Ahonen Pertti

Biography

I am a historian of modern Europe, particularly of contemporary Europe, with an emphasis on post-1945 Germany and Central Europe. I am interested in various aspects of Europe’s recent history, including: the effects and consequences of the Second World War on the postwar world; migrations, especially forced migrations, and their impact; political, social and cultural developments in Cold War Europe; comparative and transnational history; memory regimes and their political and other uses; and just about any aspect of the history of Germany. Before coming to Jyväskylä in the summer of 2014, I spent many years abroad. I got my PhD in history from Yale University in 1999 and then taught history in the UK, first at the University of Sheffield (1999-2004) and then at the University of Edinburgh (2004-2014). I have also spent a total of several years in Central Europe, as a visiting researcher in different places, including Berlin, Vienna, Mainz and Bonn. My main publications from my pre-Jyväskylä days include the books After the Expulsion: West Germany and Eastern Europe, 1945-1990 (Oxford UP, 2003) and Death at the Berlin Wall (Oxford UP, 2011).

Research Interest

I am a historian of modern Europe, particularly of contemporary Europe,