Fwd: UCLan Call for Chapters on the mythical “Little People” of Taiwan (abstracts due June 20, 2022)

Seeking the Kokota’ay:

An Ethnography of the Elusive Little Men of Taiwan

The oral traditions of several of Taiwan’s indigenous groups include legends that tell of a population of short-statured humans that predate their ancestors’ arrival on the island, who taught the Austronesian-language speakers agriculture, and who subsequently disappeared. The best-known are perhaps the Kokota’ay of Saisiyat, who are commemorated even today in a biennial ritual called the paSta’ay. In the mythology, these Little People often lived in caves, and were mischievous and quick-tempered. Other tales speak of the Ngudul od the Paiwan; the Sazoso of the Bunun; the Ngutol of the Rukai, and the diminutive, red-haired Kavorua of the Tsou. Recent archaeological discoveries have reignited interest in this topic, on which very little research is available in English.

Aim of the Book

The main objective of this book is to provide an indispensable reference source for further inquiry into the Little People myths in Taiwan, from a variety of perspectives and disciplines including ethnology, archaeology, and sociology. In Addition to being a natural starting point for students who seek to conduct inquiries in this field, this volume will likewise serve as a useful reference text for practicing researchers. Moreover, it will consolidate existing knowledge on this fascinating topic, that is currently spread out among different fields and in various languages. Topic areas to be covered include, but are not restricted to:

• Austronesian and pre-Austronesian Taiwan.

• The Story of the Kokota’ay (Alternatively, of the Ngudul/Sazoso/Ngutol/Kavorua/etc…).

• Representations of the Little People in Taiwan literature.

• When Myth becomes Reality: pre-Neolithic archaeological finds on Taiwan.

• Myths of mischievous dwarfs across the Pacific.

• A survey of ethnology related to the Little People.

The editors particularly welcome indigenous writers and scholars to submit proposals.

To Propose a Chapter

To signal your intent to contribute a chapter, please email an abstract of approximately 500 words, including paper title and authors’ names by June 20, 2022 to the editor. Please send along a short biography describing each author’s titles, institutional affiliations, and research interests.

• Estimated word count (Chapters should be 6,000 to 8,000 words).

Please submit your chapter proposal by email to Dr. Dean Karalekas at dkaralekas@uclan.ac.uk