The relationship between family memory and children's history learning about the recent troubled past in the conflict setting of Cyprus

This study explores how family memory relates to children's history learning in conflict-ridden societies. It focuses on how survivors of the traumatic events of 1974, make meaning of 1974 while negotiating their role in their children’s history learning about sensitive issues in Cyprus. Additionally, it provides insights on students’ and their teachers’ approaches towards the recent past in their schools. Memory and narrative permeate this research as concepts for understanding how the past influences the memories and beliefs of people and how they remember the past, construct self-narratives, and mediate these to their youngsters. This study adopts a qualitative research approach. Research data were collected via one-on-one semi-structured interviews with 5 history educators, 23 parents or grandparents and 10 joint interviews with (grand) parents and their children, through the methods of document analysis on the history textbook and observing classes about recent Cypriot history. Content analysis was applied to textual data. Narratives were explored as an experience and a construct, drawing on Labovian structural narrative analysis. (Grand) parents narrate personal and vicarious experiences conveying their memories and attitudes about 1974. They make meaning of this past in six ways namely survival, loss, pursuit, rivalry, victimization and truth and seem resilient in processing 1974. They regard the history textbook and teachers as vehicles transferring the State’s approach to 1974 and claim their own share when talking about the past. They attend funerals of missing persons or visit places with certain meanings for their family histories, initiatives enabling them to link their past to their children’s present. These memory-sites stage adults’ stories and enable youngsters to inherit the family history and values while acknowledging their positionality in society. These findings indicate the need to enhance our knowledge about family-intergenerational memory and emotional issues in history learning in Cyprus and other conflict-ridden societies