Projects / Programmes
Slovenhood Dimensions between Local and Global at the Beginning of the Third Millennium
January 1, 2019
- December 31, 2027
| Code |
Science |
Field |
Subfield |
| 5.11.00 |
Social sciences |
Ethnic studies |
|
| 6.05.02 |
Humanities |
Linguistics |
Theoretical and applied linguistics |
| Code |
Science |
Field |
| S000 |
Social sciences |
|
| Code |
Science |
Field |
| 5.04 |
Social Sciences |
Sociology |
| 6.02 |
Humanities |
Languages and Literature |
national question, national identity, Slovene culture and language, minorities, migration, Slovenes in the neighbouring countries, Slovene emigration, intercultural and interreligious dialogue, border studies, language policy, discourse analysis, education, social responsibility and inclusion
Data for the last 5 years (citations for the last 10 years) on
April 23, 2024;
A3 for period
2018-2022
| Database |
Linked records |
Citations |
Pure citations |
Average pure citations |
| WoS |
96 |
184 |
162 |
1.69 |
| Scopus |
156 |
474 |
394 |
2.53 |
Researchers (24)
Organisations (2)
Abstract
The main purpose of the research programme is to explore how Slovenhood as a spiritual and social phenomenon works during the time of radical global changes. Modern research on national question confronts difficulties in addressing the often intertwining contradictory trends of globalisation, multiculturalism and localism. Slovenia also faces these globalisation processes. It has entered the Union as a young country which was immediately after becoming independent faced both with the problem of searching its identity and the question about strategies that would allow its implementation and, thus, a harmonious development on all social areas. Such development should enable Slovenia to develop its national sovereignty further, while at the same time ensure close involvement in the European and global civilisation framework.
The key goal of our research is a deeper understanding of Slovenhood, which will deviate from the traditional concept of national identity, while at the same time allowing its status and existence. The perspective of mobile and intercultural society will be possible because the programme group consists mainly of researchers whose main research field is the multicultural and cross-border environment of the Slovene cultural space and Slovene diasporas, and they come from three research institutions with key studies in these fields: Science and Research Centre Koper, Institute for National Issues (Ljubljana), SLORI (Trieste). The advantage of the programme group will be its interdisciplinarity, as it includes experts in the fields of national issues, ethnic studies, sociology, slovenistics, linguistics, philosophy, religious studies, history, and law.
Based on all the above described, the concept of modern Slovenhood will be described as:
a) the place of a spiritual stay,
b) an autonomous social structure,
c) an element of local, regional, European and world space.
For this purpose, we will work within five thematic sections:
1. Re-definition of the term: What does it mean to be a Slovene / Slovene and what is Slovenhood?
2. Slovene thought, culture and identity in the context of European and global interculturalism;
3. Slovene language as a European language against the challenges of globalisation;
4. Shaping and re-shaping of the Slovene national identity in the light of contacts between motherland, Slovene minorities in neighbouring countries and Slovene diasporas;
5. Responsible social policies focusing on the integration of vulnerable social groups
This concept of Slovenhood can serve as a model example for less numerous nations and minorities. The Slovene culture and the Slovene state with all its dimensions will thus be the starting point for reflection on the national idea in the third millennium in general.
Some innovative social models and strategies (economic, political, educational, coexistence models, etc.) will be developed, which will be communicated to the public through recognized scientific and professional publications.
Significance for science
The modern development of a global society requires a shift from classical methodological approaches when addressing a national issue that sees the individual national community as an exclusive entity. This does not mean that national countries are no longer suitable for analytical fields because they represent the most important institutional framework in which we live. However, it is certain that the studies that are interested in local phenomena in a global context require different transnational approaches. The treatment of various aspects of Slovenhood as a spiritual and social phenomenon, starting from an intercultural perspective, i.e., minority, border, cross-border, emigration, European, international perspectives, is a key contribution to all the sciences, for which the national question is one of the key research areas.
The results of the research will thus first contribute to the development of newer and modern concepts of national and ethnic identity, they will provide insight into the hybridity of Slovenhood and contribute to understanding the dependence of the concepts on the context. Also, research in the field of philosophical studies will give an original view of the actors of intercultural dialogue and the overcoming of violence in Slovenia and wider, including the issues of religion and religious communities. In this segment, the research will be an original contribution to the contemporary theory of interreligious dialogue and the contribution to the creation of wider inter-religious peace-building policies. The area of (women) religious peace building in the context of feminist theology and religious feminism is a pioneering area in Slovenia that has not yet found the suitable place in academic sciences.
