Morgane Labbé, La nationalité, une histoire de chiffres: Politique et statistiques en Europe centrale (1848-1919),

Abstract

Morgane Labbé’s book examines the production and utilization of ethno- graphic statistics and maps employed to colonize and govern the Polish territo- ries partitioned by the end of the 18th century by the Prussians (Germany), the Habsburgs, and the Russians. While looking at the sources, Labbé also takes into consideration the data, opinions, and evaluations of the Polish (minority) intellectuals as an example of contre-statistics. Another important topic in the book is nationality and contemporary ways to measure it. It examines the in- ternational dimension with specific attention to the International Congress of Statistics (1857-1874) where the methods to measure nationality were discussed. Additionally, the book makes use of the data presented at the Peace Conferences (1919), which used these tools to solve the question of nationality.