Projects / Programmes
The role of women's migrations and migrants in the construction of the Slovene national identity from national to postnational era: comparative Slovenian, European, and global aspects
| Code |
Science |
Field |
Subfield |
| 6.06.00 |
Humanities |
Culturology |
|
| Code |
Science |
Field |
| H000 |
Humanities |
|
| Code |
Science |
Field |
| 6.05 |
Humanities |
Other humanities |
national identity, migration, gender, transnationalism, Slovenia
Researchers (10)
Organisations (4)
Abstract
The research project deals with social and cultural role of women's migration and migrants in the formation of Slovenian national identity since the beginnings of creation of Slovenian national consciousness to the present. The aim of the research project is to reconsider and shed light on modern processes of nationalization of European nations in a direction that will take into account the dynamic and inter-relational aspects of the constitution of national identities between supranational, national and transnational social space. The basic research hypothesis is that processes of nationalization cannot be fully explained without taking into account the role of temporary migration, in particular the emigration of intellectual elites to the cosmopolitan cultural centers, as well as permanent immigration and its impact on national identity landscapes. The research examines the role of migration from the perspective of gender, which provides an insight into the processes of nationalization between public, political, and private, everyday life.
Scientific background: The research project is based on critical analysis of contemporary theory of national identity, aimed at creating epistemologically new foundations for the study of nationalization processes of modern European societies. Key scientific objective of the project is the theoretical upgrade of nations and nationalism studies with the outcomes of the study of migration and their place in shaping national identities. When studying nationalism, the current theory, mostly relies on spatially and temporally sedentary and still social structures of collective life, projected on the internal cultural, political and mental community spaces (in-group identity). On the contrary, the present multidimensional analysis, which draws from a large corpus of social science and humanities research of migrations and their historical placement within the transnational European and global framework, stresses the constitutive role of male and female migrating individuals of d different social strata and groups, in defining internal and external borders of imagined community (out-group identity). The central research interest is to theoretically explain this role from the perspective of the social experience of female migrants and to upgrade the existing conceptual paradigm of modern national identity as "traveling" (Hall, Bauman, Bhabha) from the perspective of its sexual marking.
The aim of the research is to place the study of nationalism and collective identity nationalization into the intersection between public and private, where the central role belonged to female intellectuals. When dealing with historical processes of formation of nations and national identities, the theory of nationalism is largely based on the analysis of public institutions and associated male elites. While such a research focus is justified when nations are dealt with from the perspective of public culture and gender power relations, the epistemological shift from public to private, female culture, may shad a completely different light on the processes of nationalization. Such perspective is theoretically gaining importance in world literature, and is becoming a significant part in studies of nationalism and national cultures; a task that Slovenian research only needs to draw up.
Beyond State of the Art: The research project contributes to this task by designing a multiperspectival analysis, which includes historical, literary theoetical, sociological, pedagogigacl and art history study of Slovene women's migrants from the 18th to the 21th century. In addition to reconceptualization of national processes from the perspective of gender, the research includes also case studies which focus on two groups of migrant women: cultural travellers who combined their biographies with the prototype role of cultural ambasadors; and permanent social emmigrants who formed a prototypical diasporic transnational cultural spaces.
Significance for science
The research project has developed a new epistemological basis for the study of processes of nationalizing of modern societies and furthered the conceptual paradigm of modern national identity -- from the static to traveling. The study confirmed the theoretical findings of modern traveling identity as presenting a new challenge to postmodern social constitution; at the same time it pointed out that the introduction of the female perspective is necessary to carry out the epistemological shift in studying nationalism from public to private, which is the domain of women's culture. With in-depth analysis of the case studies, the project also contributed to understading of female migration as constitutive for the construction of individual national identity in specific historical contexts. The central importance of the research project for the development of science is also in introducing a triple epistemological shift in the study of nations and national identities - from static to dynamic, traveling; from the exclusively bounded-national to the simultaneously interactive (of local, national and transnational); and from public to private. The project has thus opened a new space of reflection, today present in world scholarship, but less oftenly invoked in Slovenia. A special scientific importance of the project is also in the integration of multidisciplinary