Capricious pathways – a comparative analysis of local identity building in border regions. A case study of Polands Western and Eastern border

Abstract

The shaping and re-shaping of borders became a characteristic for the political development in Central-Eastern Europe after the Second World War. While the exchange of population and territory had been the bitter reality, post-war socialist societies were shaped by a tabooing of public debates on the topics. Borders became heavily guarded and securitised lines, serving as ideological symbols of socialist friendship. With the end of the Cold War and EU accession a re-definition of the understanding of identity and borders became necessary. This contribution provides a comparative analysis between German-Polish and Polish-Ukrainian border regions, stressing on the similarities and differences in the everyday life of borderlanders. The article highlights regional identity building and investigates how identities are shaped. In the conclusions the role of the border as a resource for local economic development and transnational co-operation is discussed. The paper is based on a PhD research project. The fieldwork was done in the border towns of Frankfurt (Oder) and Slubice at the German-Polish border and the border city Przemyśl at the Polish-Ukrainian border.