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The difference between a humane, civilized nation and a barbaric nation is not the difference between innocence and guilt, but how that nation deals with the shadowy and problematic sides of its history. Erazim Kohák, "Letter to an Anonymous Friend"

Das tschechische Grenzgebiet ist eine der Regionen in Europa, die in der Folge des Zweiten Weltkrieges am gravierendsten von Umbrüchen in der zuvor bestehenden Bevölkerungsstruktur betroffen waren. Der erzwungenen Aussiedlung eines Großteils der ansässigen Bevölkerung folgten die Neubesiedlung durch verschiedenste Zuwanderergruppen sowie teilweise langanhaltende Fluktuationen der Einwohnerschaft. Die Stabilisierung der Bevölkerung stand sodann unter dem Zeichen der sozialistischen Gesellschafts- und Wirtschaftsordnung, die die Lebensweise und Raumwahrnehmung der neuen Einwohner nachhaltig prägte. Die Grenzöffnung von 1989, die politische Transformation sowie die Integration der Tschechischen Republik in die Europäische Union brachten neue demographische und sozioökonomische Entwicklungen mit sich. Sie schufen aber auch die Bedingungen dafür, sich neu und offen auch mit der spezifischen Geschichte des ehemaligen Sudetenlandes sowie mit dem Zustand der gegenwärtigen Gesellschaft in diesem Gebiet auseinanderzusetzen. Im Rahmen der vorliegenden Arbeit wird anhand zweier Beispielregionen untersucht, welche Raumvorstellungen und Raumbindungen bei der heute in den ehemaligen sudetendeutschen Gebieten ansässigen Bevölkerung vorhanden sind und welche Einflüsse die unterschiedlichen raumstrukturellen Bedingungen darauf ausüben. Besonderes Augenmerk wird auf die soziale Komponente der Ausprägung räumlicher Identität gelegt, das heißt auf die Rolle von Bedeutungszuweisungen gegenüber Raumelementen im Rahmen sozialer Kommunikation und Interaktion. Dies erscheint von besonderer Relevanz in einem Raum, der sich durch eine gewisse Heterogenität seiner Einwohnerschaft hinsichtlich ihres ethnischen, kulturellen beziehungsweise biographischen Hintergrundes auszeichnet. Schließlich wird ermittelt, welche Impulse unter Umständen von einer ausgeprägten räumlichen Identität für die Entwicklung des Raumes ausgehen. ; The Czech border area is one of the regions in Europe which were most seriously affected by radical changes in the previous population structure during the post-Second World War period. The forced out-migration of the majority of the resident population was followed by the new settlement of different immigrant groups as well as partly long lasting fluctuations of the inhabitants. The subsequent stabilization of the population took place under the conditions of the socialist social order and economic system which greatly affected the way of life of the new inhabitants as well as their perception of the environment. The opening of the border in 1989, the political transformation and the integration of the Czech Republic into the EU brought about new demographic and socio-economic developments. This also facilitated a more open dealing with the specific history of the former "Sudetenland" and with the state of contemporary society in the region. Based on the example of two regions in Western Bohemia, the study examines how the current inhabitants experience their environment, what kind of relationship they have towards it and what structural conditions influence these phenomena. Special attention is paid to the social component of the development of spacial identity, i.e. to the role of assignment of meaning to spatial elements in the process of social communication and interaction. This seems to be particularly relevant in the region characterized by a certain heterogeneity of its inhabitants with regard to their ethnic, cultural or biographic background. Finally, it is examined what impacts a distinct spatial identity may have on the development of the region.

AbstractThe study aims to analyze inhabitants' perceptions vis‐a‐vis the actual demographic, economic, functional, and land use transformation taking place in the peripheral area of Kłodzko County in the Sudetes Mountains in southwestern Poland. Recently, new socio‐economic processes can be observed in the region, suggesting a revival after a period of stagnation. It employs qualitative data from semi‐structured interviews and observation, and quantitative data from an online survey. Findings on inhabitants' perception are discussed against evidence from diverse statistical databases based on the literature. Results show that changes to physical built environment are most perceived, but tourism is seen as the main positive driver. The most acute negative change is depopulation, which is also considered to have a damaging effect on the transformation. The results show some disparities in perceptions across different socio‐demographic and spatially defined categories of inhabitants, as well as ambiguity of assessment of rural transformations that are interpreted in relation to the socio‐economic context of interviewees. The study contributes to discussion on perceived and actual change in rural areas by pointing to patterns of perception. It provides social feedback on changes and depicts collective attitudes towards rural revival—knowledge that is necessary to formulate policies tailored to site‐specific preconditions.

The complex nature of different kinds of nationalism is discussed, focusing on the nationalism of the Sudenten Germans after 1918 & in the context of the failing Habsburg Monarchy concomitant with WWI. It is argued that Sudenten German nationalism swung back & forth between classic nationalistic secession demands & culturally based, moderate identifications with German Bohemian identity. The history of Bohemian Germans is reviewed, looking at how German identity in this region was formed & how Bohemians' national, regional, & state identities were separate from each other. The impact of WWI is addressed, as is the resulting nationalism of the Bohemians who found a solely German national identity limiting. It is contended that the Sudenten German case illustrates differences that need to be acknowledged between nationalism & national identity or consciousness. D. Weibel.

In much of the already vast and expanding literature on nationalism there is an understandable emphasis on its political dimensions. It is generally seen as the ideological mobilization of an essentially cultural national identity—which may or may not be considered pre-existing—for the purposes of attaining sovereign state power, or in some other way influencing and affecting state power, for example attaining greater rights or autonomy within the state. Where there are no such demands directed at the state, such an understanding implies that either we are not dealing with a nation, or we are dealing with one that is still unconscious of its nationhood or that is satisfied without any political expression of that nationhood. None of these cases, in any event, would normally be considered examples of nationalism, since nationalism by definition must demand, indeed is the demand for such state expression or recognition of nationality. As John Breuilly puts it: nationalism is "above and beyond all else, about politics, and … politics is about power."

L'article s'intéresse à deux projets de musées récents consacrés à l'histoire des Allemands des pays tchèques : le Collegium Bohemicum à Ústí nad Labem (Bohême du Nord), et le musée allemand des Sudètes à Munich (Bavière). Les deux projets sont le fruit d'une initiative politique, et ils reflètent tous deux, dans sa forme spécifique, la culture mémorielle des porteurs du discours historique – la majorité de la société tchèque, ainsi que les deuxième et troisième génération d'Allemands des Sudètes expulsés. Les notions clés pour les visiteurs du musée d'Ústí sont l'« absence » des Allemands et la « restitution » ou « réalisation » de leur histoire et de leur patrimoine culturel. À Munich, ce n'est pas la simple présentation des Allemands des Sudètes qui est mise en avant, mais plutôt les notions clés de la « perte » et de l'« absence » d'une patrie et les questions d'identité qui y sont liées. Dans cette mesure, les deux concepts de musée semblent être à la fois relativement conservateurs et similaires dans leur structure.