#12775. Constructing national identity through World Heritage: the international and intranational politics of the built environment in Ahmadabad

September 2026publication date
Proposal available till 13-06-2025
4 total number of authors per manuscript0 $

The title of the journal is available only for the authors who have already paid for
Journal’s subject area:
History;
Museology;
Cultural Studies;
Conservation;
Geography, Planning and Development;
Tourism, Leisure and Hospitality Management;
Places in the authors’ list:
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4 place - free (for sale)

More details about the manuscript: Arts & Humanities Citation Index or/and Social Sciences Citation Index
Abstract:
n 20XX, amidst rising Hindu nationalist politics, the ‘Historic City of Ahmadabad’ was designated India’s first UNESCO World Heritage city for its Islamic architectural heritage. Ahmadabad’s diverging international and intranational heritage narratives are instructive in understanding what motivates national identity constructions inside and outside a nation-state’s borders. Using evidence from semi-structured interviews and documents, this paper illustrates how Ahmadabad’s World Heritage narrative is manipulated for different objectives at each scale. Internationally, Ahmadabad’s heritage cooperation with the French government, and framing as ‘multicultural’ is intended to internationalise the city and appeal to a global audience. Internally, its framing suggests inclusivity but operates as a subtle form of control by presenting a carefully curated degree of Islamism. Ultimately, this narrative of inclusion excludes the Muslim and migrant populations most closely associated with this heritage. By unpacking the socio-political and economic forces at play in constructing Indian national identity internationally and internally, this paper highlights the uses and abuses of built heritage.
Keywords:
conservation; heritage; identity politics; national identity; urbanism

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