"September 2002" / Includes bibliographical references (v. 2) / 2 v. : ill., plates, col. maps ; 30 cm. / Title page, contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University Library. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, Graduate School of Education, 2003

The importance of language and bilinguality in the development, perpetuation, and "degeneration" or change of culture is a central theme throughout this treatise. Original pictorial representations of Mayan hieroglyphic sculpture are included as examples, and represent artistic styles and language variations of written Cholan and Yucatec. Modern Cholan and Yucatecan languages are important in the decipherment of Mayan hieroglyphic writing, because these two languages were the languages of the ancient hieroglyphs. Bilinguality as a positive factor Is considered in the florescence and duration of the central lowland Mayan area. The impact of Spanish language on indigenous languages of Mesoamerica is traced from 1519 to the present. Special consideration and speculation is given to the role of Yucatec and Chol as "divine" non secular languages in the florescence of Mesoamerican cultures. This thesis is a continuation and development of undergraduate anthropologic field work undertaken in Mesoamerica during the 1970s. / Graduation date: 1994

This paper examines the group ethos that is such a critical part of preschool education in contemporary Japan. The paper discusses the importance to parents and to the government of suppressing individuality and of inculcating a positive feeling for the group in children in Japanese early childhood education. The group ethos is a part of Japanese society as a whole and of its political culture, in particular. The purpose of this paper is to attempt to discover parallels between values that prevail in early childhood classrooms and in Japanese politics and culture. The paper also explores the possible costs, both to individual children and to society, of the overarching priority of socialization for group living in the preschool setting. / Graduation date: 1998

This thesis analyzes the Christianisation process of the Roman Empire from the time of Constantine the Great to that of Justinian. The purposes of the ecumenical councils and the codes on the religious issues will be discussed in the framework of the religious policies of the emperors in that time. Between the time of Constantine and that of Justinian the Roman Empire became Christian Roman Empire. The Christianisation of the Roman Empire will be dealt with both from the religious and political point of view in this thesis.

The title of The Edifice Complex presents two metaphors which combine to form the focus of this study's research. The first of these refers to the Oedipus Complex of Freudian psychology: metaphorically, Marine recruits fall in love with the folklore of the Marine Corps they wish to join, yet unwittingly change that Corps over time, thus figuratively killing the older generations of Marines--their forefathers in uniform. In the second metaphor, the edifice is the structure of informal folklore and recorded history; the complex is the rites of passage or maze traversed in time by Marines. As Marines are indoctrinated in the Marine Corps' culture, they internalize the meanings of the edifice's building blocks: its symbols, rituals and myths. Bit by bit, generations of Marines individually and collectively alter the shape of the metaphorical maze and change the meanings of some elements of folklore. The purpose of the study was to analyze the causes and effects of cultural change affecting Marines and the Marine Corps from the mid-1950s to the mid1980s. Using ethnographic field methods and content analysis, the researcher investigated internal and external planned and unplanned changes in the Marine Corps. Cultural data was collected during 1984 and 1985 from print, motion picture and other media, and through interviews with Marine infantrymen, recruiters, journalists, drill instructors, historians, musicians and others, in several cultural settings. The study focused on the cultural reality of primarily male, enlisted Marines. Findings support the working hypothesis that folklore is a behavior-shaping tool which the Marine Corps effectively uses to control the behavior of Marines. Findings reveal that cultural changes have allowed or caused some Marines to value the Marine Corps materially as a source of valuable competencies and material rewards rather than professionally or patriotically as the calling of the profession of arms. Conclusions of The Edifice Complex parallel conclusions in organizational change theory, in that changes in the symbolic realm of the organization's culture are most difficult to change but have significant impact upon members of the organization. Findings and conclusions are also mutually supported in the educational, social and behavioral psychologies.

