The Kosznajderia phenomenon: On the complexity of the identity and heritage of the Pomeranian Region

This article attempts to answer the question of the place of Kosznajderia and its former inhabitants in the contemporary heritage and identity of the part of Pomerania in which that German Catholic population lived. For more than a decade, the description of Kosznajderia as a “phenomenon of identity” has had a marked presence in the regional discourse. Based on material collected during field research (interviews, observations, and data analysis), it will be explained what is the state of this phenomenon today and how it is present in the subregion and in local communities. Kosznajderia and its former inhabitants are an important component of the nascent contemporary (sub)regional/local identity. The heritage of Kosznajderia is a significant element of the discourse on identity, in which the main emphasis is on the common features of former and current inhabitants, and the significance of material heritage. The agricultural character of these lands and the presence of Catholicism somehow link the past with the present. Because of the complex history of this area and its population, in particular the difficult Polish–German relations and the breach of historical, social and cultural continuity after the Second World War, contemporary processes related to identity are marked by certain ambivalences.