Pogranicze jako determinanta historii Białorusi. Uwagi na marginesie monografii Белорусы: нация пограничья

In 2011 in Vilnius, there was a monograph published concerning the history of Belarusians as a borderland’s nation. The author of this article critically evaluates adopting the borderland’s perspective on the history of Belarus. The author criticizes especially the appropriateness of this perspective when Belarusian lands constituted a part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, as well as the unilateral recognition of the influence of Polish culture on Belarusian culture and its polonization. The author, however, emphasizes the importance and value of the part of the published monograph which concerns the period of the Belarusian land history as a part of the Russian Empire, in which the modem Belarusian national consciousness was being established. Moreover, the author points out the rather political than scientific nature of the undertaken discussion (discourse) in the published Belarusian history textbooks which are dedicated to the importance of the period of World War II in the Belarusian national consciousness.