Postcolonial Tourism and National Identity: Postcolonial and Ethnolinguistic Insights on Tourism in Indonesia

Grounded on postcolonial and ethnolinguistic theories, as well as employing discourse analysis, the present study aims to discuss postcolonial tourism from historical and cultural point of views, which is mostly related to national identities. As such, this arti-cle concerns with issues connected to the relationship between aspects of historical and cultural tourism during postcolonial era on the one hand, and Indonesian national identity on the other. This article argues that tourism, especially historical/cultural tourism, has the power in constructing and maintaining national identities because this particular tourism relies mostly on historical symbols of the nation. In addition, ethnolinguistically, this article also suggests that symbolism in daily Indonesian lan-guage usage can also serve as a means to promote tourism in a more effective way.