Inventing a Regional Tradition in Portugal: Memories and Truths
Fernando Magalhães, Rua Dr. João Soares

Abstract
The paper aims to explore the importance of the memory to justify the current existence of one Portuguese region and its projection in the national and in the European framework, through a process that involves tradition invention and reinvention. In this text, is analyzed the Leiria community, which is located in the north of Lisbon. The region’s memory, written and spoken by local leaders, oscillates between alternative versions. While some leaders advocate the Arab tradition as a key element in the region’s foundation, others argue that the community was established by the Christian re-conquest, in the twelfth century.

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