Beschreibung
Southeastern Europe is often portrayed as an area plagued by endemic
nationalisms, a view that seems to be confirmed by the break-up of
Yugoslavia. However, a closer look shows that the nation is not the only
territorial unit of identification. Regions play an important role as well,
especially those that look back on traditions that differ from those of the
national state. Thus, the end of socialism also brought forward regional
movements which articulated opposition to the dominance of the centralized
state. These developments are furthered by the integration into the
European Union, whose policy of a „Europe of the Regions“ demands
strong regional centres for the administration of structural funds and for the empowerment of the regions.
The contributions to this volume address the dynamics of regions,
regionalism and regional identities in present Southeast Europe, but also
look into the history of individual regions. They provide ample material for
understanding the complex nature of territorial identification in this rapidly
changing part of Europe.
The editors:
Klaus Roth is Professor emeritus of European Ethnology at the Ludwig-
Maximilians-University of Munich; Ulf Brunnbauer is Professor of History of
Southeastern and Eastern Europe at the University of Regensburg.
