In recent years we have been observing, how conflicts over history lead to tensions between neighbouring countries. Theoretical, conceptual and axiological differences and misunderstandings are very often responsible for conflicting assessments in historiography. Nation, empire, colonialism, occupation or genocide – these and many other notions are frequently used by historians. However, they are often understood differently, which may result in fiery disputes between scholars as well as nations.
The main goal of the conference “History – yes, but which history?”, organised by the Centre for Polish-Russian Dialogue and Understanding and The Natolin European Centre, is to hold a discussion about various research paradigms, methodologies and notions being used to describe the history of Europe, and its Eastern parts in particular.
Venue: Warsaw, Nowoursynowska 84
Maria Skłodowska-Curie Room
Conference programme:
27 September (Thursday)
9:00–9:15 Opening remarks
Ewa Ośniecka-Tamecka, Vice-Rector of the College of Europe in Natolin
Dr. Ernest Wyciszkiewicz, Director of the Centre for Polish-Russian Dialogue and Understanding
9:15–10:45 Part 1: Pivots of historical narrative – nations and empires
Dr Paweł Kowal (Institute of Political Studies of the Polish Academy of Sciences, College of Europe in Natolin, Warsaw) – moderator
Prof. Maria Montserrat Guibernau i Berdún (University of Cambridge), The ambivalent concept of nationalism
Dr Timothy Baycroft (University of Sheffield), Nations and borders: critical reflections
Dr Łukasz Adamski (Centre for Polish-Russian Dialogue and Understanding, Warsaw), “Transnationalisation”, “nation dismemberment”, “nation continuity and discontinuity” – why does the historiography need new terms to describe the European history?
10:45–11:10 Coffee break
11:10–13:10 Part 2: Pivots of historical narrative – nations and empires
Dr Łukasz Adamski (Centre for Polish-Russian Dialogue and Understanding, Warsaw) – moderator
Prof. Georgiy Kasianov (Institute of History of Ukraine, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Kiev), National(ist) narrative: Legacy and Legitimacy
Prof. Vasyl Rasevych (Center for Urban History of East Central Europe in Lviv), The Western Ukrainian narrative: unhandy, destructive, succourable, the only right
Prof. Ivan Halász (Centre for Social Sciences, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, J. Selye University in Komárno), Two nation-building processes in one state. The Hungarian and Slovak national movement in the old Hungary
Prof. Alexander Semenov (Higher School of Economics in Saint Petersburg), Political imaginaries of post-imperial order in the Russian Empire at the beginning of the twentieth century
13:10–14:00 Lunch
14:00–15:30 Part 3: Pivots of historical narrative – nations and empires
Prof. Vasyl Rasevych (Center for Urban History of East Central Europe in Lviv) – moderator
Dr Hieronim Grala (University of Warsaw), An ostensible empire – the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth between might and inability
Prof. Andrzej Gil (John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin), On the relationship of Smolensk and Czernihów/Chernihiv lands with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the first half of the 17th century. A contribution to the discussion about “imperial” character of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth after the Union of Lublin
Dr Paweł Kowal (Institute of Political Studies of the Polish Academy of Sciences, College of Europe in Natolin, Warsaw), Anti-imperial pedagogy of Polish independent circles before 1989
15:30–15:50 Coffee break
15:50–17:20 Provinces, colonies, peripheries, borderlands. Historiography and the relation of dependence in Europe
Prof. Šarūnas Liekis (Vytautas Magnus University in Kaunas) – moderator
Prof. Jan Kieniewicz (University of Warsaw), Lost Borderland. Which history of Poland in Europe?
Dr Yana Prymachenko (Institute of History of Ukraine, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Kiev), The notion of “colonialism” in the Ukrainian political thought of the 20th century: theory, practice and impact
Prof. Tomasz Zarycki (University of Warsaw), Peripheries, borderlands and colonies. Different kinds of classifications of dependency relations – normative assumptions and valuing implications
17:20–18:00 Commentary and final discussion
Prof. Mariusz Wołos (Pedagogical University of Cracow), Contemporary Polish-Russian historical dialogue – methodological challenges
28 September (Friday)
9:00–10:30 Geopolitics, concert of powers, spheres of influence
Dr Sławomir Dębski (Polish Institute of International Affairs) – moderator
Prof. Marek Kornat (Insitute of History, Polish Academy of Sciences), Central-Eastern Europe and the concert of powers in the 19th and 20th century
Dr Andreas Umland (Institute for Euro-Atlantic Cooperation in Kiev), The misunderstanding and misuse of "fascism" in Soviet and Post-Soviet Eastern and Central Europe
Dr Ernest Wyciszkiewicz (Centre for Polish-Russian Dialogue and Understanding, Warsaw), Unbearable appeal of the “global game on the grand chessboard”. Remarks on catchiness of geopolitics
10:30–10:50 Coffee break
10:50–12:20 History before the Court. Normative approach in historiography – threat or opportunity?
Dr Ernest Wyciszkiewicz (Centre for Polish-Russian Dialogue and Understanding, Warsaw) – moderator
Prof. Thomas Skouteris (The American University in Cairo), Reducing the past to international law
Prof. Krzysztof Persak (The Institute of Political Studies of the Polish Academy of Sciences), Genocide in the historiography: a legal notion or a moral assessment?
Prof. Klaus Bachmann (SWPS University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Warsaw), Writing history about genocides
12:20–13:10 Lunch
13:10–14:40 Part 1: Portrait of a historian – warts and all
Prof. Andrzej Gil (John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin) – moderator
Prof. Serhiy Stelmakh (Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv), Studying the history of Eastern Europe. Capabilities and limitations of transnational approaches
Prof. Wojciech Wrzosek (Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań), Dialogue of neighbouring historiographies – methodological reflections
Prof. Šarūnas Liekis (Vytautas Magnus University in Kaunas), Debates on suffering of different peoples during the Second World War in Lithuania. Should historians have the freedom not to be constrained by political and vocational pressures?
14:40–15:00 Coffee break
15:00–16:00 Part 2: Portrait of a historian – warts and all
Prof. Georgiy Kasianov (Institute of History of Ukraine, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine) – moderator
Prof. Maciej Janowski (Insitute of History, Polish Academy of Sciences), How to read classics of historiography for the benefit of yourself and others?
Prof. Ryszard Stemplowski, The grammar of history
16:00-17:00 Final discussion. Conclusions
More info:
http://www.cprdip.pl/en,events,conferences_and_seminars,518,history_yes_...