Secondary abstract: |
Goriška Province is the westernmost part of the Slovenian national territory and has acted as a border area throughout its entire history. In broad terms it can be identified as a borderland between the Romanic, Germanic and Slavic worlds, which was, in the course of history, inhabited by different peoples as they passed through, traded, exchanged goods, explored, fought for and plundered the area. The first half of the 20th century was a particularly difficult period for the Goriška Province. It was marked with turbulences and radical changes, which dominated the lives of the inhabitants and left a lasting impact on them. In a short span of time, the region suffered the horrors of the two World Wars, and many locals were forced into exile in the interwar period. The end of the Second World War brought a "bitter demise" to the Goriška Province, when, according to the Paris Peace Treaty, it was divided between Italy and Yugoslavia. During the researched period, five official censuses were carried out in the Goriška Province (in 1910, 1921, 1931, 1936 and 1948), two secret censuses (1933 and 1939), and a post-war census in 1945. These censuses offer a good insight into the demographic changes that took place as a result of the political, military and national conflicts, as well as the economic circumstances following the downfall of the monarchies, the rise of dictatorships and the chaotic situation that ensued from the formation of the Iron Curtain. Some of the censuses are incomplete and cannot be compared with each other because of the changing criteria. Therefore they can only give an approximate illustration of the demographic reality of that time, and leave many issues vague and questions open for the historians until today. |