Canadian Political Economy and the Great Recession of 2008–9: The Politics of Coping with Economic Crisis

The emerging comparative political economy literature on the Great Recession of 2008–9 has devoted an increasing amount of time analyzing how domestic politics and the economic crisis were jointly determined. This article seeks to explore certain aspects of this dynamic relationship in the context of Canada, a country that has received little coverage in the comparative literature so far.     

Recent Debates on the Fate of the German Population in Upper Silesia 1945-1950

This article presents an analysis of the Polish-German scholarlyand public debate of the last decades dedicated to the fateof the German population in Upper Silesia after the ending ofthe Second World War. In the introduction, three determiningfactors of the current discussion are mentioned: first, thepublic debate on this topic, which evolved especially afterthe turning point of the democratization in Poland in 1989,and which created a certain social climate for these scholarlydebates; secondly, the history of the Polish-German conflictin Upper Silesia, which conditioned the post-war situation inthe region; and thirdly, the main historiographical paradigmsto the subject before 1989 in both countries, whose fixationand whose deficits weighed heavily upon the research directionchosen in this period. From among these three aspects—the camps built for theGerman population, their resettlement, and the politics of nationalitytowards former German citizens, who were then recognized asowners of Polish nationality and who could remain in their homes—thearticle concentrates on the first one. The last few years sawthe most fundamental revision concerning the camps for the Germanpopulation, and our knowledge is here relatively complete. Itis worth underlining that most advances here have been achievedby Polish historians from various disciplinary directions.     

Archaeology in Gabon, 1886–1988

This is the first attempt at synthesis of archaeological research conducted in Gabon between 1982 and 1988. Middle Stone Age, Late Stone Age, Neolithic, Early and Late Iron Age data are discussed in the context of earlier discoveries and of current research in Central Africa as a whole.Though the Middle Stone Age remains undated, its earliest component clearly preceded 40,000 bp. The Late Stone Age is datedca 9000–2500 bp, with an early Neolithic perhaps as old as 5000–3000 bp. A late Neolithic is firmly dated to 2600–2200 bp. Iron smelting is shown to have begunca 2500 bp in inland areas of Gabon andca 2000 bp near the coast.

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Résumé On présente ici une première synthèse des données scientifiques obtenues au cours des travaux de 1982–1988 au Gabon. Les éléments relatifs au Middle Stone Age, au Late Stone Age, au Néolithique, aux Ages du Fer ancien et récent sont présentés. A chaque fois une discussion s'engage les mettant en relation avec le contexte global de l'Afrique Centrale ainsi qu'avec les découvertes antérieures.Quoique le MSA reste mal daté, il peut être démontré que les plus vieux outils ont au moins 40,000 ans d'âge. Le LSA quant à lui est circonscrit à la périodeca 9000–2500 bp, alors qu'un Néolithique ancien est peut-être situé vers 5000–3000 bp. Un Néolithique final est, lui, correctement daté vers 2600–2200 bp. Enfin, la fonte du fer est attestée à l'intérieur des terres dès 2500 bp alors que le littoral ne semble pas connaitre cette technologie avant 2000 bp.

     

The prehistory of Cyprus: Problems and prospects

The archaeological record of prehistoric Cyprus is rich, diverse, well-published, and frequently enigmatic. Regarded by many as a bridge between western Asia and the Aegean, Cyprus and its past are frequently seen from scholarly perspectives prevalent in one of those two cultural areas. Its material culture, however, differs radically from that of either area. Apart from the early colonization episodes on the island (perhaps three during the pre-Neolithic and Neolithic), evidence of foreign contact remains limited until the Bronze Age (post-2500 B. C.). This study seeks to present the prehistory of Cyprus from an indigenous perspective, and to examine a series of archaeological problems that foreground Cyprus within its eastern Mediterranean context. The study begins with an overview of time, place, and the nature of fieldwork on the island, continues with a presentation and discussion of several significant issues in Cypriot prehistory (e.g., insularity, colonization, subsistence, regionalism, interaction, social complexity, economic diversity), and concludes with a brief discussion of prospects for the archaeology of Cyprus up to and beyond 2000.