Migratory memories between Latvia and Sweden

Abstract

This article is based on research carried out among Latvians living in Sweden. The dynamicsof memory are explored in the context of forced migration. Oral history research is used to enrich anunderstanding of the complicated nature of the movement of memory, illuminating the difficulties andtransformations of memory while traveling in space and time, across political and community borders. The main conclusions are that the complex web of memories is composed through various carriers of memory, multiple forms and functions of narration (differing in private and public). Migratory memory illuminates the nature of memory practices. Additionally, the community involved in the research andresearchers both became facilitators of ‘memory movement’.