Nationalism beyond Borders

What role does cultural memory play in nationalism?

The identities of nations and communities are often shaped through narratives and interpretations of the past. A widely accepted, and therefore powerful, way of understanding the world assumes that it is divided into territories inhabited by distinct nations, each with its own culture and language. Yet people have long moved across borders and lived in transnational communities. Art, expressive forms, and other cultural resources used to give meaning to the past in processes of cultural memory are likewise transnational, even when deployed within national contexts.

The centrality of cultural memory to nationalism is well established. Classic works in nationalism studies already highlighted how national historical narratives and myths produce imagined communities. Cultural memory studies, for its part, has extensively examined national interpretations of past events that may also carry transnational significance. Scholars have shown, for example, that key events in European history are narrated and interpreted differently across national settings. Despite these overlapping interests, the connections between nationalism studies and cultural memory studies have not been systematically developed.

The University of Helsinki subproject “Nationalism beyond Borders” investigates the role of cultural memory and remembrance in nationalism. It examines how taken-for-granted national frameworks are reproduced or contested when people, communities, and practices of remembering cross or intersect the borders of nation-states. A key aim is to renew nationalism studies through the methodological and theoretical perspectives of cultural memory studies. The subproject also seeks to connect discussions in disciplines central to nation-building, such as folklore studies, with the rapidly growing field of cultural memory studies. Here, perspectives from nationalism studies serve as a crucial bridge.

The researchers in the “Nationalism beyond Borders” subproject are Karina Lukin and Meeri Siukonen, with additional researchers joining the group. The project is led by Ulla Savolainen, University Lecturer in Folklore Studies at the University of Helsinki.