Issue 2, Vol. 112 (2025)

The article investigates the narratives surrounding the Church of St. John of Nepomuk in Vrchní Orlice (Hohen Erlitz), a site marked by displacement, destruction, fragile local memory and identity since the end of World War II. Drawing primarily on interviews conducted between 2022 and 2024, this qualitative study focuses on the “myths” that emerged, often incidentally but repeatedly, during explorations of the site's atmosphere, memory, and potential new functions for the church. The concept of “myth” is employed to capture the processes of balancing personal and collective experience, addressing memory gaps, negotiating identities, and belonging. Following the participants’ reflections and a comparison of field data with existing literature, we propose the concepts of liminality, haunted landscapes, and adopted heritage as key tools for interpretation.

Drawing on ethnographic research carried out in Indian coastal village localized in Goa state, Anjuna, this article proposes an analysis of the process of contemporary production of a specific type of place – former colonies which nowadays function as important tourist and migrant hubs. Based on the actor-network theory as a methodological frame, I try to show how the practices of diverse social actors present in Anjuna construct different, partly overlapping versions of the village. I focus on different variants of the village in question performatively produced by Goans under the influence of and in the face of desirable and, on the other hand unwanted socio-cultural presences. As a context, I also show how the village is constructed by other groups crucial for its functioning: lifestyle migrants, labor migrants and tourists.

This article examines the Ukrainian-Slovak border through the conceptual lens of borders as resources, highlighting its economic, social, and cultural significance for the borderland communities. Moving beyond traditional views of borders as static demarcations, the study focuses on the dynamic interactions that shape cross-border practices. Using qualitative research methods, including interviews with 24 participants from Ukrainian settlements near the border, the study identifies how residents leverage the border for economic and social opportunities. Key findings emphasize the dual role of the border as a «geo-economic» and «territorial project» resource. The «geo-economic» dimension is characterized by cross-border trade, informal economies, and labor migration, driven by economic (institutional) asymmetries. In contrast, the «territorial project» highlights cultural exchanges, cooperation, and shared regional identities, although these are sometimes commodified for economic gain.

The nuclear family, consisted of children, mother and father, is often the primary unit of analysis in migration studies. However, this approach has been criticised for its normative context. More recently, scholars have emphasized a relational perspective and multi-layered family ties in debating the notion of family. Based on qualitative anthropological research in Western Ukraine and in the Czech Republic, this article adopts this approach by focusing on how the family practices of young Ukrainians (aged 15–16–years at the time of migration) challenge the nuclear family framework. These young people are the first migrants in their country of destination, the Czech Republic, while their parents remain in Ukraine. The article focuses on financial support, emotional support and practical assistance provided by relatives, demonstrating that parents were still important in all three categories, while cousins were significant in providing emotional support and practical assistance.