Klaipėdos universitetas

This article analyses how the inhabitants of Visaginas construct their past and present. The first part of the article presents the ways the informants talked of the period 1970s-1980s, i.e. when they came to Lithuania, to the construction site of Visaginas (Sniechkus) and the nuclear power plant. The second part of the article discusses how the informants described their and the community’s social, economic situation in the post-Soviet period. The author discusses why the informants tend to construct the Soviet and post-Soviet periods in particular ways and provides parallels with other anthropological works. The article is based on data collected during ethnographic fieldwork conducted by the author in Visaginas in 2000-2004.

Recent major changes in rural development in Europe have brought about new demands made on rural space. As a result of the transformation of rural needs, a type of modern rurality typical of the shift from production to consumption has emerged. The most illustrative example of this shift in rural environment is the emergence of international tourism and second homes. This text focuses the attention on how contemporary forms of mobility and international tourism affect local identities. Emphasis is put on the ways new and old cultural identities are contested, negotiated and constructed. The aim is to analyse one of the contemporary forms of ‘voluntary’, temporary mobility – the phenomenon of second homes owned by the Dutch in Czech rural countryside. The focus is placed on factors that either facilitate or hinder interaction between the second home owners and other international tourists, and local residents in two Czech rural communities.

The aim of the article is to explore how the migrant identity (especially, of the first generation) is changing under the influence of migration. Accordingly in the first part of the article the transnationalism and the concept of transmigration in relation to migratory experience are discussed, the second part is focused on the questions of identity and its boundaries, and the third part is based on the interpretation of empirical data from anthropological fieldwork by paying attention to the background, language and festivals of the immigrants as particular markers of the identity construction of the Lithuanian migrants in Northern Ireland.

The article deals with the incorporation of Lithuanian immigrants into host societies and aims at identifying dominant strategies by which they are incorporated in England, Ireland, Norway and Spain. The main strategies of incorporation are identifying through the intensity of the immigrants’ social, economic, cultural and political linkages with the new society. Another focus is on the patterns of immigrants’ belonging. Based on the prevalence of linkage, four dominant strategies of Lithuanian immigrants’ incorporation into a new society are distinguished: conformist, representative, segregative, and navigational. Field data was obtained through semi-structured and focus group interviews with Lithuanian immigrants in 2007-2008.

A bronze fibula from Dailidės near Joniškis in eastern Lithuania is compared with its analogies found in Mazuria (the Olsztyn group), the Carpathian Basin, the Middle Dnieper region and southeastern Romania. The chronology of the group is established to the late sixth and early seventh century. The series may have originated in Mazuria and spread to other regions in the context of gift-giving exchange between regional elites.

In the course of archaeological excavation in 2004, 2006 and 2007 at the 13th–17th century cemetery of Veselava, in Cēsis District, Latvia, 941 burials were excavated. The osteological material permitted an insight into the palaeodemography and palaeodiet of the medieval inhabitants of Veselava. Demographic research shows that the population was characterised by high mortality among juveniles, aged 15–20, and among women aged 15–35. Among males, the highest mortality was observed at age 30–40, mortality remaining high in the age range of 40–50. As a result, adult life expectancy, e020, is 5.1 years shorter for females than for males. Palaeodietary analysis, utilising inductively coupled plasma atomic mass spectrometry (IC P-MS ), was undertaken on 40 individuals, determining the concentration of seven elements in the bone. In order to assess the natural background level of these elements, 20 soil analyses were also undertaken. The elemental content of male and female bone is similar, although the mean level of Zn and Cu in bone is slightly higher for males, which might indicate higher meat consumption. On the other hand, Sr and Mn values are higher for females, indicating a high proportion of plant foods in the diet. It is thought that the 13th–17th century inhabitants of Veselava often had a meagre diet, and that plant food consumption was higher among women.

Archaeological excavations at one of Klaipėda Old Town’s blocks near Kurpių Street provided valuable and unique materials for investigating the development of urbanism in the 16th-17th centuries, the activities, and way of life of the residents. The article presents the results of these investigations and considers some aspects of the town residents’ lifestyle. Mid-16th – second half of the 17th century building construction and interior furnishings, plot layouts, and development of the block’s habitation are analysed. Interpretations are offered based on the archaeological material regarding the activites and lifestyle of the plots’ owners. Results of the newest palaeobotanical and zooarchaeological research are presented in the article. The latter data, along with published historical sources, suggest certain conclusions regarding 16th-17th century Klaipėda townspeople’s diet.