History of Latvian historiography

Historians do not only try to create a scientific picture of the past. With their historiography they are at the same time part of history, because their investigations reflect the questions and problems of their own time. The project "History of Latvian Historiography" describes the emergence of Latvian historiography in Latvia from the time of nationalism in the 19th century to the present. It reveals how Latvian historians, research institutions and topics have been deeply influenced by the changeable history of this Baltic country, which has been influenced by revolutions, world wars and political system changes.
Particularly since the emergence of modern national movements in the 19th century, the Baltic region has been a region of conflicting memories and competing historical images. While the Baltic provinces of 
Russia
deu. Russland, rus. Rossija, rus. Россия

The Russian Federation is the largest territorial state in the world and is inhabited by about 145 million people. The capital and largest city is Moscow, with about 11.5 million inhabitants, followed by St. Petersburg with more than 5.3 million inhabitants. The majority of the population lives in the European part of Russia, which is much more densely populated than the Asian part.

Since 1992, the Russian Federation has been the successor state to the Russian Soviet Republic (Russian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic, RSFSR), by far the largest constituent state of the former Soviet Union. It is also the legal successor of the Soviet Union in the sense of international law.

 (
Estland
eng. Eestimaa, est. Eestimaa, lat. Hestonia, swe. Aistland, deu. Iste, lat. Aisti, lat. Aesti, dan. Estland, eng. Esthonia, lat. Estia, lat. Hestia, swe. Eistland, swe. Estlatum, swe. Estland, deu. Esthland, rus. Estljandija, rus. Ėstljandija, rus. Èstlândiâ, rus. Эстляндия, deu. Aestii

The historical landscape of Estonia is located in north-eastern Europe. It comprises the northern part of the present-day Estonian state. The region is largely congruent with the same-named Baltic governorate in the Russian Empire which existed until 1918 and was one of three Baltic governorates alongside Livonia and Courland. In the High and Late Middle Ages and in the early modern period, parts of the region were also under the rule of Finnish princes, the Rus, Sweden, Denmark and the Teutonic Order. It was not until the Great Northern War (1700-1721) that Estonia came under Russian rule. Its urban population was in particular German-speaking, while the vast majority of people lived in the countryside, where Russian and Swedish minorities existed alongside the Estonian majority.

Livonia
deu. Livland, est. Liivimaa, lav. Livonija, dan. Lyffland, swe. Livland, eng. Livland, deu. Vidzeme, lat. Livonia, rus. Lifliandiia, rus. Lifljandija, rus. Liflândiâ, rus. Лифляндия, rus. Livonija, rus. Livoniâ, rus. Ливония, rus. Vidzeme, rus. Видземе, pol. Liwlandia, lat. Terra Mariana, rus. Livoniia, rus. Livonya, rus. Liwonija, deu. Eifland, deu. Liefland, dan. Livland

Livonia (Livonija in Latvian, Liivimaa in Estonian) is a historical landscape in the Baltic States. It comprises the southern part of present-day Estonia and the part of present-day Latvia north of the Daugava River. The landscape was named after the Livonians, a population group that hardly exists today.

Historically, the name Livonia can refer to other, different contexts. The governorate of the same name, which was one of the three Baltic Sea governorates of the Russian Empire, is particularly influential for today's understanding of the historical region. It existed from the beginning of the 18th century until 1918 and its capital was Riga, located at the mouth of the Duna.

Livonia had previously given its name to other states and confederations, most notably the Livonian Confederation, which had existed since the High Middle Ages. The Livonian part of the Teutonic Order as well as regional ecclesiastical states belonged to the confederation. The confederation also included large parts of the present-day states of Latvia and Estonia. After the dissolution of the confederation and the Teutonic Order state in the 16th century, sovereignty changed several times. Without the southern and northern areas, Livonia initially came under Polish-Lithuanian rule, later also under Swedish suzerainty, before coming under Russian rule in the course of the Great Northern War (1700-1721). Until the beginning of the 20th century, the central role of the landowning German-speaking nobility was particularly influential in the internal social organization of the rural area.

 and 
Courland
deu. Kurland, lav. Kurzeme, rus. Kurljandja, rus. Курляндия, lat. Curonia, lat. Couronia, swe. Kurland, dan. Kurland, lat. Curlandia, pol. Kurlandia, rus. Kuronija, rus. Kuroniâ, rus. Курония, rus. Kurzeme, rus. Курземе, rus. Kurlândiâ, rus. Kurliandii︠a︡

Kurland is a historical landscape in present-day Latvia. It extends between the Baltic Sea and the Gulf of Riga, the Daugava River in the northeast and Lithuania in the south. Its name is derived from the Baltic Curonians, who lived here alongside the Ugro-Finnish Livonians. The largest cities in Kurland include Liepāja, Jelgava and Ventspils.

Today's understanding of the region is partly shaped by the Russian Baltic Sea Governorate of Courland, which existed from 1795 and formally until 1918. This actually included the smaller regions of Semigallia and Upper Latvia, which formed the central and eastern parts of the governorate. Today, they are often included when Courland is mentioned in a historical context. In the High Middle Ages, the influences of the Ugro-Finnish and Baltic peoples on the one hand and the Vikings on the other intersected here. In the Late Middle Ages and Early Modern Period, the region was also under the rule of Sweden, Denmark and, in particular, the Teutonic Order. Due to pressure from Russia and Sweden, the Order eventually withdrew from the area. Smaller parts of Courland were subsequently incorporated into Poland-Lithuania. The largest part remained a fiefdom of Poland-Lithuania until 1795 as the Duchy of Courland and Semigallia. Although Russian influence gradually increased, Courland did not become part of the Russian Empire until the Third Partition of Poland-Lithuania in 1795 – significantly later than the other two Baltic Sea provinces of Estonia and Livonia, which had already come under Russian rule during the Great Northern War (1700–1721).

) were dominated until the end of the 19th century by an image of history that was shaped by the German upper class and oriented towards German historicism, towards the end of the century and especially after the founding of the Baltic states in 1918, national historical narratives of the Estonians and Latvians took over this role. In a region that was shaken by revolutions, two world wars, and frequent political system changes in the 20th century, the dispute over history always meant a dispute over power and collective identities. The "History of Latvian Historiography" traces for the first time the emergence of one of these competing narratives around Latvian national historiography (and later scholarship), between the 1880s of the 19th century and its journey into the 21st century.
The project was completed with the publication of the monograph Geschichte der lettischen Geschichtsschreibung. Vom 19. Jahrhundert bis zur Gegenwart.

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