Those Who Left and Those Who Arrived

In the years after the Second World War, the city of Rijeka found itselfcaught in the middle of various migratory trajectories. The departure of locals who self-identified as Italians and opted for Italian citizenship occurred simultaneously with other population movements thatdrained the city of inhabitants and brought in newcomers. Many locals defected and traveled to Italy, which was either their final destinationor a country they transited through before being resettled elsewhere. Furthermore, after the war ended, workers from other Yugoslav areas started arriving in the city. A flourishing economy proved capable of attracting migrants with promises of good living standards; however, political reasons also motivated many to move to this Adriatic city. Thelatter was the case for former economic emigrants who decided to returnto join the new socialist homeland and for Italian workers who symbolically sided with the socialist Yugoslavia. Rijeka was not simply adestination for many migrants—it was also a springboard for individualsfrom all over the Yugoslav Federation to reach the Western Bloc. This article argues that examining these intertwining patterns together rather than separately offers new insight into the challenges the city experienced during its postwar transition.