The Kaliningrad region as a site of memory for the Russians
- Pages
- 86-94
culture
history
memory
identity
Kaliningrad region
East Prussia
monumental landscape
history of the region
social groups
Abstract
The author of the article analyzes the shaping of the Russian identity of the region’s inhabitants on particular examples and personal impressions and experience. A common term “the site of memory” applied to the Kaliningrad region, makes it possible to speak of a strong regional, or Kaliningrad, component of identity. The regional public consciousness and particularly its collective memory, which is in the process of its shaping, is influenced by the previous German (East Prussian) history. The diversity of memory sites in the region with different national and cultural characteristics requires a specific approach to ranking the identity emphasis.