Koomast

Koomast is a term used in anthropology and cultural studies to describe the process and product of communal memory within a social group. It refers to the shared narratives, symbols, rites, and practices through which a community remembers its past and constructs its present. Koomast encompasses oral storytelling, rituals, monuments, digital archives, and media representations that are collectively interpreted by members of the group.

The word is said to originate from a fictional source language, with the morphemes koo- meaning memory and mast indicating collectivity or togetherness. In scholarly usage, koomast is treated as a refinement of the concept of collective memory, emphasizing the social and participatory aspects of memory formation rather than individual recall alone.

In research and discussion, koomast is used to analyze how communities sustain identity through remembrance, especially in diasporic, post-conflict, or rapidly changing contexts. It highlights how memory is negotiated, revised, or contested through performances, education, media, and public ritual. Critics warn that focusing on koomast can risk overemphasizing cohesion or obscuring power dynamics and overlooked subgroups within a society.

Related concepts include collective memory, cultural memory, memory politics, and social memory. While koomast shares common ground with these terms, it specifically foregrounds the communal and participatory processes by which groups curate and pass on their past.