The Everyday Life of Polish-German Marriages After 1945 – the Case of the North-Western Borderland of Poland

Abstract

Mixed marriages, which are one of the deciding factors in the breaking down of historical, cultural, psychological and social distance, do not fit into what is normally fundamental and obligatory in each national group and to what usually separates one group from another. The issue of Polish-German marriages post 1945 on the north-western border of Poland is an essential element in the reconstruction of Polish-German relations after World War II. The way they functioned very much depended on the historical moment in which they existed, therefore I have concentrated on three generations: coinciding with the years 1945–1971, 1972–1989 and from 1990 to 2004. The following article will be devoted to the everyday lives of the participants of these nationally mixed marriages. The contacts which existed with the state authorities are deemed outside the scope of this paper.