1st Edition
The Anthems of East-Central Europe Reflections on the History of a National Symbol
Introduction: The Dialogue of Anthems
1. Nationalism and Nation-Building in East-Central Europe
2. National Symbols and Myths
3. The National Anthem
4. Collective Symbols – Anthem Archetypes
5. The Poem-Symbols of National Representation
6. The "Interaction" of Anthems
7. Images of Homeland and Nation in the Anthems
8. National History and Its Heroes
9. Symbols of Space in the Anthems
10. Paths to the Rank of National Anthem
11. After the Second World War
Appendix: Anthems and National Symbol-Poems (A selection of texts in their original languages and English)
Bibliography
Biography
Csaba G. Kiss is Emeritus professor (Eötvös Lóránd University – Budapest), cultural historian, essayist. Field of research: nationalisms in East-Central Europe, national symbols and myths. Visiting professorships: University of Zagreb, Charles University (Prague), University of Warsaw. Published 23 books (scientific, popular works and memoirs), including 3 in Polish, 2 in Croatian, in English: Understanding Central Europe: Nations and Stereotypes (2013).
"This panoramic survey of the trajectory of nationalism and nation-building in East Central Europe during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries is based on an ingenious comparative analysis of fourteen different national anthems from the region. Relying on an impressive array of primary and secondary sources, Kiss brings his expertise as a political scientist, cultural and literary historian, and comparativist to bear on national anthems as documents that quintessentially illustrate the evolution of national cultures and identities in the nineteenth century and ultimately national states in the twentieth. His well-informed and readable treatment of the region’s cacophony of national voices is fascinating!"
Lonnie R. Johnson, author of Central Europe: Enemies, Neighbors, Friends (2011)
