The political and legal geographies of archives: Evidence, expertise, place

This paper establishes a framework for political and legal geographies of archives. Moving beyond catch-all definitions of ‘the archive’, it interrogates the specific practices and spaces by which materials become archival, the professional expertise required to do so, and the evidentiary authority this bestows. Marginalised groups – including Indigenous communities, unrepresented nations, and racial and religious minorities – must navigate a paradox of securing rights through the same archival structures that have historically facilitated their exclusion. Through interconnected lenses of evidence, expertise, and place, the paper draws attention to the contested and uneven processes by which community records are transformed into authoritative, admissible evidence.