Collectivisation of the countryside in historiography - current approaches to the topic

The author discusses the development of historiography on the topic of rural collectivisation. He presents a critical literature research evaluating the approaches, and the benefits as well as limitations of the existing historiographic production related to the collectivisation of agriculture in communist countries. The author tries to give an overview of the current status, trends and objectives of the historical research, not only in Czechoslovak, Czech and Slovak historiography, but also in important and often inspirational works of world sovietology and works of East Asian studies related to the countryside and its collectivisation. In addition, he also offers a basic overview of the topic elaboration in the neighbouring, and also in some other, post-communist countries.