Do the Alps—and mountain areas more generally—have a history, other than a geological one? That is to say: do the societies that dwell in mountain regions, exploiting their resources and dealing with their imperative nature, have a past, near or far, that characterizes them as different from the populations of the plains, metropolitan centers, and maritime coasts? A past which merits the attention of historians?
For a long time, up to the mid-20th century, the answer to this question was always “no.” Or more precisely, it did not even seem useful to raise the question. In the works of Western historians, mountain ranges, and the Alps in particular, appeared as a kind of no man's land, a natural obstacle that sometimes had to be traversed—with an army, with goods, for the sake of a pilgrimage, or for a simple journey to a pleasant destination. The fact that the Alps “traversed” were also Alps “inhabited and animated” did not arouse curiosity. Therefore, the historical sciences only rarely raised questions about the modalities of populating mountain areas; forms of occupying territory and making use of resources; the constraints of altitude, climate, and steepness of slopes; collective and family behavior; encounters of civilizations from both sides of a mountain range and the original cultures born of such encounters; and many other aspects.
Since the Second World War such questions have been gradually touched upon, albeit in a dispersed manner, and almost always in a narrow framework, national or regional. The major conference on “The Alps and Europe” held in Milan in 1973 assigned a significant role to history, and proposed outlines of possible scientific cooperation. However, it was not until 7 October 1995 that a coordinated effort began: on that date, a group of mostly young historians, coming from all the Alpine countries (France, Italy, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and Slovenia), gathered in Lucerne (Switzerland) to found the International Society for Alpine History, often called by its French name: Association Internationale pour l'Histoire des Alpes (AIHA).
The AIHA aims to be interdisciplinary and open to everyone (researchers and amateurs). It is interested in all historical periods, beginning with pre-historic times. Beyond the traditional aspects of history (political, institutional, economic, social), the Association also aims to include archeology, anthropology, art history, religious history, linguistic aspects, etc. It organizes biennial conferences (Grenoble in 1997, Trento in 1999, Kempten, Germany, in 2001, Innsbruck in 2003, Bovec, Slovenia, in 2005; the next one will be held in Switzerland in 2007) on specific subjects: spatial mobility; mountains and cities; material culture; tourism; food and health issues; etc. The AIHA publishes an annual journal (11 issues so far, with nearly 3000 pages) which alternately takes up the subject of the conference in one year and presents a region in the next—to date the Slovenian Alps, the Aosta Valley and the Valais, the Maritime Alps, Inner Austria. Various subjects are planned for the coming years. The journal is multilingual, with English abstracts.
At the outset the AIHA had no institutional base and no infrastructure. It organized and financed its activities one by one. This changed in January 2000, thanks to the hospitality of the Università della Svizzera italiana (USI) in the Canton of Ticino, Switzerland. Based on an agreement between the AIHA and USI, we founded the Istituto di Storia di Alpi, which, in 2006, was better integrated into the University structure under the name Laboratorio di Storia delle Alpi (LabISAlp, Laboratory for Alpine History).
On the one hand, LabISAlp hosts the secretariat of the AIHA, coordinates its activities, and edits its journal (which is no minor thing). On the other hand, it has its own activities: conferences and series of talks; it offers a framework for encounters and inspiration for a group of young “associate researchers” in the universities in the Alpine Arc. It also initiates research projects, or participates in them—for instance, on the differences in the modes of perception of Alpine populations and town dwellers; about the Alps during war times; about the increasingly illuminated night landscapes in the Alps; etc. Since LabISAlp is now integrated in the University's Department of Architecture, studies in future will probably focus more on questions touching on territory and its practical and cultural management—issues where there is much to be done.
The Alps are a large space full of life, and therefore of history. To expand our perception of the Alps, it seemed useful to compare this space with other mountain areas or ranges such as the Himalaya or the Andes, though not through own research, ie done or ordered by the AIHA or LabISAlp, but through exchange with historians from other mountain systems. On two occasions so far, in the framework of large international conferences, we have organized sessions dedicated to mountains, with the participation of historians from other continents: in 2002 at the International Economic History Conference in Buenos Aires; and in 2005 at the World History Conference in Sydney (the session dedicated to the sacredness of mountains was the starting point for the articles in the Research section of the present issue of Mountain Research and Development). These contacts will be further developed and extended.
Our ambition is great, but legitimate today: historical knowledge about mountain life, in the long run, is indispensable for a better understanding of the problems we face today in mountains and for gaining a balanced perspective on sustainable development.
The members of the Board of the AIHA in 2006 are: Jean-François Bergier, president, Switzerland; Arthur Brunhart, Liechtenstein; Gauro Coppola, Italy; René Favier, France; Laurence Fontaine, France; Luigi Lorenzetti, secretary general and coordinator of LabISAlp, Switzerland; Jon Mathieu, Switzerland; Franz Mathis, Austria; Brigitte Mazohl-Wallnig, vice-president, Austria; Darja Mihelic, Slovenia; Rein-hard Stauber, Germany-Austria; Luigi Zanzi, vice-president, Italy.
