Memory Transformation in Crimea: Historical Perception

Session Submission Type: Panel

Brief Description

Our panel is dedicated to the process of memory transformation in a regional context. Crimea, in this regard, has been a space profoundly shaped by various political ideologies, undergoing significant changes over time from the creation of an image of a "paradise on earth" aimed at attracting settlers following the annexation of the peninsula by the Russian Empire to the systematic erasure of any mention of the Crimean Tatars after their deportation by Soviet authorities. A regional approach allows us to move beyond a center-focused perception and critically reassess prevailing historical narratives. By challenging deeply rooted myths that persist in public consciousness, we seek to illuminate their role in shaping contemporary political discourse.

Sub Unit

• History: 1800-1900

Chair

• Willard Sunderland, U of Cincinnati

Papers

• Russian Imperial Bureaucracy and Crimean Past: Transformation of Memory (Late 18th – Early 19th Century) - Oleksandr Kravchuk, U of Bristol (UK)

• Decolonizing Colonization: The Memory Transformation of the Jewish Agricultural Settlements in Crimea - Konstantin Mogarichev, Purdue U

• Crimean Tatar Toponymy and Colonization - Nara Narimanova, U of Alberta (Canada)

Discussant

• Kelly O'Neill, Harvard U