TROPICAL GEOGRAPHY ›› 2016, Vol. 36 ›› Issue (4): 524-531.doi: 10.13284/j.cnki.rddl.002868

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Whose Heritage?—A Comparison between Nonlocal and Local Tourism Business’s Heritage Identities in the Yuanyang Terraces Area

QU Cea,ZHANG Chaozhia,b   

  1. (a.School of Tourism Management;b.Center for Tourism Planning & Research,Sun Yat-Sen University,Guangzhou 510275,China)
  • Received:2016-05-12 Online:2016-07-05 Published:2016-07-05

Abstract:

In order to discuss the basic question, “whose heritage”, from the perspective of heritage identity dissonance, this paper collects network text, images and field interviews of the Inn operators in Yuanyang terraces area, and then with the discourse analysis compares the differences between the heritage identities of the local and nonlocal operators. The findings show that the interpretation and communication of heritage for the middle class of nonlocal operators are diversified, cross-cultural and petty. They attach great importance to the heritage display and spreading, and consider that the heritage is “theirs”. But to the scale of “home” and local “place” they do not think the heritage area is their home and just regard themselves as outsiders. To the scale of nation and world, they believe that the heritage belongs to “our human beings”. Instead, the negative attitude toward the farmer identity of local operators leads to their heritage landscape elements being abandoned and hidden. However, to meet their need of tourism benefits, some local operators begin to be aware of the heritage display. Therefore, the heritage is not “ours” in the eyes of the farmers. But to the scale of “home” and “place”, the local operators believe the heritage is “ours” and worthy of attachment. Otherwise, they have no salient cognition of the scale of nation and world. Based on the above, the paper has some discusses about heritage protection and management.

Key words: the nonlocal tourism operator, the local tourism operator, identity, heritage identity