Keywords
women’s cultural labour
cultural preservation
gender and tourism
How to Cite
Abstract
This study explores women’s largely unrecognized role in cultural preservation through community-based tourism (CBT) in the Sijunjung Traditional Settlement, West Sumatra. Using a qualitative design with emic and phenomenological perspectives, the study examines women’s lived experiences and the meanings attached to their everyday cultural practices. Data were collected through in-depth interviews, participant observation, and documentation and were analysed thematically. The findings show that women function not only as economic participants but also as key cultural agents through homestay management, traditional cuisine, crafts, ritual preparation, and everyday social practices. These forms of cultural labour help sustain local identity, transmit customary knowledge, and maintain Minangkabau traditions, although they are often weakly recognized in formal tourism structures. The study is limited by its context-specific qualitative design and reliance on participants’ subjective experiences. It contributes to gender and tourism scholarship by foregrounding women’s cultural roles beyond economic participation. Its novelty lies in conceptualizing women’s everyday, often invisible work as a central mechanism of cultural preservation within CBT.
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