Some languages have local wisdom, which is unique to it, its culture and its region. I wonder if it is possible for local wisdoms, as such, to become universal?
Local Wisdom is a combination of knowledge and traditions that are specific to a location, and that are passed on from generation to generation.
For example, a Dutch farmer can tell by the rustling sound of the wind through the flat wheat fields in the summer, whether the wheat is ripe for harvest. And he will tell his son or daughter that if you listens carefully, you can hear the loose wheat seeds rattling in their cups in the wind. Over the years, the next generation learns to identify this specific sound.
Local wisdom becomes universal as soon as the behavior becomes universal. An example: Soccer was locally played in England - the rules, the wording etc. was local wisdom. Then it spread and is today universally played - therefor the wisdom became universal.
Dear Riani, by local wisdom you mean old says, folk anecdotes in narrative form, etc.? Something like "Don't throw the baby out with the bath water" or "Don't put the cart before the horses"? If that is what you mean, most old says exist universally but expressed with different words of metaphors. For example, "Don't put the cart before the horses" in Spanish is expressed as "No cruces el puente antes de llegar al río" (You can't cross the bridge before getting to the bridge"... Folk wisdom pertains to the most basic needs of a community and the possible problems the gri=uou or the individul must face in life. These old says tell you what to do or what not to do. They are, in fact, the first "school" of humanity. Yes, they are both: local AND universal. Local because of the specific words and images these says use, and universal because you may find the same idea clothed in different words that ultimately bear the same meaning and intent.
Cervantes' Don Quixote is a great example: poor and mad Don Quixote is always quoting literature to find a solution to a problem and always ends in failure, while Sancho constantly cites old says that usually solve the problem at hand, being always the wisest though he does not even know how to read!
Excellent question!
Best regards, Lilliana
I think that not all local wisdom, i.e a set of principles and or values unique to a culture or group of people, would in turn become universal. At the end of the day, different groups carry on their local wisdom uniquely, through their own way of doing it that they had been doing for a long period of time, and usually when one way of doing something meets another one, they 'battle' and the one that came out of a 'stronger' culture would usually win. Thus, it may be the same idea (or the same 'universal meaning' from the 'metaphors' as Lilliana above commented) prima facie, but then we start to see that they actually are different.
An example would be Lareh Datuak Katumanggunan of the Koto-Piliang people of the Minangkabau and the Lareh Datuak Perpatiah nan Sabatang of the Bodi-Caniago people of the Minangkabau. Both are two distinct socio-cultural systems that exists in one culture, but they thrive in two different regions. The Koto-Piliang lareh dominates West Sumatra (the home of the Minangkabau, as we call it "Ranah Minang"), and the Bodi-Caniago lareh is dominant in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. These two larehs, or ways of practicing adat both appeared in West Sumatra, but ended up being practiced as local wisdom in two different regions.
I hope my answer helps! Props to Lilliana for the good answer.
Local wisdom really means well adjusted to local or cultural norms. If you understand what accepted local or cultural norms are then you will be more successful in functioning within a local or cultural community.
Wisdom: n. knowledge which helps to judge accurately what is (true and/or right) and/or (just and/or moral). Unchanging wisdom is wisdom about human nature.
Local Wisdom is a combination of knowledge and traditions that are specific to a location, and that are passed on from generation to generation.
For example, a Dutch farmer can tell by the rustling sound of the wind through the flat wheat fields in the summer, whether the wheat is ripe for harvest. And he will tell his son or daughter that if you listens carefully, you can hear the loose wheat seeds rattling in their cups in the wind. Over the years, the next generation learns to identify this specific sound.
Another example is the use of a "divining rod" to locate a water source or to locate the most likely site on a piece of property to dig for water.
In Java Indonesia and Orrisa India Bamboo pipes and poles are used for transport of water
Check this link
http://katefletcher.com/projects/local-wisdom/
regards
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