Historical Sociology in Poland: Transformations of the Uses of the Past.

This article examines the development of historical sociology in Poland from the 1920s to the present, focusing on its institutionalization, thematic shifts, and political entanglements, especially after the post-communist transformation of 1989. It highlights how Polish historical sociology has been shaped by a tradition of civic-minded public sociology, Marxist influences, and the challenges of positioning within both national and global academic fields. Key themes include the critical analysis of historical myths, the use of history as a symbolic resource in political debates, and the rise of research on regional identities, collective memory, and social imaginaries, often framed through center-periphery and postcolonial perspectives. The article also discusses the persistent division of labor between sociology and history in Poland, noting that sociological works tend to reinterpret existing historical narratives rather than produce new archival findings, which affects their political reception and disciplinary status.