In Scandinavian Colonialism and the Rise of Modernity: Small Time Agents in a Global Arena, archaeologists, anthropologists, and historians present case studies that focus on the scope and impact of Scandinavian colonial expansion in the North, Africa, Asia and America as well as within Scandinavia itsself. They discuss early modern thinking and theories made valid and developed in early modern Scandinavia that justified and propagated participation in colonial expansion. The volume demonstrates a broad and comprehensive spectrum of archaeological, anthropological and historical research, which engages with a variation of themes relevant for the understanding of Danish and Swedish colonial history from the early 17th century until today. The aim is to add to the on-going global debates on the context of the rise of the modern society and to revitalize the field of early modern studies in Scandinavia, where methodological nationalism still determines many archaeological and historical studies. Through their theoretical commitment, critical outlook and application of postcolonial theories the contributors to this book shed a new light on the processes of establishing and maintaining colonial rule, hybridization and creolization in the sphere of material culture, politics of resistance, and responses to the colonial claims. This volume is a fantastic resource for graduate students and researchers in historical archaeology, Scandinavia, early modern history and anthropology of colonialism

In Scandinavian Colonialism and the Rise of Modernity: Small Time Agents in a Global Arena, archaeologists, anthropologists, and historians present case studies that focus on the scope and impact of Scandinavian colonial expansion in the North, Africa, Asia and America as well as within Scandinavia itsself. They discuss early modern thinking and theories made valid and developed in early modern Scandinavia that justified and propagated participation in colonial expansion. The volume demonstrates a broad and comprehensive spectrum of archaeological, anthropological and historical research, which engages with a variation of themes relevant for the understanding of Danish and Swedish colonial history from the early 17th century until today. The aim is to add to the on-going global debates on the context of the rise of the modern society and to revitalize the field of early modern studies in Scandinavia, where methodological nationalism still determines many archaeological and historical studies. Through their theoretical commitment, critical outlook and application of postcolonial theories the contributors to this book shed a new light on the processes of establishing and maintaining colonial rule, hybridization and creolization in the sphere of material culture, politics of resistance, and responses to the colonial claims. This volume is a fantastic resource for graduate students and researchers in historical archaeology, Scandinavia, early modern history and anthropology of colonialism

A new view of Sweden's relations with the world beyond its borders, from the sixteenth to the eighteenth century. Sweden's connections to and relationships with the European and wider world is a field of study attracting considerable scholarly attention. The essays here, from archaeologists and historians, offer a new perspective on early modern Sweden as deeply affected by the increasing internationality of the 16th-18th centuries. Set in the socio-political context of an expanding and changing kingdom, they deal with the character and impact of a wide range of cultural encounters - at home, in the colonies and during overseas travel. They consider how new fashions, commodities and ideologies were perceived and appropriated, and they discuss how these encounters shaped the discourses of the familiar and the foreign - from curiosity, acceptance and appreciation, to prejudice, rejection and conflict. In taking a broad and interdisciplinary approach, and by departing from traditional themes of political history, the volume as a whole offers a different view of the kingdom, its people, and its involvement with the outside world. MAGDALENA NAUM is an Associate Professor at the Department of Archaeology and Heritage Studies, Aarhus University, Denmark; FREDRIK EKENGREN is an Associate Professor in Archaeology at the Department of Archaeology and Ancient History, Lund University, Sweden. Contributors: Per Cornell, Christina Dalhede, Lu Ann De Cunzo, Magnus Elfwendahl, Matti Enbuske, Adam Grimshaw, Jens Heimdahl, Lisa Hellman, Kimmo Katajala, Jonas M. Nordin, Risto Nurmi, Kenneth Nyberg, Carl-Goesta Ojala, Joachim OEstlund, Claes B. Pettersson, Christina Rosen, Anna-Kaisa Salmi, Goeran Tagesson, Annemari Tranberg,