070273 PS BA-Proseminar - Austrian History 2 (2022S)

From the first ‘description of souls’ ordered by Maria Theresia in 1753, to the last complete statistical record made in 1910, statistical descriptions of the population have a long and vibrant tradition in the Habsburg Monarchy. They played an important role in policy-making while also providing regular occasions of encounter between the civil population and state authorities. Beyond the legitimate attention to ethnic statistics and to the particular role they played in nation-building in the region, this course will also investigate the outcomes of this specific practice in the state formation process.
The aim of the seminar is to provide students with basic knowledge of the key topics of the period, while introducing them to a more specific field of knowledge production and governance. They will be guided through the main secondary and primary sources, and the methodological issues related to them. The first half of the semester will be dedicated to a general introduction (production of ethnic, demographic, economic etc. statistics, actors involved, emergence of experts and evolution of practices, ideological and political implications, international standardization…). This should help the students to define their own questioning, which they will present in class during the second half of the semester. The oral presentation and the ensuing discussion will provide the basis of the seminar paper.