!