Paper Details

The German term ‘Volklehre’ means ‘people’s customs’. The term ‘Folklore’ has been derived from the German term Volklehre. Now, the term ‘Folklore’ has been used to denote myths, folktales, legends, folksongs, chants, formula, prayers, speeches, puns, proverbs, riddles and a variety of forms of artistic expression whose medium is the spoken word. Folklore includes all types of verbal art. Folklore is an expression of human existence, with folk painting, narratives, language, culture and literature. Literature was basically folk literature due to its orality. Writing developed in the years between 4000 and 3000BC. Various groups handled their folk literatures in their own ways. Folklore influences consciously or unconsciously human civilization. The journey of folklore is actually the journey of a nation. A nation’s progress or regress is silently recorded in its folklore. The history of the marginal section of the society is artistically delineated in its folklore. Sometimes the dominant classes of the society utilize folklore so that they can remain dominant in the society. Indian folklore has been used as Ideological State Apparatus. The aim of my paper is to show how folklore has been treated in India since the period of colonization.

folklore, ideology, colonization. ISA, cultural integration