The cultural and linguistic studies of the less numerous ethnic and national communities and less widely used languages are generally regarded as a distinctive feature of restricted areas, while less attention is paid to the question of their social and ethnic existence and intercultural interaction with other environments as important social conditions. Within the framework of the research program, we want to significantly deepen the aspects of theoretical and applied linguistics by developing intercultural linguistics and intercultural Slovenhood, which take into account the interaction between national languages and languages of ethnic communities, national languages and lingua franca, the role of Slovene language in the country, in the common European area and diaspora and hegemons of power, who wish to place less widely used languages and cultures among the folklore specificities of European diversity. In the same way, in the form of a case study, for the first time, the research will tematize certain aspects of the construction of Slovene as belonging to the group of speakers of the Slovene idiom or idioms on the basis of empirical data on the actual use of language and perceptions and representations of Slovenhood, which will be collected in the area of Slovene-Italian cultural contact in Italy. This will contribute to the development of a corpus analysis of data on language work in peripheral areas of the Slovene language continuity, which have not yet been researched using the latest linguistic technologies.
The programme will also make a significant contribution to the development of border studies and studies of the national question in Slovenia. The added value can be seen in the use of the modern methodology of transnational history. In the European space, this methodological approach has proved to be an important contribution to more in-depth and comprehensive historical research, with the emphasis on the mutual study of the historiography of the Other, and other nations and has contributed to peaceful coexistence in society. The program focuses on the border regions of several countries and diaspora, thus giving greater emphasis to the regional as well as to the national level, althou
Significance for the country
Based on contemporary global trends, a well-founded concept of Slovenhood is certainly crucial for strengthening the self-awareness of the Slovene nation and the overall image of the Slovene state. This is the basis for the equal and successful functioning of the state in an international context, from all points of view, from economic field to diplomacy, culture and other social fields. On this basis, Slovenia can become a confident and successful partner in modern integration processes both within the EU and globally, enabling effective integration into the international division of labour.
The opening up of the Slovene economy in the European area and worldwise is directly related to the spread of Slovene language to this market. Knowledge of English as the only language in the business world is no longer enough. Knowledge of European and other widely used and lesser-used languages is a human capital and competitive advantage in the labour market. The results of our research will have a direct impact on both the individual economic environment as well as on increasing the competitiveness and greater social cohesion. The objectives of the project are in accordance with the developmental baseline draft Development strategy of Slovenia "2014-2020," where there are particularly emphasised the economical areas that constitute a competitive advantage of Slovenia. With the achievements of the research some guidelines for employers will be designed, where and how to enforce Slovene as language of communication abroad, how with the introduction of Slovene in the wider area of business contacts should create a favourable working environment for foreign workers in Slovenia. Moreover, the results of the research, its products and issues companies and individual experts should apply on solutions (corpora collection and processing of data, the establishment of language resources, language manuals), which will be offered to workers in the Slovene economy production on the European and world labour market.
The results of research within the programme, which will expand and deepen the current understanding of Slovenhood, will be the basis for the creation of more modern social policies in all social areas, especially in the field of social and cultural activities. Slovenia's involvement in European and international integration processes requires the simultaneous consideration of the intercultural aspects of coexistence in the broadest sense when designing the visions of the development of the Slovene national culture, which means exceeding the extremes and reconciliation of social tensions between different social groups, both in terms of ethnic and religious affiliation and gender differences and belonging to different generational, social, professional, etc. groups.
On the one hand, intercultural dialogue, including interreligious dialogue, is more developed and dynamic in Europe than ever before, on the other hand, interreligious relations, with the rise of nationalisms and in the shadow of the refugee crisis, are under strong pressure and the victims of gross politicization. A critical understanding of the dynamics and different contexts of intercultural and interreligious dialogue in Slovenia and the obstacle to such a dialogue that this research programme will examine and explain is a key to identifying the best opportunities for the success of dialogue and facilitating greater social cohesion.
The results of the research, transferred into various activities, measures and social and educational policies in the linguistic and cultural fields, will have influence on the changes and improvements in the situation, for example, in the creation of teaching materials, plans and models of teaching Slovene as a first and second / foreign language, in the design educational models of national education and in the majority of schools in the ethnically mixed areas of Slovenia. Particularly important will be the transferability of empiri
Most important scientific results
Interim report
Most important socioeconomically and culturally relevant results
Interim report
