“Este é o Princípio da Relação”: Betel and Sandpiper as Material Supports of Cultural Translation in East Timor

Abstract

The consumption of areca and betel is ubiquitous in Southeast Asia. In East Timor it plays an essential role in everyday sociabilities, while it has a major role in ritual contexts. The objective of this article is to analyze how the areca and betel consumption, as material support of social relations, can transfer from personal or local
relations to a more global translation, functioning as artifacts and authors of cultural translation, considering the possibility of these practices are being translated / translated into national performances.