Review essay by Jürgen Kocka on the matrix of labour

published in: Archive for Social History (2024)

Volume 64: Migration in the Modern Age. Paths - Places - Experiences

People have been mobile throughout history, whether of their own accord or due to political or economic hardship. Migration movements link remote regions through travel routes and communication networks, they shape railway stations, (airports) harbours and entire city districts as spaces of arrival and coexistence. Although nation states endeavour to control migration, they cannot fully control the wayward search for new places to live and sources of income.

The 64th volume of the journal Archiv für Sozialgeschichte focuses on the paths and places that migrants travelled to. The articles focus on experiences of being on the move, uncertainty and foreignness as well as conflicts over cultural influences, social integration and legal and political recognition. In this way, they emphasise that migration is a central dimension of social history.

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