Early Medieval History and Culture

How did the European peoples develop in the early Middle Ages? Few problems in history have had such far- reaching ideological consequences in the 19th and 20th centuries. Only gradually has it become clear that ethnic identities are not a matter of blood but the result of historical processes. Research therefore has to operate on several levels: Of course, it deals with the emergence of ethnic groups such as Franks, Anglo-Saxons or Slavs, and with early medieval perceptions of these new identities. At the same time, it has to take into account a long story of the search for origins and of identifications with the peoples of the past, culminating in modern historiography and ideology. To understand the function of these ethnic memories, it is also important to analyse how ethnicity became central to the political landscape of Europe, unlike in other cultures (for instance, in the Islamic world). Studying past identities can thus lend a depth of focus to research on the modern nation and explore the interplay between the construction of identities and their Lebenswelt dimension. This approach has been developed by Herwig Wolfram and Walter Pohl, and the `Vienna School` is now internationally recognized as one of the leading research centres in the field. Walter Pohl has opened up several research perspectives which he is currently pursuing. Besides the study of ethnicity in early-medieval central and eastern Europe (a revised English version of the book "Die Awaren" is forthcoming), a case study on Italy under Longobard rule is currently in preparation. How was the ancient heartland of the Roman Empire transformed, and what role did `barbarians` play in the process? Which identities mattered to whom and when? To answer such questions, Walter Pohl has found a new approach by studying early medieval texts. The multiple contexts and variants of texts in medieval manuscripts reflect the various ways in which individuals and groups struggled to make sense of the world. The question of "texts and identities" has been explored in his book on early-medieval Montecassino, and is now being pursued in related fields by a group of younger scholars. This study of `texts of identity` will be at the centre of research in years to come. These lines of research should result in a fairly broad new picture of ethnic processes and the construction of identities in post-Roman Europe. In two recent books ("Die Germanen", "Die Völkerwanderung"), Pohl has attempted a first synthesis. More comparative research needs to be done on early-medieval migration and integration, where an interdisciplinary approach and a dialogue with research on contemporary migrations will be developed. The middle ages provide unique opportunities to study long-term ethnic processes on the basis of considerable written and material evidence. There is a shared European way of making ethnic identities the basis of political power and individual self-perception which goes back to the early middle ages. Therefore, the study of ethnic processes in the early middle ages can contribute to a better understanding of our world.

How did the European peoples develop in the early Middle Ages? Few problems in history have had such far- reaching ideological consequences in the 19th and 20th centuries. Only gradually has it become clear that ethnic identities are not a matter of blood but the result of historical processes. Research therefore has to operate on several levels: Of course, it deals with the emergence of ethnic groups such as Franks, Anglo-Saxons or Slavs, and with early medieval perceptions of these new identities. At the same time, it has to take into account a long story of the search for origins and of identifications with the peoples of the past, culminating in modern historiography and ideology. To understand the function of these ethnic memories, it is also important to analyse how ethnicity became central to the political landscape of Europe, unlike in other cultures (for instance, in the Islamic world). Studying past identities can thus lend a depth of focus to research on the modern nation and explore the interplay between the construction of identities and their Lebenswelt dimension. This approach has been developed by Herwig Wolfram and Walter Pohl, and the `Vienna School` is now internationally recognized as one of the leading research centres in the field. Walter Pohl has opened up several research perspectives which he is currently pursuing. Besides the study of ethnicity in early-medieval central and eastern Europe (a revised English version of the book "Die Awaren" is forthcoming), a case study on Italy under Longobard rule is currently in preparation. How was the ancient heartland of the Roman Empire transformed, and what role did `barbarians` play in the process? Which identities mattered to whom and when? To answer such questions, Walter Pohl has found a new approach by studying early medieval texts. The multiple contexts and variants of texts in medieval manuscripts reflect the various ways in which individuals and groups struggled to make sense of the world. The question of "texts and identities" has been explored in his book on early-medieval Montecassino, and is now being pursued in related fields by a group of younger scholars. This study of `texts of identity` will be at the centre of research in years to come. These lines of research should result in a fairly broad new picture of ethnic processes and the construction of identities in post-Roman Europe. In two recent books ("Die Germanen", "Die Völkerwanderung"), Pohl has attempted a first synthesis. More comparative research needs to be done on early-medieval migration and integration, where an interdisciplinary approach and a dialogue with research on contemporary migrations will be developed. The middle ages provide unique opportunities to study long-term ethnic processes on the basis of considerable written and material evidence. There is a shared European way of making ethnic identities the basis of political power and individual self-perception which goes back to the early middle ages. Therefore, the study of ethnic processes in the early middle ages can contribute to a better understanding of our world.