New book offers fresh approaches to the study of laments

The multidisciplinary and multicultural volume Living Lament leads the reader along the intersecting paths where ideologies and lament traditions meet.

What is lament? The question is deceptive because the answer may appear self-evident, yet lament and its counterpart lamentation are used in a variety of ways with overlapping and sometimes quite different meanings.

The history of lament research has tended to build an image of lament traditions as things belonging to the past. The new book Living Lament – Explorations in Shifting Ideologies shows that lament is alive and well, with relevance in current Western societies.

This volume offers a multidisciplinary and multicultural view on laments, drawing from folklore studies, ethnomusicology, history, anthropology, and religious studies, covering regions from Northern Europe to indigenous cultures in Venezuela.

Viliina Silvonen and Eila Stepanova (eds.)
Living Lament — Explorations in Shifting Ideologies
Studia Fennica Folkloristica 26
ISBN 978-951-858-832-3
SKS 2026
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