Forging connections through food: culinary heritage in shaping relations in post-conflict Bavarian-Czechoslovak borderlands

Abstract

This study explores the influence of post-World War II changes on women's intangible cultural heritage in the Czech-Bavarian borderland, focusing on the Tachov region. It challenges the traditional narrative of the borderland issue, often framed as the loss of the German population and heritage discontinuity due to replacement. By examining culinary notebooks authored by women expelled to Bavaria and those who resettled in the region from Central and Eastern Europe, the study reveals how heritage continuity is maintained through domestic practices and family usage. These notebooks provide insights into the integration of diverse ethnic groups and highlight women's crucial roles in cultural preservation after depopulation. Through in-depth interviews with authors, descendants, and family members, the research uncovers the notebooks' function as autobiographical documents that facilitate cultural exchanges and alliances. By recognising recipes and culinary knowledge as an alternative female exchange system, this study enriches the discourse on heritage preservation amid demographic changes and illustrates the potential for connection and cohesion among diverse communities. The findings underscore the significance of these culinary notebooks in documenting women's contributions to cultural transmission, showing how the depopulated Czech/Bavarian borderland retains its heritage through often overlooked domestic spheres and its products.