Interculturality and Transculturality as Norm and Practice: A Reading of German-Polish Bordering
Interculturality and Transculturality as Norm and Practice: A Reading of German-Polish Bordering

Summary/Abstract: Starting from the EU-official assumption that European integration would mainly be achieved bylocal cross-border cooperation, this paper develops a closer look at the notions of interculturalunderstanding involved. It takes local discourse within a German-Polish border setting as a casewhich reveals contested interpretations of inter- and transculturality, especially when related tobottom-up perspectives on borders. Held against social practice at the border which strongly underlinescultural difference, the hi-flying idea of “Europeanization by interculturality” is put into perspective.Years after the top-down opening of the border, pragmatic bottom-up routines of coculturalismtend to transform local bordering into something distinct yet still indeterminate.

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