Re-written narrative: transformation of the image of Ivan-chaj in Eastern Europe

Abstract

The aim of this study was to understand the role of viral narratives and the involvement of social media into the invention of tradition. We took as an example the recently highly promoted Ivan-chaj, a tea made from the fermented leaves of willowherb, a plant little known and used in Europe until a few years ago. Relying on a wide variety of sources circulating on the Internet (videos, various texts and visuals) and robust empirical field research results, we used mixed methods to analyze this specific case in order to understand if people adopt new teachings and if their acceptance leads to practical output. The results showed that the new teachings spread quickly, supported by narratives based on a wide variety of interaction points that viralized the message, also causing an economic impact. It is clear that the change of status and the economic success that Ivan-chaj now enjoys is due to the virality of the narrative, which has reshaped the image of Ivan-chaj from an “outcast” imitation and tea substitute into the national healthy drink. Having appeared in Russia, mostly as a Russian cultural marker, the narrative went viral and spread beyond its borders where neighbors have tried in turn to embrace Ivan-chaj as their own cultural marker by proclaiming it a local tradition. Indeed, narratives regarding Ivan-chaj spread easily in countries sharing some linguistic, historical and/or cultural elements with Russia (via the nexus of the Soviet Union).

Language of Administration as a Border: Wild Food Plants Used by Setos and Russians in Pechorsky District of Pskov Oblast, NW Russia

“…For comparison, on the Estonian side, 37 of the 62 recorded taxa were named by Setos in a dialect (Seto/Võro) and dialect plant names were encountered quite often. Out of the 647 occasions in which the name of a wild food plant was mentioned, 175 were dialect names, two Russian names (a recent introduction of Ivan-chai [71]), and the rest were names used all over Estonia, including the whole of South Estonia. Five taxa were referred to by their dialectal name on more than 10 occasions: Vaccinium oxycoccos (29), Matricaria discoidea and Vaccinium vitis-idaea (both 18 occasions), Rubus nessensis (14), and Thymus serpyllum (11).…”

Understanding old herbal secrets: The renaissance of traditional medicinal plants beyond the twenty classic species?

“…It remains a major challenge, not only for ethnobotanists, to distinguish between traditional local plant use, its innovation and transformation in the context of these amalgamation processes in the global village (Leonti, 2011;Quave et al, 2012). These transformations of European ethnopharmacopeias have been exemplified as a viral narrative promoted a forgotten herbal tea as a "tradition" (Prakofjewa et al, 2020;Sõukand et al, 2020).…”

Itinerário cultural “caminho para os ervais” como proposta de desenvolvimento regional

“…A resposta está no processo de patrimonialização. Esse processo pressupõe a incorporação de valores oriundos de uma construção histórica e sociocultural pertencentes a um determinado espaço de uma sociedade (Prakofjewa et al, 2020;Reyes-Chávez et al, 2021;Bhuiyan et al, 2022). Isso significa levar em consideração a relação histórica e de formação cultural em dado território.…”