The Nation in the Village: The Genesis of Peasant National Identity in Austrian Poland, 1848-1914
by Keely Stauter-Halsted

How do peasants come to think of themselves as members of a nation? Keely Stauter-Halsted explores the complex case of the Polish peasants of Austrian Galicia, from the 1848 emancipation of the serfs to the eve of the First World War. The author's approach is at once comparative and interdisciplinary, drawing from literature on national identity formation in Latin America, China, and Western Europe. The Nation in the Village brilliantly combines anthropology, sociology, and literary criticism with economic, social, cultural, and political history.

"The Nation in the Village prompts a generous run of intriguing questions pertinent to (and often challenging) the prevailing historiography of nationalism and the peasantry in Poland."
Slavonic and East European Review

"Insightful and innovative. . . Stauter-Halsted's book draws on a dazzling array of printed and archival sources to reveal what peasants themselves were saying, writing, thinking, and dreaming about any future Polish nation. . . The fresh approach to the village and identity will make a strong contribution to the literature on nationalism, peasant studies, and the public sphere. The Nation in the Village should be essential reading for anyone interested in modern Europe, the peasantry, and national identity."
H-Net Reviews

Cowinner of the Orbis Books Prize for Polish Studies given by the American Association for the Advancement of Slavic Studies

KEELY STAUTER-HALSTED is Associate Professor of History at Michigan State University.

Publishing House: Cornell University Press, Ithaca 2004
SoftCover book measuring 6" x 9"
288 pages, maps, illustrations, index
English Language Version

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