Zsuzsa Csergo - Böcker

How can democratization, coupled with transnational integration, resolve conflicts over cultural difference in places that are marked by legacies of nationalist competition? This book explores that question through a comparative study of contestations over language use in the heart of the post-Communist region. Zsuzsa Csergo notes that newly independent governments looked to "rejoin" the West, in particular the European Union, while at the same time asserting control over the institutions they considered key to the reproduction of national cultures. These national projects resulted in renewed salience for minority language rights and a complicated politics triggering EU concerns about the treatment of regional/cultural minorities. Csergo's field research in Romania, Hungary, and Slovakia leads her to make a bold claim about the primacy of domestic politics in the construction of democratic solutions to the conundrum of nation building and minority rights.Talk of the Nation breaks new ground by focusing on both majority and minority political elites and parties in interethnic relations. Csergo challenges arguments about the overwhelming importance of international influence. Her book demonstrates that the role of domestic political actors in interethnic reconciliation is not merely that of "compliance" with international requirements or "effectiveness" in responding to external pressure—they are largely guided by the internal democratic process.

Now in a fully revised and updated edition, this essential text provides a comprehensive introduction to Central and Eastern Europe, including the Baltics and Ukraine. Broad but nuanced, it offers a reader-friendly overview of the globally and regionally significant changes and challenges the region faces. Divided into two parts, the book first presents thematic chapters on key issues, including nationalism and challenges to democratic institutions and practices, the contentious politics of memory, debates over demography and migration in a region with a shrinking population, and Russian efforts to retain regional influence through hard and soft power. The case-study chapters that follow highlight key political developments after communism as well as providing a strong foundation for readers on regional history and the political and economic experiences of the communist years. Each covers the foundational topics of political history, political competition, economic development, social problems, relationships with European institutions, and threats to good governance. For students and specialists alike, this book will be an invaluable resource on this dynamic region of Europe.

Now in a fully revised and updated edition, this essential text provides a comprehensive introduction to Central and Eastern Europe, including the Baltics and Ukraine. Broad but nuanced, it offers a reader-friendly overview of the globally and regionally significant changes and challenges the region faces. Divided into two parts, the book first presents thematic chapters on key issues, including nationalism and challenges to democratic institutions and practices, the contentious politics of memory, debates over demography and migration in a region with a shrinking population, and Russian efforts to retain regional influence through hard and soft power. The case-study chapters that follow highlight key political developments after communism as well as providing a strong foundation for readers on regional history and the political and economic experiences of the communist years. Each covers the foundational topics of political history, political competition, economic development, social problems, relationships with European institutions, and threats to good governance. For students and specialists alike, this book will be an invaluable resource on this dynamic region of Europe.

Clear and comprehensive, the 6th edition of Central and East European Politics: Changes and Challenges offers an authoritative and up-to-date analysis of the transformations and realities in Central and Eastern Europe, the Baltics, and Ukraine.Featuring a set of comparative country case studies as well as thematic chapters on key issues, this new edition includes updates surrounding the effects of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine on politics across the region, the rise of new centers of power for the region, and the continued challenges of sustainable democratic governance following the rise of influence in populism and illiberal political movements.