Department of Anthropology and Sociology
Yu-Syuan Syu
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Key information
Key information
- Department
- Department of Anthropology and Sociology
- Qualifications
-
MRes of Social Anthropology, Department of Anthropology and Sociology, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London.
Master of Social Science, Ethnic Relations and Cultures, Faculty of the College of Indigenous Studies, National Dong Hwa University, Hualien, Taiwan. - Subject
- Anthropology and Sociology
- Email address
- 723748@soas.ac.uk
- Thesis title
- We Are All Threads: Indigeneity and Cultural Heritage
- Internal Supervisors
- Dr Naomi Leite & Professor Rachel Harris
Biography
Yu-Syuan, Syu (Ipiq Matay) is an Indigenous weaver and researcher from the Truku tribe (one of Indigenous groups in Taiwan) in Taiwan. Ipiq Matay is her Truku name. She is currently pursuing an MPhil in Anthropology and Sociology at SOAS, London.
From 2014 to 2022, Ipiq worked as a teacher and Indigenous community worker across various Truku regions. She collaborated extensively with public junior high schools, local organizations and NGOs in Truku region to develop Truku cultural learning programs aim at preserving cultural heritage. Her research focus is on the Truku weaving culture revitalization movement among the Truku weaving practitioners within the broader context of global heritalization of Indigenous culture and Taiwan’s Indigenous recognition. Her research examines how the shift reflects political and social changes in the relationship between state and the Indigenous peoples, and how Truku weaving practitioners across generations present themselves and respond to these changes. Through this, she aims to shed light on how different generations negotiate, interpret, and express their identities through their engagement with traditional practices in the contemporary world.
Ipiq has worked with different NGOs and local organisations to build map models that assert the sovereign knowledge of Truku traditional territory. In addition, she has learned and practiced various Truku weaving techniques from her aunt, cousins, and elders. These experiences have led her to reflect on the pedagogy and its implicit politics. Ipiq edited a book Cyakang Weaving Map (2018), two research report Growing Eye Pattern: Knowledge Discourse of Traditional Truku Weaving and Elug Patas (Pattern Roads). She also participated in several art exhibitions, including Everyday Life of the Crafts Women in 2017; and Spi/ Spi/ Sepi (Dream): Weave and Twine Special Exhibition in 2022, among others. As a Truku weaver and researcher, Ipiq is dedicated to contributing stories that embody her research methods.
Research interests
- Indigeneity
- Culture Heritage
- Identity
- Material Culture
