Open AccessUrban identity making in Germany: the case of Bamberg
Author(s) -
Iuliia Eremenko
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
inter/interakciâ. intervʹû. interpretaciâ
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2687-0401
pISSN - 2307-2075
DOI - 10.19181/inter.2019.18.2
Subject(s) - identity (music) , sociology , place identity , placemaking , urban community , relevance (law) , work (physics) , phenomenon , political science , public relations , gender studies , urban planning , urban design , socioeconomics , civil engineering , law , aesthetics , epistemology , engineering , mechanical engineering , philosophy
Urban identity is one of the most important characteristics of the urban community and an understanding of the characteristics of its formation is necessary to determine urban development strategies. This paper seeks to examine the current situation concerning urban identity in Germany, a late capitalist society: has urban identity weaken or has it remained signifcant for people and can it even be used as a resource for new solidarities and intercultural dialogue? Within the framework of this article, the author identifes the main actors forming the urban identity in Bamberg and the factors that have had a major inuence on this identity. Empirically, the study is based on a series of semi-structured interviews with experts in urban history, city development and placemaking from Bamberg: school teachers and supervisors involved in the adjustment of students, representatives of city administration, urban activists, and coordinators of UNESCO projects. The results of this work will help to contribute to the research feld about the phenomenon of preserving local identity in small cities. Thus, the scientifc relevance of this study is that the identifed factors can be further generalized onto other cases.