perspectives, whereby the scientific knowledge is transferred to the "local" research milleux in the field of sociology, migration studies, gender studies, literary studies and educational studies/pedagogy. The research project is an important contribution to the debate on topical issues of sociological and cultural science as regards the crisis of the nation state on the one hand, as well as the uncertain fate of the supra, i.e. EU, state, on the other. Responses to the researchers' public presentations at scientific conferences and peer reviews of scientific articles has confirmed the scientific relevance of this project. Below we highlight three public appearances that have contributed to the themes in other research areas, namely in the context of the sociology of globalization, research of history of cosmopolitanism and the multiculturalism of the everyday life. Speeches and Presentations (selection) VIDMAR, Ksenija H. Cultural globalization and migration: a critical confrontation of theory at the turn of the century. Q: Splichal, Slavko (ed.). Globalization good or evil? Proceedings from the 80th anniversary of academician Zdravko miller (Debates, ISSN 0560-2955, 27). Ljubljana: Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts, 2013, p. 73-88. [COBISS.SI-ID 54189922] VIDMAR, Ksenija H. Remembering Dissidents: Cosmopolitan Challenges and Post-Socialist Slovenia. Q: CARAUS, Tamara (ed.). Cosmopolitanism and the legacies of Dissent (Routledge Studies in Social and Political Thought). London: Routledge, 2014, p. 49-66. [COBISS.SI-ID 55688546] VIDMAR, Ksenija H. Multiculturalism of the headscarf: hide between fashion, religion and culture. Q: PUŠNIK, Maruša (ed.), FAJT, Elena (ed.). Fashion and the culture of dressing. 1. ed. Maribor: Aristej, 2014, p. 309-325. [COBISS.SI-ID 56879202]
Significance for the country
The project highlighted Slovenian history of the nation as a specific case study: the experience that women migrants have had are in many ways shaped by culturally specific migrant biographiy, biography, therefore, which is defined by specific cultural, spiritual and physical geography (forced and/or voluntary) of travel beyond the boundaries of the historic concrete national collective. At the same time, this biography of the border-crossing relates to global experience of women migrants where, by moving around different territories, women disturb and challenge also other social geographies, such as of gender, generation, emotions, economy, ethnicity, race etc. Direct importance of the research project for Slovenia is multi-faceted. The research team exposed women's migration as a vital aspect of the formation of the Slovenian national history and identity. By creating a virtual museum, the project has added to pluralization of public image of the Slovenian national collectivity and in this context, contributed to broadening of democratic awareness-raising. Particularly important is the study of female migration in terms of school curricula, and educational recommendations for multicultural and history-informed teaching about the past. This aspect of the research was reported at domestic and foreign conferences, by which the project team also contributed to the public visibility of the Slovenian scientific community abroad. Public presentations (selection): • to underline public awareness on the development of primary and secondary school curricula in Slovenia VENDRAMIN, Valery. "Working beyond the borders": feminist research and curricular representation of migration = "Working across borders": feminist research and curricular representations of migrations. Q: VIDMAR, Ksenija H. (ed.). Dis-membered and dis-Remembered: migrant women and the national imagination: international interdisciplinary symposium, Ljubljana, 6-7 May 2013 SRC SASA. 1. Print. Ljubljana: Faculty of Arts, Science Publishing House, 2013, p. [14, 24]. [COBISS.SI-ID 2547031] • to underline public visibility of Slovenian research community in the field of education and migration studies at summer schools VIDMAR, Ksenija H .. Migration, Gender and Visual Culture: Framing the Debate on Identity and Belonging: [lecture] Second Summer Institute of the Association for Cultural Studies "The Sights / Sites of Cultural Studies", Klagenfurt, 22-27 July 2013 Klagenfurt, Austria: The Alpen-Adria-Universität Klagenfurt: Faculty of Humanities, Department of Media and Communications and the "Research Group Visual Culture": Association for Cultural Studies Institute, 7/24/2013. [COBISS.SI-ID 52546146] VIDMAR, Ksenija H .. Migration, Gender and Visual Culture: Framing the Debate on Identity and Belonging: [lecture] Second Summer Institute of the Association for Cultural Studies "The Sights / Sites of Cultural Studies", Klagenfurt, 22-27 July 2013 Klagenfurt, Austria: The Alpen-Adria-Universität Klagenfurt: Faculty of Humanities, Department of Media and Communications and the "Research Group Visual Culture": Association for Cultural Studies Institute, 7/25/2013. [COBISS.SI-ID 52546402] • to underline scientific importance of migration for domestic public (public interview and presentation of results) VIDMAR, Ksenija H. (interviewee). Ksenija Vidmar Horvat: broadcast images of knowledge, Radio Slovenia, 3rd program, program ARS, 23 January 2015 at 16.30 hours. Ljubljana, 2015. http://ars.rtvslo.si/ksenija-vidmar-horvat/. [COBISS.SI-ID 56880482] VIDMAR, Ksenija H. (interviewee). Europe yesterday, today and tomorrow: [talk show in ARS humane Radio Slovenia, program ARS, 14. 5. 2014]. Ljubljana: RTV Slovenia, 2014. http://4d.rtvslo.si/arhiv/arsov-forum/174275667. [COBISS.SI-ID 54571618]
Most important scientific results
Annual report
2011,
2012,
2013,
final report,
complete report on dLib.si
Most important socioeconomically and culturally relevant results
Annual report
2011,
2012,
2013,
final report,
complete report on dLib.si
