GIS and the Holocaust

Hello all! Welcome back!

This week I am discussing the use of GIS in exploring historical events, specifically as it applies to the readings from Geographies of the Holocaust (Knowles et al., 2014), but also how it may benefit other topics as well.

The authors analyzed the Holocaust from a perspective different from many other scholars. They looked at it as a geographical phenomenon. Working with a team of multidisciplinary scholars from Holocaust Studies, Historical Geography and others within the “spatial humanities”, and GIScience, the collaboration looked at the Holocaust geospatially, asking questions surrounding place and space, as well as understanding how place and space change over time. The team researched vast amounts of literature, images, personal accounts, and other data to create a visualized perspective of the Holocaust. The authors recognize their limitations in their work through the technology and their own interpretations as well as their “quantitative techniques to study human suffering” (Knowles et al., 2014:13). This may be difficult for some readers. Although it is a difficult topic to acknowledge, the authors, in my opinion, did a really great job of explaining their techniques and choices for each visualization, and I think it really helps to understand the events of the Holocaust in a new way.

In chapter 2 of the book, Knowles et al., (2014) looked at the spatial relationship of between the concentration camps, subcamps, and towns, as well as how these relationships changed over the period of the war. They also mapped gender at each camp (male, female, or mixed) and how that too changed over time, including the different labor occurring at each camp (construction vs. arms production). They employed sight line analysis to illustrate Euclidean distance between each camp and its subcamp. Interestingly, in some cases, subcamps were much closer to other camps than their associated camp. One particular subcamp (Kiev) was around 880 miles away from its camp (Sachsenhausen).

It is through the hard work of these collaborators utilizing their varied training to come together to compile an impressive interpretation of the Holocaust through visualization. It is one thing to learn about the concentration camps and the atrocities that occurred there – even seeing images of during and after, but seeing these maps creates a new layer of understanding the changing landscape of the SS camps and the Nazi controlled territories over time.

GIS is a fantastic tool for creating a visual illustration of events. The vast number of researchers coming together to discuss, debate, and reach a mutual interpretation of the sources they analyzed, helps to bring a certain credibility. It is not just one person who is interpreting these events and creating a map based on their own interpretation. It was a group of people with very different backgrounds coming together to create an incredible amount of visualizations through joint interpretations. GIS can be used in a number of different ways, which is evident in this book. They utilized charts, tables, graphs, and maps to tell the story in a different way. They used digital reconstructions and street maps to illustrate space and place. As the authors have pointed out their limitations of the technology and the decisions made for what to include and omit, I think they did a really great job of pulling the data together to show it from a different angle.

I think any topic that has to do with movement would benefit greatly from a GIS/spatial analysis approach. That could mean anything from historical mobility of people, modern migrations, spread of ancient or modern disease, tracking habitat patterns of various animals/insects/plants, etc. Even tracking the changes of shorelines and habitat due to climate change.

I think the authors are right on when they discuss that these interpretations are their own and may receive varied responses, especially when working with topics that have deep emotional connections, such as the Holocaust. Additionally, because something is mapped, does not necessarily mean that the people being discussed perceived space and place in the same way. So, we as scholars need to be mindful of projecting our own ideals and emotions on others. Other topics I have identified as being potentially benefited by using GIS methodologies also should take into consideration the local population. For example, if looking at climate change and how that is affecting local communities; their feelings may not be the same as a different community also facing similar climate change issues, so each project needs to beware not to extrapolate information onto others.   

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you enjoyed your visit!

-The Medieval Isotopist

Bibliography:

Knowles, A.K., Cole, T., & Giordano, A. (2014). Geographies of the Holocaust. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press.

Knowles, A.K., Jaskot, P.B., Blackshear, B.P., De Groot, M., & Yule, A. (2014). Mapping the SS Concentration Camps. In: A.K. Knowles, T. Cole, & A. Giordano (Eds.), Geographies of the Holocaust (pp.19-50). Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press.