In the memory of the city

What do Count Anton Günther, kale and VFB Oldenburg have in common? Students went in search of places of remembrance for a book. They already knew one place of remembrance: the university.

The students' findings have now been published in an anthology: "Oldenburger Erinnerungsorte. From the Castle to the Hell of the North, from Count Anton Günther to Horst Janssen", edited by historian Mareike Witkowski.

Places of remembrance are places in the topographical sense, but also people, events, ideas or rituals that have become inscribed in the collective memory. The students have collected a total of 17 such crystallisation points in the city and region. These are crystallisation points that play a role in the consciousness of Oldenburg residents and have an identity-forming function for the city's population.

The idea for the book goes back to a history seminar in the 2009/2010 winter semester, in which the students interviewed numerous citizens of the city, as well as experts from the region, historians and museum specialists. 200 places of remembrance were collected, 17 selected and processed for the book project - including the University of Oldenburg. According to seminar leader Witkowski, this was the first time that the concept of places of remembrance had been applied locally, to a city.

"Oldenburg places of remembrance. From the Castle to the Hell of the North, from Count Anton Günther to Horst Janssen", ed. Mareike Witkowski, Verlag Florian Isensee GmbH, ISBN: 978-3-89995-777-8, 14.80 euros