Memories of historically important events are not limited to the generation that lived through them, but are passed down from one generation to another, in particular when they serve as transitions from one phase of the rememberer’s life to another or as large societal transitions. In recent years, much attention was dedicated to intergenerational memory transmission related to WWII. In this symposium, we examine other historical contexts in different parts of the world in relation to major historical events : the Nakba in Palestine (1948) with interviews of the third and forth generation of Palestinian families;
the Malvinas/Falkland war (1982) showing mitigated differences in intergenerational transmission due to the persistence of a national cause;
the Congo/Rwanda war (since the 1960’s) with a shift from an ethnicity to a territory perspective; and the terrorist attacks in the US (2001) exploring two ways of remembering and their consequences for memory transmssion– flashbulb and event memory.
The symposium will provide a way to compare different patterns of transmission, together with the different functions fulfilled. It will also allow us to compare the complementarity of different methodological approaches (surveys, participant observation, interviews).
Eman Nahhas Abu Hanna, Gordon College, Haifa. Memory of an Open Wound: Intergenerational Transmission of Nakba Narratives and Identity Formation among Palestinian Citizens of Israel.
This research examines how the intergenerational transmission of the 1948 Nakba memory serves as cultural resilience and identity formation for Palestinian citizens of Israel. How do younger generations of Palestinians reinterpret and deploy collective memories of displacement to navigate their complex position within Israeli society? How do inherited Nakba memories mobilize contemporary struggles for rights and recognition? What role does memory transmission play in maintaining group cohesion and resisting historical erasure?
Building on previous research on generational differences in Nakba narratives, this study investigates how third and fourth generation Palestinian citizens strategically use family narratives of dispossession to articulate demands for equality and challenge discriminatory policies. The research employs qualitative methodology through in-depth interviews with 20 third generation and 20 fourth generation Palestinian citizens of Israel, analysing how they creatively adapt inherited memories to contemporary contexts. The findings reveal that while core elements of Nakba memory remain stable across generations, younger Palestinians increasingly frame these narratives within rights-based discourse that asserts their status as indigenous citizens. This strategic memory deployment allows them to claim belonging in Israel while maintaining connection to broader Palestinian identity. The continued transmission and reinterpretation of Nakba memory functions as cultural resilience, enabling Palestinian citizens to maintain group cohesion and resist erasure. Evolving narrative forms demonstrate collective memory's dynamism as younger generations adapt inherited stories to new social and political contexts. This research contributes to broader discussions of how marginalized communities use collective memory to navigate contested national spaces and assert belonging while preserving distinct national identities in hostile environments.
Felipe Muller, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Buenos Aires, Argentina. Collective Memories of the Malvinas War.
How do ongoing national causes influence collective memories of wars? In the context of wars, national cause refers to an overwhelming public embrace of a war and its goals. We are interested in instances in which a nation is defeated. The national cause motivating the war could fade in the public imagination, as the country seeks to “move on.” Alternatively, it could continue to animate the public. What are the memories of a defeated nation when the national cause persists? Will previously documented intergenerational differences be present in such instances? Or will the persistence of a “national cause” mitigate these mnemonic differences?
The present paper addresses these issues as they apply to the Malvinas War of 1982 between Argentina and Great Britain. For Argentines, the Malvinas is a persistent “national cause,” reflecting longstanding territorial claims. As a result, even though a brutal military Junta initiated the war, the public widely embraced the war at the time. Moreover, the “Malvinas national cause” still remains popular. In contrast, for the British, the national causes motivating the war no longer remain salient. This contrast allowed us to explore the role of national causes in intergenerational memory. We compare Britons’ and Argentines’ collective memories of the Malvinas War and examined whether Argentina's continued engagement with the war's causes mitigates typical generational differences when compared to those of the British.
Our findings replicate established patterns: Those who lived through the war recalled more facts, personal narratives, and contextualizing statements and showed greater emotional intensity than post-war generations. However, these generational differences were less pronounced among Argentines than Britons. War memories associated with an ongoing national cause challenge assumptions about intergenerational differences in collective memories.
Aurore Vermylen, University of Louvain (UCLouvain). Echoes of Violence: How Memories and Intergenerational Tensions Shape the Shifting Political Positions of the Banyamulenge in Eastern DRC.
The Great Lakes region of Africa has experienced successive conflicts over several decades, where memories of past violence continue to shape the war narratives of contemporary struggles. One key dimension of these cyclical conflicts lies in identity. This presentation analyzes how intergenerational memories and tensions influence the political positions of a community in eastern DRC, namely the Banyamulenge.
The Banyamulenge occupy an ambivalent and evolving position within these conflicts. Their alliances—with both Congo and Rwanda—have shifted according to how they have been discriminated against and how they choose to identify themselves. As border people (Tutsi Rwandophones living in eastern Congo), they alternate between choosing to identify primarily as Congolese, emphasizing nationality and territory, and as Tutsi, emphasizing ethnicity.
Drawing on anthropological research based on participant observation and semi-structured interviews, this presentation explores how intergenerational tensions are embedded in the mobilization of distinct collective memories, producing divergent political orientations. The analysis focuses on two key historical moments as remembered by the community: the 1960s, associated with violence over territory, and the 1990s, marked by violence over ethnicity. It then examines how two generations—the one born around the 1960s and the one born around the 1990s—mobilize these memories differently to shape their political stances.
Focusing on contemporary war narratives (2025), this study highlights current frictions within the Banyamulenge community in relation to the AFC/M23 movement. The generation born in the 1960s, aligned with a nationalist perspective, tends to view the movement as an invasion. The generation born in the 1990s, more aligned with a transnational Tutsi identity, perceives it as a liberation movement.
Charles B. Stone. John Jay College of Criminal Justice, City University of New York. The intergenerational transmission of flashbulb memories and event memories surrounding the terrorist attack on September 11th, 2001.
The terrorist attack on September 11th, 2001, left an enduring mnemonic mark on America and Americans alike. Despite this, little is known about how memories surrounding 9/11 might transmit to the next generation. Here, we are interested in the extent to which the flashbulb memories (i.e., memories of the circumstances in which one learned about the event) and event memories (i.e., the facts surrounding 9/11) transmit to the next generation. To examine this, we conducted three studies comprised of three similar surveys. For surveys one and two, we recruited American parent-child dyads. In study three, we only recruited American “children.” Survey 1 comprised parent-child dyads from across the United States of America and took place in the fall of 2016; Survey 2 comprised parent-child dyads from New York City and took place in the fall of 2020. Survey 3 comprised American “children” from New York City and took place in the fall of 2023. The results from the three surveys revealed that transmission did occur, with at least 85% of children able to provide a parental FBM. However, just under 40% of these were accurate. The children also knew relatively little about the facts surrounding 9/11 relative to the parents. More notably, we found some evidence suggesting, under certain circumstances, an association between a child’s parental FBM accuracy and identifying as an American (Study 1), but not for event memories. Overall, the evidence suggests intergenerational transmission does occur for flashbulb memories, but with limited accuracy. Alternatively, the younger generation knows relatively little about the facts surrounding 9/11 (i.e., event memories).
Olivier Luminet, University of Louvain (UCLouvain). Discussant
Federico Bermejo William Hirst Shanique Y. Meyler Olivier Luminet Robert Meksin
20260731T110020260731T1230America/Argentina/Buenos_Aires8.13. Different perspectives on memory transmission across generationsSV402 (ART)MSA Buenos Aires 2026buenosairesconference@memorystudiesassociation.org
