The analysis of written and oral testimonies on Brest-Litovsk between 1939-1944 is part of a broader study concerning the human and geographical reconstruction (mapping) of the Brest-Litovsk ghetto. This micro-historical project also has a memory dimension (preserving the memory of victims). Its realization is based on the exploitation of a set of archival documents (population census, laissez-passer, lists of requisitioned workers, etc.) that are listed, analysed and translated into Russian and French. The data collected are then put into digital data with the dual objective of obtaining a searchable information base and reconstructing the physical materiality of the ghetto and the delimitation of the areas of interaction between the “victims, executioners and bystanders or “witnesses”

This project led by a team of specialists in digital humanities, geographical data processing, archival research, Russian and Jewish field of Central and Eastern Europe, is funded in part by the IUF (the University Institute of France) ans by PIA CAESAR Excellences UNICAEN.

This project intersects several disciplinary fields, history (macro and micro), civilization, digital humanities, geography and topography

The successful applicant will be expected to work in collaboration with the project coordinator on the following aspects of the project: 

The written and oral testimonies on the situation in Brest Litovsk between 19439 -1944 whether those of the victims, witnesses or executioners have not yet been the subject of a thorough analysis. In order to fill this gap and shed additional light on the project on the Brest-Litovsk ghetto, the successful candidate will (in coordination with the project coordinator) carry out the following missions:

-           Collection and filing of post-war reports by Soviet authorities, minutes of the 1970s trials in Germany, and oral and written testimony collected from witnesses and victims. Layout of data collected according to pre-established analysis grids. Processing of information, especially digital, and provision of results.

-           Dissemination of knowledge: involvement in the communication of research results (article in a journal, co-author of a chapter of an upcoming book on the Brest-Litovsk ghetto).

-           Logistical support: as part of his or her missions, the candidate will be asked to take part in presentations in schools and, at another level, to ensure coordination work with the major centres for the conservation of testimonies.

Gross monthly salary: €2.271, possibly revised upwards according to experience.