The preservation of both oral histories and paper archives is necessary for us
to piece together a picture of ourselves. I have spent years gathering oral
histories and doing archival research, for me personally, oral histories are
necessary but cannot be relied upon for accuracy, and ideally should be
validated against archival documentation where possible. It is not true that
written archives do not reveal the oppression of the unheard, in fact it is
often oral tradition which tends to obscure it in time, and the archives will
reveal things suppressed by our collective memory.
Dr Celsa Pinto is right in highlighting the rich material which rests in Goan
archives and in fact, Goa can become a leading research centre. This idea has
been circulating in the ether for a long time but the opportunity has not been
seized upon.
All best,
Selma CarvalhoAuthor of Guts, Glory & Empire: The Epic Story of Goans in
Zanzibar, 1865-1910 published by Speaking Tiger.
On Sunday, 14 June 2026 at 04:52:52 BST, Vivek Pinto <[email protected]>
wrote:
With all respect to Dr. Da Silva and others who have labored in various
archives,
Archives, no matter where they are located, metropolis or periphery, are not
only "elite-centric" but protect, solidify, and justify the power of those who
continue (read: us) to exploit (by our writings) those at the bottom of the
social, economic and political pyramid, particularly women and children.
We give them undue importance as they are on paper and we use it to aggrandize
ourselves, academic positions, and whatever else. Religious orders are no
exception to this truth and so let us please stop attributing too much value to
the years we have labored there. We will not get any discount when future
historians read our works, academic or non-fiction "against the grain."
What is "against the grain"? It is not only crucially interrogating the written
record to search for hidden and suppressed truth, but actively searching for
oral sources.
The balance can never be restored. It is a myth.
Best regards,
Vivek Pinto
On Sat, Jun 13, 2026 at 5:34 PM William Robert Da Silva <[email protected]>
wrote:
I agree fully with Dr Celsa Pinto. However, there is another side to the
archives she speaks about. Archives are of the ruling elites and the powerful
writing elites. Everyday archive of people's lives in caste living, occupation,
conflictual relations with the higher and purer castes, religious leaders,
family, employment and their 'archive' of art and culture - these are equally,
if not more, important, and these give a balance to the 'archive' generally
so-called. I have paid greater attention to that part of life and, in language
research, its yield has been colossal.Thank you.William Robert
On Fri, Jun 12, 2026 at 3:10 PM Cristiana Bastos
<[email protected]> wrote:
____agree 100% - but getting a research visa is extremely difficult - for
inidia and many other places. I co supervised a Brazilian doctoral student,
funded for a year of research in lisbon and goa, and after many many attempts
to get a visa to India in order to do research in goa’s archives she had to
give up. She would not risk using a tourist visa for research and went back
from lisbon to brazil… may be there will be another chance for her, but the
energy one has in the doctoral years is unique, i think. Perhaps there is a
way of making things easier for doctoral students?
Thanks
___________agre_________________
De: [email protected] <[email protected]> em
nome de Frederick Noronha <[email protected]>
Enviado: 12 de junho de 2026 07:42
Para: [email protected]
Assunto: [GRN] Experts urge researchers to utilise Goa's rich archival heritage
(O Heraldo)
[archives.jpg]
_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/
_/ Frederick Noronha फ्रेडरिक नोरोन्या * فريدريك نورونيا
_/ AUDIO https://archive.org/details/@fredericknoronha
_/ http://goa1556.in +91-9822122436 784 Saligao Goa
_/ Goanet :: 30 years of discussions.
[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>
_/ http://lists.goanet.org/pipermail/goanet-goanet.org/
_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/
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