Maxime Toutain

Maxime Toutain is an Associate Member at LISST-CAS (Interdisciplinary Laboratory for Solidarity, Societies, Territories) and holds an ATER (temporary teaching and research) position in the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Toulouse - Jean Jaurès. His academic work focuses on the intersection of anthropology, religious studies, and memory studies, particularly examining how Afro-Cuban religious practices preserve and transform historical memory of slavery.

His research interests center on the cultural memory of slavery in Cuba, with particular attention to how religious practices at the central Méjico sugar plantation in Matanzas incorporate ancestral memories. Drawing from French memory anthropology and Cuban ethnographic traditions, Toutain investigates how religious possession, family secrets, and ritual practices serve as vehicles for transmitting historical knowledge that might otherwise be lost. His work bridges theoretical frameworks from scholars like Chivallon, Hartog, and Palmié with detailed fieldwork in Cuban religious communities.

Analysis of Toutain's publications reveals a consistent focus on how Afro-Cuban religions, particularly Santería and Lucumí traditions, function as living archives of slavery memory. His research demonstrates how religious practices transform historical trauma into spiritual resources, with particular attention to the role of spirit possession, ritual objects, and oral narratives. Over time, his work has expanded from detailed ethnographic studies to examine broader questions of cultural patrimony and heritage tourism related to slavery sites in Cuba.

Toutain's academic contributions demonstrate significant expertise in qualitative research methods, particularly ethnography and participant observation. His work shows strong interdisciplinary connections between anthropology, religious studies, and postcolonial theory, with particular relevance to understanding how marginalized communities preserve historical memory through non-institutional means.