A Postcolonial History of Heritage and Preservation in Qatar

What does “locally grown” mean in the context of postcolonial heritage traditions? Responding to calls in the field of heritage studies for more diverse, inclusive, and situated or localized approaches to heritage and preservation, this article addresses the rise of a heritage preservation tradition in Qatar as an example of resistance to a monolithic universal heritage ethos that is disrupted by what was once a “marginal” player. Through an examination of the history of heritage expertise, from its earliest interactions with foreign experts to the meteoric growth of Qatar’s heritage industry and advocacy for global heritage, I propose a historical approach to identifying, circulating, and authenticating local voices in the study and management of heritage. This discussion demonstrates the significance of engaging with the Arab Region not exclusively through the lens of heritage destruction but, rather, as a strong example of local negotiations that construct and resist different heritage futures strategically.

For the past two decades, the visibility of heritage developments in the Arabian Peninsula has been on the rise, bringing much attention to one of its key players, Qatar. This intensification is not only due to high-profile projects of regeneration that revolve around the safeguarding of heritage resources in innovative ways—the Msheireb Downtown Doha project in Qatar, Dubai Heritage Village in Khor Dubai in the UAE, the Historic Jeddah Development Program in Saudi Arabia. It is also a visibility enhanced by the important roles that leaders across this region have taken in global heritage affairs. While it is undeniable that parts of the Arab Region1 have been featured prominently in global heritage history through an explicit focus on the archaeological riches of ancient and classical civilizations and flagship conservation projects such as the International Campaign to Save the Monuments of Nubia,2 the nations of the Arabian Peninsula have been less vocal and visible through most of the historical trajectory of a global heritage regime. Until more recently.

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