Ripensare l'autoctonia: l'Adriatico i Balcani e l'identità di frontiera

The concept of autochthony combines and sometimes mingles with other similar and equally ambiguous meanings. It is not always clear if being autochthonous, native, aboriginal and indigenous mean the same, as these terms are used in different geographical and historical contexts and their connotations are more or less negative. The term autochthony has been deeply analysed and deconstructed by social sciences - by anthropology in particular – as much as it has been exalted by those political movements involved in ethnonational and regionalist issues. Both the age of explorations and colonialism have contributed to the shape of a concept of autochthony of their own. Nowadays, the shift of territorial governance practices on a super-national and sub-national levels urge to reflect on the new consequences of autochthony, as far as local development and globalisation are concerned. In the Euro-Asian and Euro-Mediterranean “dialogue” taking place in Europe, autochthony is coming up again in the debate on the role of ethno-linguistic minorities – whether the safeguard of minority languages and ethno-linguistic minority communities is able to promote trans-national connection and territorial promotion or represents a discontinuity to be amended.