Cultural Patterns of the EU: ‘Eastern Enlargement’ – Between Post-Socialism and the ‘Longue Durée’ of History?

With the recent enlargement of the European Union (2004/07), the informal term ‘Eastern enlargement’ has been widely employed – in the media as well as in political science (see, for example, Ágh 2006). This development reflects not only the regional dimension of recent EU extension but also the history of state socialism, which most of the new members share.