This article contributes to the intersection of material culture and mobility studies by exploring the role of objects in fostering nostalgia and emotionally linking migrants with their home world. ‘Memory objects’ are conceptualized as special personal belongings that elicit deliberate or involuntary memories of homeland, home culture, social relations and episodes in one’s pre-migration past. Focusing on intra-African migration, the study is based on in-depth interviews with a sample of 40 migrants from 13 African countries, temporarily or permanently based in South Africa. Contrary to the extant literature, initial findings indicate most participants did not value keepsakes or sentimental mementoes of home. However, it emerged that some had developed a special relationship with specific utilitarian objects, mostly received as gifts, which essentially turned into memory objects over time, precipitating memories and emotional attachment through routine usage and performative action. It is argued that more attention must be paid to socio-cultural values and other locally specific factors.

中文翻译：

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“记忆对象”：非洲内部流动背景下的物质对象和家庭记忆

本文通过探索对象在促进怀旧和在情感上将移民与其家乡联系起来的作用，为物质文化与流动性研究的交叉做出了贡献。“记忆对象”在概念上是指特殊的个人物品，可以引起人们对移民之前的家园，家庭文化，社会关系和事件的蓄意或非自愿的记忆。该研究以非洲内部移民为重点，该研究基于对来自13个非洲国家（临时或永久地位于南非）的40名移民的抽样访谈。与现有文献相反，最初的发现表明大多数参与者不重视家庭纪念品或情感纪念品。但是，发现有些人与特定的功利主义物品发展了特殊的关系，这些礼物大多是作为礼物赠与的，随着时间的流逝，它实际上变成了记忆对象，通过日常使用和表演动作来沉淀记忆和情感依恋。有人认为，必须更加注意社会文化价值和其他当地特有的因素。