scholarly journals Hybrid identities in the era of ethno-nationalism: The case of the "krajowcy" in Lithuania

2018 ◽  
Vol 42 ◽  
pp. 253-270
Author(s):  
Darius Staliūnas

Hybrid identities in the era of ethno-nationalism: The case of the krajowcy in LithuaniaThis article deals with the identification of the so-called krajowcy – a relatively small group of Polish-speaking activists in Lithuania and Belarus in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century who promoted an idea of the re-establishement of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. This article claims that the krajowcy democrats (Michał Römer, Tadeusz Wróblewski, Konstancja Skirmuntt and others) were not nationally indifferent. On the contrary, they promoted a clearly formulated national identity ideology, different to the dominant (ethno-linguistic) one. First of all, the krajowcy were nationalists in a civic sense: they were Lithuanians, citizens of Lithuania within its historical boundaries. In addition, some of them, for example Wróblewski, suggested strengthening ethno-linguistic nationalism as well, otherwise his national personal autonomy concept would simply not have worked. Others, such as Konstancja Skirmuntt, Juozapas Albinas Herbačiauskas and Michał Römer, expressed a hybrid identification with several national cultures, and sometimes their self-identification was even reminiscent of identity ideologies that had dominated in earlier historical periods. Tożsamości hybrydowe w erze etnonacjonalizmu – „krajowcy” na LitwieArtykuł jest poświęcony identyfikacji tak zwanych krajowców, stosunkowo nielicznej grupy polskojęzycznych aktywistów działających na Litwie i Białorusi pod koniec XIX i na początku XX wieku, promujących ideę odtworzenia Wielkiego Księstwa Litewskiego. Artykuł wykazuje, że reprezentanci demokratycznego skrzydła tego ruchu (Michał Römer, Tadeusz Wróblewski, Konstancja Skirmuntt i inni) nie byli narodowo obojętni. Wręcz przeciwnie, promowali jasno sformułowaną ideologię tożsamości, odmienną od dominującej wówczas narracji etnolingwistycznej. Byli przede wszystkim narodowcami w sensie obywatelskim – Litwinami, obywatelami Litwy w jej historycznych granicach. Co więcej, niektórzy z nich, na przykład T. Wróblewski, postulowali także wzmocnienie nacjonalizmu etnolingwistycznego, w przeciwnym bowiem razie proponowana koncepcja autonomii osobistej nie miałaby szans na zaistnienie. Inni działacze, tacy jak Konstancja Skirmuntt, Juozapas Albinas Herbačiauskas (Józef Albin Herbaczewski) i Michał Römer, identyfikowali się z wieloma kulturami narodowymi, a ich samoidentyfikacja przywodzi czasem na myśl ideologie tożsamości, dominujące we wcześniejszych epokach historycznych.

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aleksander Smalianczuk

In the Search for a National Idea: Krajowość in the Beginning of the Twentieth Century as an Attempt at “Lithuanian Poles’" IdeologyKrajowość as the national ideology of the “civil” (or “political”) type developed in Belarus and Lithuania at the beginning of the twentieth century. The adherents of krajowośćclaimed that all native inhabitants of historical Lithuania, disregarding their ethno-cultural identity, are “the citizens of the Kraj” [the Countrymen] and therefore belong to one nation. Some called them “the nation of Lithuanians.” The category of “the native inhabitants” was used in relation to the Lithuanians, Belarusians, Poles, Jews, and almost never to Russians. As the main criterion for a national identity they proclaimed patriotism and self-identification as citizens.The krajowość idea appeared among the nobility. Its representatives belong to the combined Polish culture in respect of their own Lithuanian and Belarusian origin. The former Grand Duchy of Lithuania was interpreted by them as a historical native land. It was the determining factor in the formation of a new identity.All adherents of krajowość (Michal Romer, Roman Skirmunt, Kanstancyja Skirmuntt, Ludwik Abramovich, etc.) belonged to the group of the “Lithuania (vel Belarus) Poles”. Despite their intentions, the krajowość idea was formed on the basis of the “Lithuanian Poles’” struggle for their own place in the new society. As a result, the ideology for “Lithuanian Poles” was created, but it could not neutralize the existing Polish-Lithuanian-Belarusian conflict. W poszukiwaniu idei narodowej: „krajowość” początku XX wieku jako próba ideologii „Polaków litewskich”„Krajowość”, czyli ,,ideologia krajowa”, została sformułowana na Białorusi i Litwie na początku XX wieku. Krajowcy stwierdzali, że wszyscy rdzenni mieszkańcy historycznej Litwy, niezależnie od ich etnokulturowej i stanowej przynależności, należą do jednego „narodu Litwinów”. Za główne kryteria owej narodowej przynależności uznano poczucie patriotyzmu w stosunku do Litwy historycznej. Jednym z celów krajowości było pogodzenie partykularnych interesów miejscowych narodów z ich ogólnym interesem, pod jakim rozumiano dobro wspólnej Ojczyzny, historycznej Litwy. Jednak mimo zamiarów ideologów, którzy mówili o „obywatelach Kraju”, krajowość wyrosła z poszukiwania przez Polaków litewskich swego miejsca w nowym społeczeństwie. Koncepcja krajowa była ideologią Polaków litewskich, stworzoną przede wszystkim dla nich. Z postanowieniami krajowców była związana przede wszystkim perspektywa polskości na Litwie historycznej.


