Narrative interviews in research on post-war socio-historical processes as formative factors of regional identity of the population - Case study of the Svitavy region, Czech Republic

Abstract

The aims of the paper are twofold. The first aim is a methodological one, the article presents the possibilities of using narrative interviews in research on post-war socio-historical development. The second aim is to evaluate the experiences of eyewitnesses who experienced the expulsion of the German-speaking population and the process of resett lement in the distinctive region of Svitavy. Being the largest migratory population movement in the 20th century in the Czech lands, the displacement of the Germans and the subsequent process of resettlement brought significant social, cultural, and economic consequences. Their influence on the inhabitants of the affected regions and regional identities of these inhabitants is evident even now. The method of narrative interviews contributes to unveiling the importance of these processes in witnesses´ minds. The successful fulfilment of both objectives allows evaluation of the appropriateness of the methods applied in research on regional identities of the population, as well as a better understanding of the importance of post-war events for the eyewitnesses to them. As these events occurred in a specific region (Svitavy), it is possible to identify important factors that contributed to the formation of regional identities of these witnesses. The article is a contribution to the existing knowledge about the phenomenon of regional identity of populations, which is understood as a process. In addition, it also contributes to a deeper knowledge of the role of the (dis)continuity of settlement in this process.