ABSTRACT
This concluding chapter reflects on the ethnographic study of Czech Silesia, highlighting how local identity is shaped by memory politics, historical entanglements, and competing narratives. Although formally part of the Euroregion, communities in Opava remain largely disconnected from their Polish neighbours, focusing instead on internal tensions – particularly those linked to the German legacy. The chapter examines how Silesian identity is negotiated through dominant (Czech national) and demotic (local) discourses across media such as museums, memorials, literature, and art. Drawing on the concept of ‘difficult heritage’, it shows how contested histories complicate identity formation. It also considers how tourism and regional branding contribute to these negotiations, producing a unified – but highly mediated and contested – representation of ‘Opavian Silesia’.