Ethnic minorities in Hong Kong are usually ignored. However, their participation and contribution in the Hong Kong history are not negligible. There are a group of Thai settled in Kowloon City for decades. And because of their existence, Kowloon City is known as the “Little Thailand” in Hong Kong. By understanding this group of people through their history and development, one can recognize that they are very special to Hong Kong. With the removal of the Kai Tak International Airport, Kowloon City is now under re-development pressure. The Thai, which has been settling in the area since 1970s, may face the risk of losing their living places. It can be seen that some Thai stores and restaurants have already been closed or moved to other areas due to the increasing shop rents over these few years. It is crucial to record their significances in Kowloon City before this unique culture vanishes. Kowloon City is an area with a very characteristic historical background and setting. The area is famous of its dense streets forming a fish-bone shape, with Nga Tsin Wai Road as the main street which connects all other streets together. Kowloon City is a place for different styles of food. There are oven 200 restaurants which many of them are in Thai style. As a result, Kowloon City is also called “Little Thailand”. Thai is one of the ethnic minority groups in Hong Kong. The 2011 Hong Kong by-census report showed that about 14,000 Thais living in Hong Kong, making up around 2.9% of the total non-Chinese population, and about 0.2% of the total Hong Kong population. Most of them live on the Kowloon side, with the majority in Kowloon City and Kwun Tong1.Many Thais live and own restaurants and stores in Kowloon City. Due to the Kai Tak Airport nearby, the height of buildings in Kowloon City is limited. With the demolishment of Kai Tak Airport, the area is under re-development pressure. Developers start to purchase old buildings for high rise modern buildings and the rents of shops significantly increase over these years. The Thais who used to base around the area are under threat of moving to other areas, and the characteristic of “Little Thailand” may start to vanish. The objective of this dissertation is to understand the Thai community in Kowloon City, document their activities, identify their character-defining elements and values and study their potential challenges. The study area is focused on South Wall Road, which has a high density for Thai-related businesses and activities. This dissertation aims to study the tangible and intangible character-defining cultural heritage elements of the Thai community at Kowloon City. To achieve this research goal, it is essential to understand the place and the community’s origins, history and culture. However, given the limited time, it is not possible to carry out a comprehensive research of the Thai community in the entire Kowloon City. Instead, the research must limit its scope by focusing on a small but representative study area within Kowloon City. The purpose of this is more about demonstrating the research process through a smaller study area so as to set a “template” for future research that extends to other study areas at Kowloon City. This dissertation adopts the research methodology of cultural mapping for documenting the tangible and intangible assets of the area in order to better understand the place and its culture, and focuses on the area with more Thai-related activities in Kowloon City. South Wall Road, which is chosen as the study area, is one of the major streets for Thai activities including shops and restaurants, and festivals. By conducting field studies and interviews, the lives of the Thai and their unique cultures can be recorded and understood. --------------- ------------------------------------------------------------ --------------- ------------------------------------------------------------ / published_or_final_version / Conservation / Master / Master of Science in Conservation

There are 55 ethnic minorities (少數民族) in the People’s Republic of China, among which Mulam Minority (仫佬族) is a small one gathering in a remote town in the northern part of Guangxi Province. Every group of people has their own culture and tradition, usually culture reflects on the food, drinks, clothe, rituals and festivals, etc. The most important festival of Mulam Minority is Yi Fan Festival (依飯節), which has been designated as a national-level intangible cultural heritage in 2006. The current research will look into the changes in this particular festival after its designation in terms of both tangible and intangible aspects; also it’s a look into the local traditional culture within its context. The identity of a culture is hard to define and is also changing with time. It is when based on the defined cultural identity can a tradition advance with time without losing its authenticity. How to make conservation become a part of the development is what we are facing in the fast-changing world. Since festival consists an indispensable part of traditional culture, how to transmit it through media and how to interpret it becomes the key question. As a young stakeholder of the Mulam Minority, we should understand the opportunities, challenges, strengths and weaknesses of every change that is going to happen, and above all, carry on practicing. / published_or_final_version / Conservation / Master / Master of Science in Conservation

The Man Mo Temple（文武廟）Compound on Hollywood Road, Sheung Wan, which comprises three blocks, namely Man Mo Temple, Lit Shing Kung （列聖宮） and Kung Sor（公所）, were built in 1847 . The Temple was built mainly for the worship of Man Cheong (God of Literature, 文昌) and Mo Tai (God of Martial Arts, 武帝). It was important assembly hall where Chinese people discussed issues and resolved disputes in early colonial period. The Temple represented the traditional social organization and religious practices of the Chinese community in the past. The aim of this study examines the development of Man Mon Temple from 1840s to 1908. This thesis contains six main chapters. The first chapter is literature review of previous researches for Man Mo Temple, as well as presents the objectives and methodology of the thesis. The second chapter explores the reasons for its establishment. The third chapter describes the development of architecture of temple. The forth chapter describes and analyses the Guandi worship （關帝信仰）and Wenchang belief （文昌信仰）in Hong Kong. The fifth chapter evaluates the significance of Man Mo Temple on different periods. The temple provided religious service, also as sponsor the charitable work of the Chinese community. It analyses the change of the temple’s function in colonial period. The final chapter is a conclusion how the Man Mo Temple shift to accommodate changing needs of the colonial development. / published_or_final_version / Chinese Historical Studies / Master / Master of Arts

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