Kas Swerts, ‘Introduction’,  
in: Studies on National Movements 7 (2021) 

Introduction Volume 7 

KAS SWERTS 

NISE/University of Antwerp 

 

As Covid-restrictions are starting to ease up, discussions on what the 

post-covid world should entail have flared up. The pandemic laid bare 

fault lines in modern society, which subsequently raised questions as to 

how (or if) these fundamental issues should be addressed. The debates 

themselves appear to indicate the feeling of a ‘new normal’, a sense that 

the old mechanisms do not have the same efficacy as before, and new 

alternative approaches or methods should arise to address 

contemporary and future issues.  

One could argue that a hundred years ago, a similar feeling of a ‘new 

normal’ took shape following the First World War. As old empires 

collapsed and new maps were being drawn, debates and questions arose 

across the globe on how the ‘new normal’ should be shaped and 

moulded. In particular, sub-national and regional movements across 

Europe took up the debates. They not only discussed the prospects of the 

‘new normal’ in their own regions, but transgressed their borders, 

looking across Europe for similar cases, finding others with whom they 

could discuss alternative or novel ways to give meaning to the period 

after WWI.  

The focus on sub-national and regional movements after the First World 

War formed the basis for the Annual NISE conference which took place 

on 28 May 2021. In cooperation with the Italian journal Nazioni e Regioni 

and the Consello da Cultura Galega, the conference (following the 2019 

http://www.nazionieregioni.it/
http://consellodacultura.gal/paxina.php?id=587


Studies on National Movements 7 (2021) | Introduction 

| 2 Kas Swerts 

NISE Warsaw conference which addressed the issue of ‘national 

minorities’ following WWI) focused on the way the implementation of 

the principles of nationality and national self-determination after the 

Great War were fraught with inconsistency, resulting in new issues and 

question being raised on the regional, national, and international level. 

Four different sessions – ‘Irridentism and Periphery’, ‘Irridentism and 

Minorities debated’, ‘Diversity and Repression’, ‘Minorities and 

Diplomacy’ – delved into various aspects of the general questions that 

were being raised following the First World War, and the problems 

following the inconsistent implementation of the principles of 

nationality.  

The articles in this volume stem from this conference and include a 

number of cases across Europe. They not only highlight the intricate and 

diverse ways in which different regions and (sub)-nations dealt with the 
post-war context and the themes addressed in the conference, but also 

illustrate the transnational character of these movements: protagonists 

of these movements travelled across Europe, finding inspiration or 

legitimacy from other regions, or forming friendships or alliances that 

could strengthen their own claims.  

Finally, while this volume only includes a section of the articles that were 

being presented at the conference, all presentations during the 

conference were recorded, and you can find them online at 

http://www.nise.eu/europe-reframed-online-conference-now-

available-online/ It does seem that online conferences (or the element of 

presentations being recorded online) are a tiny piece of the ‘new normal’ 

puzzle: henceforth NISE will always strive to record its presentations 

(NISELecture, conferences, etc…) in order to present its findings to a 

wide audience.    

 

http://www.nise.eu/europe-reframed-online-conference-now-available-online/
http://www.nise.eu/europe-reframed-online-conference-now-available-online/