2019 ◽  
Vol 49 (2) ◽  
pp. 290-303
Author(s):  
Richard Howard

Irish science fiction is a relatively unexplored area for Irish Studies, a situation partially rectified by the publication of Jack Fennell's Irish Science Fiction in 2014. This article aims to continue the conversation begun by Fennell's intervention by analysing the work of Belfast science fiction author Ian McDonald, in particular King of Morning, Queen of Day (1991), the first novel in what McDonald calls his Irish trilogy. The article explores how McDonald's text interrogates the intersection between science, politics, and religion, as well as the cultural movement that was informing a growing sense of a continuous Irish national identity. It draws from the discipline of Science Studies, in particular the work of Nicholas Whyte, who writes of the ways in which science and colonialism interacted in late nineteenth and early twentieth-century Ireland.


2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 157-177
Author(s):  
Egdūnas Račius

Muslim presence in Lithuania, though already addressed from many angles, has not hitherto been approached from either the perspective of the social contract theories or of the compliance with Muslim jurisprudence. The author argues that through choice of non-Muslim Grand Duchy of Lithuania as their adopted Motherland, Muslim Tatars effectively entered into a unique (yet, from the point of Hanafi fiqh, arguably Islamically valid) social contract with the non-Muslim state and society. The article follows the development of this social contract since its inception in the fourteenth century all the way into the nation-state of Lithuania that emerged in the beginning of the twentieth century and continues until the present. The epitome of the social contract under investigation is the official granting in 1995 to Muslim Tatars of a status of one of the nine traditional faiths in Lithuania with all the ensuing political, legal and social consequences for both the Muslim minority and the state.


2015 ◽  
Vol 37 ◽  
pp. 383-406
Author(s):  
Jadwiga Kozłowska-Doda

The Polish speech of several villages in the neighborhood of Doсishki compared with the north-eastern peripheral dialectThe scientific studies on the Polish language on the territory of the former Grand Duchy of Lithuania have focused mainly on specific regions and historical periods. Despite the large number of the recorded materials and their analyses, scientists were unable to establish joint research programs and perform regular investigations; they also failed to create a map of different settlements, so as to develop a holistic picture of the languages of the region. Today, it is difficult to compare the study results of dialectologists and other scholars, because there is no comprehensive analysis of the peripheral Polish dialects.The paper compares the features of the Polish dialect from the area of Docishki with Polish ethnic dialects, as well as with other eastern peripheral dialects. Some other phonetic and morphological features are characterized by the resulting substrate and linguistic contacts. The differences in the Polish dialect of Voronovo district in Belarus are also presented.The analysis of the material has yielded that the Polish speech in the neighbourhood of  Doсishki is closely related to the north-eastern peripheral dialects, known as polszczyzna kresowa ‘borderland Polish’. It is mostly characterized by the same features as the Polish language of the area around Vilnius (including a part of the present-day Belarus). However, certain features of the local Polish dialect in villages near Doсishki are not attested in the neighbouring towns, but they are present in a few remote areas, such as the Kaunas region and only a complete description of a dialect will enable linguists to detect such features. Польская речь нескольких деревень в окрестностях Дотишек на фоне северо-восточного периферийного диалектаИсследования польского языка на территории былого ВКЛ проводились до сих пор нерaвномерно как во времени, так и в пространстве. Несмотря на большое количество записанных и проанализированных материалов, учёным не удалось выработать совместных программ и методoлогии исследований, не получилось также разработать сетку населённых пунктов с целью представить в итоге целостную языковую картину региона. Сегодня трудно сопоставить результаты исследований диалектологов и других специалистов в связи с нехваткой комплексных анализов периферийных польских говоров. Автором сравниваются особенности польского говора с окрестностей Дотишек с польскими этническими говорами, а также другими восточными периферийными говорами; характеризуются некоторые фонетические и морфологические черты, обусловленные субстратом, а также языковыми контактами; сделана попытка показать различия в польской речи на территории Вороновщины на Беларуси. Как показывает анализ материала, польская речь в окрестностях Дотишек тесно вплетена в контекст северо-восточного периферийного диалекта, известного как „польшчызна крэсова”. Её характеризуют в основном те же особенности, что и польский язык исторической Виленщины (включая и часть современной Беларуси). Однако определённые языковые черты местного польского говора в расположенных вблизи Дотишек деревнях не были зафиксированы в соседних ареалах, зато известны на несколько отдалённой территории, напр. в районе Каунаса, и только полная характеристика языковой системы речи позволяет такие черты выявить.


