Zeitschrift für Ostmitteleuropa-Forschung / Journal of East Central European Studies (ZfO)
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Ukraine before Statehood: A Blind Spot in Western European Historiography of/on Europe since 1991?
Full text linkThis article focuses on the relationship between Ukraine and Europe in historiography. It asks whether Ukraine was a blind spot in Western European historiography on Europe since 1991. To this end, the article analyzes how general accounts of European history from the early modern period to World War I conceive of “Ukraine” and “Ukrainians” and into which spatial and temporal patterns of European history they insert these lands and people before modern Ukrainian statehood. Furthermore, the article traces the characteristics and structural features of Europe used to frame Ukrainian history as “European.” It is evident that both the people and the country, situated between Poland and Lithuania, the Habsburg Empire, and Russia, are seldom portrayed as protagonists in European history. The article argues that this mirrors the regional expertise of most authors of such overall accounts, or rather, their lack of specialization in Eastern Europe. Moreover, after the “cultural turn,” histories of Europe have rarely been organized according to spatial and state categories. However, it is unlikely that the escalation of Russia’s full-scale attack will lead to a new “spatial turn” that will conceptually integrate state and nation-building processes on the territory of present-day Ukraine into European history.This article focuses on the relationship between Ukraine and Europe in historiography. It asks whether Ukraine was a blind spot in Western European historiography on Europe since 1991. To this end, the article analyzes how general accounts of European history from the early modern period to World War I conceive of “Ukraine” and “Ukrainians” and into which spatial and temporal patterns of European history they insert these lands and people before modern Ukrainian statehood. Furthermore, the article traces the characteristics and structural features of Europe used to frame Ukrainian history as “European.” It is evident that both the people and the country, situated between Poland and Lithuania, the Habsburg Empire, and Russia, are seldom portrayed as protagonists in European history. The article argues that this mirrors the regional expertise of most authors of such overall accounts, or rather, their lack of specialization in Eastern Europe. Moreover, after the “cultural turn,” histories of Europe have rarely been organized according to spatial and state categories. However, it is unlikely that the escalation of Russia’s full-scale attack will lead to a new “spatial turn” that will conceptually integrate state and nation-building processes on the territory of present-day Ukraine into European history
Magdalena Biniaś-Szkopek: Marriage in Medieval Poland. A Study of Evidence from the Poznań Consistory Court, 1404–1428.
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Regine Dehnel: Übernommen, weiterverteilt, zerstreut. Die Zentralstelle für wissenschaftliche Altbestände und NS-Raubgut nach 1945.
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From Inequalities to Partnership: Analyzing a New Paradigm of Europe-Ukraine Relations in Ukrainian History School Textbooks, 2001–2024
Full text linkThe idea of Europe as an embodiment of cultural and political aspirations for the people of Ukraine has been a topic since long before Ukrainian independence in 1991. Since then, however, the concept of Europe has become part of national institutions, such as education, and can be analyzed based on the fundamental elements of nation-building and national imagery, such as history textbooks for middle and high school students. Caught between a Soviet past and a European future, Ukraine has had to develop its own educational system and write its own history, including materials for teaching young Ukrainians. Previously, this issue has been studied separately, focusing either on de-Sovietization or taking a synchronic approach to study the meaning of Europe in a certain period. This paper analyzes the de‑Sovietization and Europeanization processes in Ukrainian history textbooks, methodologies, and course structures from the early 2000s to 2024. Unlike previous studies, this article focuses on the transformation itself and the dynamic changes in how the Soviet Ukrainian past and the meaning of Europe are dealt with. It also highlights the increasing tendency to teach Ukrainian history as an integral part of European history. I argue that since the early 2000s, the idea of Ukraine as an integral part of Europe has steadily become one of the cornerstones of history education, replacing Soviet historical narratives. This was followed by a critical reevaluation of European history and Ukrainian agency in the 2020s. Observing this transformation of the representation of Europe in Ukrainian history textbooks since the early 2000s may serve as a significant marker of change and is crucial for understanding both internal societal dynamics and self-imagining, as well as the external political and cultural aspirations of independent Ukraine.The idea of Europe as an embodiment of cultural and political aspirations for the people of Ukraine has been a topic since long before Ukrainian independence in 1991. Since then, however, the concept of Europe has become part of national institutions, such as education, and can be analyzed based on the fundamental elements of nation-building and national imagery, such as history textbooks for middle and high school students. Caught between a Soviet past and a European future, Ukraine has had to develop its own educational system and write its own history, including materials for teaching young Ukrainians. Previously, this issue has been studied separately, focusing either on de-Sovietization or taking a synchronic approach to study the meaning of Europe in a certain period. This paper analyzes the de‑Sovietization and Europeanization processes in Ukrainian history textbooks, methodologies, and course structures from the early 2000s to 2024. Unlike previous studies, this article focuses on the transformation itself and the dynamic changes in how the Soviet Ukrainian past and the meaning of Europe are dealt with. It also highlights the increasing tendency to teach Ukrainian history as an integral part of European history. I argue that since the early 2000s, the idea of Ukraine as an integral part of Europe has steadily become one of the cornerstones of history education, replacing Soviet historical narratives. This was followed by a critical reevaluation of European history and Ukrainian agency in the 2020s. Observing this transformation of the representation of Europe in Ukrainian history textbooks since the early 2000s may serve as a significant marker of change and is crucial for understanding both internal societal dynamics and self-imagining, as well as the external political and cultural aspirations of independent Ukraine
From Gold in the Scythian Steppe to Scandinavian Influence in Kyiv: Ukraine‘s Relationship with Europe in the Past Thirty Years, Portrayed in International Exhibitions
Full text linkUkraine’s international exhibitions are a medium for the self-image and external image of the state that emerged after 1991. While the first exhibitions still cultivated an image inherited from the Soviet era, after 2000, Ukraine’s newly formulated foreign cultural policy began to increasingly support international exhibitions in order to present Ukraine as an independent historical and cultural entity, counteract Russia’s interpretative dominance, and integrate Ukraine into the European cultural sphere. They were also intended to promote cooperation between Ukrainian and European museums and scholars. The legal dispute over the “Crimea exhibition” in Amsterdam further transformed cultural diplomacy into a debate about European values. Ukraine successfully positioned itself as a victim of colonial art looting and joined Western Europe’s current efforts to return artifacts captured through colonialism. This strengthened Ukraine’s image as part of a liberal Europe that defends the rule of law and cultural justice against Russian imperialism.Ukraine’s international exhibitions are a medium for the self-image and external image of the state that emerged after 1991. While the first exhibitions still cultivated an image inherited from the Soviet era, after 2000, Ukraine’s newly formulated foreign cultural policy began to increasingly support international exhibitions in order to present Ukraine as an independent historical and cultural entity, counteract Russia’s interpretative dominance, and integrate Ukraine into the European cultural sphere. They were also intended to promote cooperation between Ukrainian and European museums and scholars. The legal dispute over the “Crimea exhibition” in Amsterdam further transformed cultural diplomacy into a debate about European values. Ukraine successfully positioned itself as a victim of colonial art looting and joined Western Europe’s current efforts to return artifacts captured through colonialism. This strengthened Ukraine’s image as part of a liberal Europe that defends the rule of law and cultural justice against Russian imperialism
