The essence of oral history: lessons from Tomasz Strzembosz and Alessandro Portelli

This paper examines the approaches and contributions of Polish historian Tomasz Strzembosz and Italian oral historian Alessandro Portelli, highlighting their shared dedication to the fundamental values of oral history despite differences in generation, scholarly paradigms, and political perspectives. Both scholars share a deep commitment to the core values underpinning the ethos of oral history and similarly conceive the historian’s role in society.