Cultivating Cultural Memory: A Case Study of the Revitalization of Al Jazeera Al Hamra Heritage Village

The hydrocarbon-rich Gulf states are well-known for their pursuit of modernization following the discovery of oil reserves in the twentieth century, often at the expense of cultural heritage sites. However, over the past two decades, the Gulf states have become more interested in developing cultural legacies pertaining to their heritage, which is a process necessitating the activation of local people’s cultural memory. While restoration and conservation of cultural heritage sites is important for their protection, the performance of heritage is equally significant for the construction and maintenance of cultural memory, especially for abandoned heritage sites. The performance of heritage means a heritage site has a current real use that is sensitively introduced, carefully managed, and pays homage to the heritage rather than a tokenistic resemblance. This chapter uses the case study of the abandoned historical pearling town Al Jazeera Al Hamra Heritage Village in Ras Al Khaimah, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), to investigate the influence of the revitalization of the Village on the construction and maintenance of cultural memory in Ras Al Khaimah and the wider UAE. Using interviews, document analysis, and observation, we argue that governmental action, in the form of allowing greater accessibility to the Village, coupled with citizens’ engagement with their heritage, has enabled Al Jazeera Al Hamra to feature more prominently in Emirati cultural memory. Accordingly, the case study is presented as an example of how citizen–government collaboration in the adaptive reuse of cultural heritage can increase local buy-in into national, cultural identity narratives. This chapter seeks to contribute to the academic literature on cultural heritage protection in the Gulf region and wider Middle East and North Africa, including the adaptive reuse of historical sites.