Symposium: “From Russia with German: Migration Experiences across Three Continents”

Free and open to the public

In person at the UW–Madison Pyle Center and live-streamed.

Join us in Madison and meet our presenters.

Ask questions and take part in discussions.

For those who cannot attend in person, presentations will also be live-streamed. [no audience interaction]

Pre-registration is required to receive a link for the live-stream [click here].

[One link is valid for all sessions. If you cannot get into a particular session, please reregister.]

In the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries, over 300,000 German speakers left the Russian Empire. Most settled in the Great Plains states and the Prairie Provinces of Canada, while a few thousand migrated to Brazil and other South American countries. Other Russian Germans followed during the Cold War years and after the fall of the Soviet Union, most by way of Germany. They all brought with them the distinct cultures, traditions, life experiences, and identities that they had forged in the isolated settings of the “German colonies” along the Volga River, the Black Sea, Volhynia, the Caucasus, and other places, colonies that had been established in the late 18^th and early 19^th centuries.

The symposium will explore the migration history and the experiences of Russian Germans in the Americas, their evolving traditions, and identities, as well as their and their descendants’ attitudes toward their two ancestral homelands. Topics include: Russian Germans in the global context past and present; material culture, with a focus on textiles and vernacular architecture; language maintenance and change; and Mennonites, as an example of a faith-based subgroup.

If you have questions, contact Antje Petty: apetty@wisc.edu

The symposium is cosponsored by the UW–Madison’s Center for European Studies; the Center for Russia, East Europe, and Central Asia, the Department of German, Nordic, Slavic+; and by the Friends of the Max Kade Institute. It is made possible through the generous financial support of the UW–Madison Anonymous Fund and significant financial contributions by our cosponsors.

The symposium is sponsored by the Max Kade Institute for German American Studies with co-sponsorship by the UW–Madison’s Center for European Studies; the Center for Russia, East Europe, and Central Asia, the Department of German, Nordic, Slavic+; and by the Friends of the Max Kade Institute. It is made possible through the generous financial support of the UW–Madison Anonymous Fund and significant financial contributions by our cosponsors.