The study of places of memory is an expanding field in international geography, in which Aleida and Jan Assmann’s concept of cultural memory, which originated in German-language cultural studies, has so far received little attention. In her new Open Access article „Was sind kulturelle Gedächtnisräume? – Erinnern, Raum und das kulturelle Gedächtnis nach Aleida und Jan Assmann“, that appeared in a Special Issue of Geographica Helvetica on the topic of “German Theory”, Elena Hubner, however, highlights precisely the significance of the concept in order to ask about the mechanisms of formation and functioning of memory spaces. Based on the assumption that places of memory cannot be a storage, but only an anchor of memories, the article develops a space-oriented conception of cultural memory spaces derived from the basic features of cultural memory. The following four characteristics are elaborated: Cultural memory spaces are (1) dynamic and (2) present-related (3) supports of memory, (4) in which individual memories intertwine with cultural memory.
Hubner, E. (2023): Was sind kulturelle Gedächtnisräume?–Erinnern, Raum und das kulturelle Gedächtnis nach Aleida und Jan Assmann. Geographica Helvetica, 78(1), 143-155, DOI: 10.5194/gh-78-143-2023