2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 82-93
Author(s):  
SERGIUSZ ŁUKASIEWICZ

The purpose of this paper is to attempt to explain the activities of the Communist Party of Western Belarus in Vilnius during the fi rst half of the thirties of the twentieth century. The author’s aim is to show the organisation, theory and practice of this illegal party. Further-more, the intention is to present the activities of Vilnius police towards communist sym-pathizers and activists. Founded in 1923 in Vilnius, the Communist Party of Western Belaruswas a branch of The Communist Party of Poland. This organization like the polish communist party was illegal. Its aim was to combat the Polish state and to perform electioneering for the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. Although the name of the party could indicate a desire for independence of Belarus, in practice it was for the removal of the north eastern provinces of the Second Republic of Poland to the USSR. CPWB activity had a special dimension in Vilnius. As the region’s largest city and former capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Vilnus was home for many nations, religions and cultures. Moreover, Vil-nius was the most important fi eld for communist action. Given the number of inhabitants, industrialized multi-ethnic character, communists had the opportunity to develop wide subversive and conspiratorial work. In addition, the city was the great centre of production and distribution of communist publications, which allowed the spread of propaganda in both its administrative boundaries and in the Vilnius Voivodeship.


The volume contains articles concerning the influence of Latinitas in the territory now occupied by Poland, Lithuania, Ukraine and Belarus’. The articles, all published in English, range from history to literature and to cultural history and the history of ideas. They analyze the issue of building an identity, either real or imagined, from different points of view. Among the most interesting topics are the classical origins of myths and ideas that have helped build the national identities of those that constituted the ethnic mosaic of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the role of Neo-Latin poetry, as a conveyor of Latinitas, in the development of national identities. Because of the significance of Latinitas for both common European cultural traditions and the national cultures, literatures and languages of Belarus, Poland, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia and Ukraine, it is to be hoped that the subject will continue to attract a good level of attention in the future.


Author(s):  
Mark Franko

This chapter looks at a variety of phenomena including folkloric dance that contained old regime materials, the ballet itself, and the scholarly research and collecting devoted to the grand siècle at the turn of the century. Three distinct seventeenth centuries were under construction in the historical imagination of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century dance. Research conducted in the early 1970s shows that elements of la belle danse found their way into regional folkloric performance; the seventeenth century became a predominant subject of ballets; musicology—a nascent discipline in France—turned to the discovery and reading of texts of musical theater that were no longer performed. These three activities engendered three versions of the seventeenth century in dance that I refer to as survival, revival, and archival. Survival corresponds to the emergence of ethnography thanks to Van Gennep and later Guilcher; revival refers to the principles of ballet evidenced in the writings of Volynsky on the basis of which new work could be created; archival refers to the discovery of the past as other in the research of Henry Prunières. These led in turn to concepts of performance as artifact, myth, and document, which together constituted the dispersed field of neoclassicism as I understand it in this book. Each of these versions of the seventeenth century came with a political potential with respect to questions of national identity.


2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 31-48
Author(s):  
Sam George

This article interrogates manifestations of the shadow soul, combining anthropological, magical and religious approaches to the shadow in an analysis of a small group of interrelated Gothic texts. It enters the shadowy worlds of Peter Schlemihl, protagonist of Hans Andersen's ‘The Shadow’, Dracula, and Peter Pan, who, on being detached from their shadows, have themselves become shades. This journey into the kingdom of shadows will uncover the folkloric demon, the vampire, the physiognomist, the satyr, the pagan Pan, and the Devil himself. To read these narratives through Frazer's The Golden Bough challenges conventional psychoanalytic readings and offers an alternative, folkloric perspective, one which lays bare the ritualistic and magical beliefs that inform late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century Gothic.


2008 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 113-123
Author(s):  
Virginijus Savukynas

The article analyses possible transformations of nationalism in contemporary Lithuania. The author argues that two forces influence the national identity. On the one hand, local identities have been strengthening. Currently, an attempt to revive / create a Samogitian identity based on certain political goals is rather visible in Lithuania. On the other hand, an opposite process can also be observed: it is a wish to revive a region corresponding to the boundaries of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The article concludes that due to globalization processes national identity receives pressure both from the “above” and “below”, i.e. alternative identity models are being offered in relation to either local identities or regional identities covering several states.


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