From periphery to centre: the image of Europe at the Eastern Border of Europe

Abstract

The volume gathers the papers presented at the international symposium of the same name held in Oradea, Romania, on June 4-8, 2013. The studies aim to uncover distances between centre and periphery and their common traits as well, as they are revealed in the various images of Europe and of its Eastern border. The articles cover a time span that goes back to the early Middle Ages and reaches the present, increasing their number for the modern and contemporary eras. The volume benefits the approach of more than one discipline, as the authors are not only historians, but also philologists, archaeologists and geographers. The introductory article reveals the aims of the volume and the means to reach them, while also describing the current issues it addresses. The editors propose a double perspective: on the one hand periphery viewed from the centre and on the other periphery as it sees itself. The articles of the first chapter cover a large space, from Western to Eastern Europe, from Rome to Byzantium and to the Ottoman Empire, ending with a study on the theoretical issues concerning otherness. The articles of the second chapter seem more focused on the Romanian space, especially on Transylvania. The chapter commences with a theoretical approach concerning the border concept and its various meanings. Further on, in chronological order, the authors discuss subjects concerning anthroponimy, demography, social and religious history, which, together, draw several self-images of Romanians and of the space they inhabited. Differences are set aside in the third chapter - European Identities - as the common denominator of centre and periphery is revealed in the articles reunited here. The authors discuss subjects ranging from early attempts of a European aggregation to Romanians' alignment with European ideas and policies.