ABSTRACT
The migration of humans between different world regions is inextricably intertwined with the very notion of human development since prehistory. Within this longue durée perspective, the identification of refugees as a distinct category of migrants has gradually come about, and was at least partially recognized as early as the sixteenth century. This chapter explores the interconnectedness between refugees and transregionalism, that is between the group-based persecution of people and the connections in and between regions that their flight to safety brings about. The transregional forced movement and consequent exile of people has been well-known since late antiquity. The terminology of transregionalism, or the interconnectedness between different regions, is well suited for understanding the flow of refugees, as it places the individual perspectives associated with actions undertaken by nation-states side by side with the regional dispersion often implicit in refugee flows.
