FRA EKSPEDITION TIL FELTARBEJDE

Abstract

Klaus Ferdinand: From Expedition to

Fieldwork

In 1945 the study of ethnography (cultural

anthropology) started at Copenhagen University

under Dr. Kaj Birket-Smith, head

curator at the Department of Ethnography,

the Danish National Museum. The post-war

years were a period of great expectations and

enthusiasm, but of little money. Early ethnographical

field experiences often took place

within archaeological or natural science expeditions;

later, after the establishment of

The Danish State Research Foundation in

1952, they were followed by a few

ethnographical expeditions, that is, before

individual fieldwork became the rule. The

article surveys these developments, coloured

by the author’s own experiences, changing

theoretical orientations and methodologies.