Imaginal Geography of Regional Integration 1990s: the Latvian and the Estonian Experience

 After the end of the Cold War many variants of space organization at macro- and microlevel were suggested instead of traditional West–East division. There were in detail worked projects of invented regions building and discoursive projections of regions. Among them the ideas deserve special attention, which were put forward by the states that had been within frontier zone of the European politics poles before. The “Amber gateway” and the “Yule land” are examples of mental projections of the Baltic Sea area which were constructed by Latvia’s and Estonia’s political elites. 

In the article research of the ideas leans on I. Newmann’s region-building approach. Articles and speeches which were the work of representatives of two republics’ organs of government served sources. They were consecutively collected, systematized and analyzed. Categorical apparatus of the article includes the concepts which are derived from concept “mental map” often mentioned by the author. In general mental map means the map of part of surrounding space which was created in consciousness of a man or any social group. This category is concept of relatively new science – imaginal geography which is interpreted here as one studies forming of system of ideas, concepts describing any territory in people’s consciousness. 

When the research was made, it became evident that the Latvian mental construction did not presuppose liquidation of the barrier between Europe and Russia / West and East. Russia had to remain on the other side of dividing line, but not in isolation. Latvia assigned the role of “mediator between two worlds” for ensuring communication and transit to itself. Claim that Estonia was among the Northern countries gave the opportunity to the republic’s ruling circle to distance from post-Soviet space as a whole and Latvia and Lithuania in particular. The “Amber gateway” and the “Yule land” reflected specific character of spatial imagination of Baltic republics’ governments. The use of cultural markers in the mental maps was caused by aspiration to make imaginary regions natural and clear for other participants of intended integrations, as the lasts preferred connections at the level of public institutions, but not of state ones. But the Latvian and the Estonian politicians looked at the process of region–building in the light of interstate interaction. Estonia strove to emphasize its belonging to “Europe of regions” by means of “Yule land”, but Latvia accentuated strengthening of its own role in limits of “Amber gateway”. 

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