(Re)Configuring City Meanings: Historic and Contemporary Imaginations in the City of Kandy, Sri Lanka

Abstract

This paper discusses the changes that occur in the meanings that people associate with historic environments and the impact of such changes in historic preservation. Using the city of Kandy in Sri Lanka as a case study, I suggest that there should be a critical focus on the environmental meanings associated with historic places in preservation efforts. Such efforts should investigate and safeguard the collective relationship of iconic, linguistic, and behavioral attributes of the place. These attributes are vital in evoking environmental meanings that define the cultural significance and contemporary relevance of those places for continued preservation.