Annotation
The course focuses on the dynamic and vital field of the so called transcultural history. This relatively young stream of scholarly interest has reacted to recent scepticism regarding the national histories and predominantly national frames of interpretation. The course will explore various forms of border crossing (and movement across geographical, sociocultural and other borders). It will look at interactions, entanglements and interdependencies in the past, at possibilities how to study them and how to provide voices to individuals and their diverse life experiences.
We will explore how to interconnect central European pre-modern history with global history. We will ask what spaces can be regarded as historically highly transcultural spaces (such as border zones, spas, market and trade zones etc.). We will focus on historical individuals who can be characterized as transcultural actors or globetrotters and who were able to adapt in several (often profoundly different) cultures.
In the course of this seminar we will become familiar with many iconic history monographs and their actors, be it Domenico Scandella, Hassan al Wazzan, Elias of Babylon, John Hu, Mimi von Born or Veronika Dirixová.