Scented memories: Cultural identity and autobiographical recollection through the language of smell in Brazil

Odors are potent cues of autobiographical memory, offering a critical lens into the cultural organization of human experience. We hypothesize that the semantic associations of emotions and life events with specific scents may provide clues about which odors possess the potential to trigger collective memories, thereby reflecting and reinforcing cultural and regional identities. This study investigated the relationship between olfaction, autobiographical memory, and cultural identity in Brazil, a country characterized by profound regional and historical diversity. To explore this mechanism, we developed a self-report questionnaire with thirty open-ended questions inviting participants (N = 1,144) from all five Brazilian regions to describe odors associated with life periods, emotions, and significant people. The corpus for analysis consisted of participants' responses, allowing for a semantic exploration of odor terms and ensuring proportional representation based on regional population density. Frequency analysis revealed a shared Brazilian olfactory signature, primarily marked by recurring references to perfume, coffee, flowers, sea, rain, and wet earth, indicative of a national collective memory schema. Regional differences also emerged, such as maniçoba and cupuaçu in the North, couscous and lavender in the Northeast, chimarrão and barbecue in the South, pequi and pamonha in the Midwest, and wine and night-blooming jasmine in the Southeast. Gender-based differences further reflected social practices and affective meanings (e.g., sunscreen for women, beer for men). This large-scale, interdisciplinary study demonstrates that particular odors act as powerful cultural signatures and behavior markers, essential for understanding the regional organization of memory and identity in the highly diverse Brazilian context.