In this very personal account, the author discusses being rather unexpectedly pressed into the unfamiliar role of ‘expert’ in a case regarding the forced marriage of an under-age Syrian refugee in Sweden. In Swedish courts, so-called fri bevisprövning (literally, ‘free sifting’) is used as a method of gathering and evaluating evidence. While it is still unusual to use anthropologists or other kinds of non-legal experts (known as sakkunniga) in criminal cases in Sweden, this method opens up the possibility of introducing expert evidence into legal proceedings.

The chapter starts with a discussion of the development of the complex legal framework in Sweden concerning so-called honour crimes, forced marriage, and marriage of under-aged persons, and moves on to the specifics of the case. The author openly acknowledges her own ignorance of legal procedure and the difficulties of having to navigate the uneasy relationship between the Swedish legal framework and her own intimate knowledge of Syrian family law. The chapter concludes with the author's reflections on the intersection of legal ignorance and anthropological expertise.

This book is about seeds and why and how seeds matter today, as in the past. Under the main headings Biopower, Agrobiodiversity, Circulation/mobility, and Seeds and their caretakers, the human-seed relationship is explored from different viewpoints. In a historical perspective the co-evolution of plants and humans can be traced through myths, rituals and cultural practices. In our present-day world of accelerating climate change, expansion of monocultural plantations and loss of biodiversity, collecting, saving and securing seeds has become a global concern. The ritual significance of seeds, seed control and agricultural development, and official policies versus cultural practices are among the themes discussed. Engaging with seeds also raises critical political questions about control over the material basis of our existence, that is, the main food crops.

The volume is the result of a two-day international symposium held at the Royal Swedish Academy of Letters, History and Antiquities in Stockholm 2018.

Authors: Guntra A. Aistara, Kaj Århem, Roy Ellen, L. Jamila Haider, Tracey Heatherington, Bengt G. Karlsson, Dolly Kikon, Matti W. Leino, Birgit Müller, Rebecca Öhnfeldt, Annika Rabo, Ola Tveitereid Westengen & Rami Zurayk

In this article, we look at the discourse used by the Swedish state in describing non-European migrants, among them Syrians, and how this has constructed cultural divisions between ‘native’ Swedes and Syrian migrants. We reveal how non-European immigrants are depicted and treated by the state as coming from ‘patriarchal’ and ‘collectivist’ cultures and are therefore in need of development. We then connect this framing of migrant culture to how honour-related violence is constructed by the state and public institutions and explain how such a framing of violence is problematic. We also look at how some Syrian migrants have in turn employed stereotypical language in their depiction of Swedish culture and the Swedish state. Engaging with existing work on ethnic groups and boundaries, we find that this boundary-making process by both migrants and the state produces a perception of difference among groups.

This paper is a case study of the use of cultural experts, broadly defined as including mediators and academicians with a variety of backgrounds, in Sweden. It draws on data collected through qualitative interviews with cultural experts, by following court cases through legal documents, mass media and other printed material, and by my own experience as a cultural expert. The paper provides a context to the potential application of the concept of cultural expertise regarding the appointment of such experts by lawyers, prosecutors and courts. It analyzes cases concerning the Sami, the Roma and recent immigrants from Africa and Asia. The Sami cases revolve around conflicts with the Swedish state over rights and ownership. The Roma cases revolve around questions of ethnic discrimination. Cases of immigrants from outside Europe consist of individual criminal cases and asylum. I argue that Swedish ideas—and ideals—of sameness and equality have had an impact on the legal cases that I discuss in this paper. While the legal issues in each of these cases differ, the paper argues that they demonstrate a similarity in how Swedish-majority society manages and even creates cultural differences. I conclude by showing the ways culture, rights, and obligations are understood in courts reflect mainstream trends of Swedish society and suggest the need for cultural expertise in the form of interdisciplinary collaboration.

This article, based on intermittent anthropological fieldwork between 1978 and 2001, focuses on a Syrian waterscape through the establishment, expansion and contraction of the country's largest irrigation and land reclamation project in the Euphrates valley. It briefly describes regional agricultural history before discussing the different positions of three regional categories - employees in the project, Raqqa townspeople and inhabitants in a village - in this waterscape. The irrigation project was undoubtedly set in motion to increase the influence of the state and the ruling party. But, as discussed, this process has not been at all straightforward. The article points to the importance of studying water, land and politics, not only from above, on the part of the state, but also from below on the part of regional inhabitants.