International - Oral History - guide to resources - Oxford LibGuides at Oxford University

International

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Interested in international oral history?

You may find the International Oral History Association useful.

Newly bookmarked websites

This box links to the Bodleian History Faculty Library's Diigo account, which bookmarks websites relevant to the study of History.

Around 1968: Activism, Networks, Trajectories

Around 1968: Activism, Networks, Trajectories
As part of a reconsideration of 1968 as a historic moment, this international project conducted oral history interviews with those involved as young activists. The project has a broad geographic scope, encompassing activists from across northern Europe, southern Europe, and the USSR. Oral recordings of the interviews, along with written transcripts, are available through an online password-protected database. A username and password will usually be issued on request to bone fide researchers with a research topic in mind.

Topics: Politics & Government

Keywords: 1968; protest; students; translations

British Voices from South Asia

British Voices from South Asia
This website contains written extracts from oral history interviews with British individuals regarding their experiences and reflections of British colonialism in India before Independence in 1947. The focus of the interviews is particularly on the social and cultural aspects of British life in India and with intercultural influences.

Topics: Arts & Culture; People

Keywords: colonialism; migration; race

Captive memories: Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and the Far East POW experience

Captive memories: Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine and the Far East POW experience
The FEPOW (Far East prisoners of war) Oral History Project was established in 2007 with the aim of recording the memories and long-term perspectives of British FEPOW who spent time in Japanese captivity during the Second World War. The project was a partnership between the Imperial War Museum Sound Archive and the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM), which has had a long-term interest in the health of FEPOW spanning the past six decades. Interviewees were drawn from a wide cross-section of services (Army, Navy, Air Force and Merchant Navy), ranks and areas of captivity. An audio clip from each of the 63 interviews is accessible online, alongside a brief biography of the interviewee. The clips are searchable by interviewee name, country, camp and ship (transportation and repatriation), or browsable by theme.

Topics: Science & Medicine; War & Conflict

Keywords: military history; POW; WWII

East West Festive Cultures

East West Festive Cultures - Oral History Archives
This project set out to consider the differences between Chinese and British festivals. Three different groups of people were interviewed, including those who moved to the UK a long time ago, mixed marriage Chinese who share and celebrate both East and West festivals, and finally Chinese or half-Chinese individuals born or brought up in the UK. 11 audio recordings are available online, in both a short and full version, along with complete interview transcripts.

Topics: Arts & Culture; People

Keywords: community; festivals; migration

The Immigrants Project

The Immigrants Project [archived on the Wayback Machine]
This oral history project established in 2006 recorded the stories and experiences of people from all over the world who came to settle in Reading. 22 interview transcripts are available to read online and extracts from the interviews can also be searched by selected themes, including Childhood, Children’s Identity, Community, Economic Situation, Education & Training, Family Values, Food, Jobs, Old Reading, Political Situation, Racism, Self Sufficiency, and Where Home Is.

Topics: People

Keywords: childhood; community; education; family; migration; race; refugees; work

Korea: recollections of the Korean War

Korea: recollections of the Korean War
To mark the fiftieth anniversary of the start of the Korean War, the Imperial War Museum created this site which includes 8 short audio extracts from interviews with Korean War veterans. The Sound Archive has been interviewing Korean War veterans since 1990 and the full audio interviews are available to listen to at the Imperial War Museum, London.

Topics: War & Conflict

Keywords: military history

My Leicestershire History

East Midlands Oral History Archive (EMOHA)
Amongst other sources related to the history of the area, this website provides online access to approximately 150 complete audio recordings held by the East Midlands Oral History Archive (EMOHA). The interviews primarily relate to life in Leicestershire from the turn of the century to the 1930s and cover a wide variety of topics from WWI to influenza, education and work. A number of recordings also relate to the interviewees experiences abroad, particularly in India. The interviews are all summarised and categorised and available to search by keyword.

Topics: Arts & Culture; Education; People; Politics & Government; Science & Medicine; War & Conflict; Work

Keywords: agriculture; community; engineering; family; religion; WW1

South Asian oral history archive

South Asian oral history archive
This resource provides online access to large portions of oral history and other sound recordings held by The Centre of South Asian Studies, University of Cambridge. The list of interviews is arranged alphabetically by interviewee name. The interview transcripts have also been indexed making them keyword searchable. The collection of interviews, captured in India, the U.K. and the USA, is very wide ranging and includes details of the lives and careers of members of the British Army based in India. A small collection of recordings of music and unusual languages is also accessible online.

Topics: Arts & Culture; People; Politics & Government; War & Conflict; Work

Keywords: colonialism; education; industry; journalism; language; missionary; music; politics; women

The Spanish Civil War: Dreams + Nightmares

The Spanish Civil War collection : Sound Archive oral history recordings
To mark the 40th Anniversary Reunion of the International Brigade Association, in 1976, the IWM Sound Archive established an oral history project to record the experiences and memories of individuals involved in the Spanish Civil War. The collection is largely made up of interviews with British International Brigade volunteers, but there are also recordings of interviews with medical aid workers, non-British volunteers, Spanish soldiers, Spanish civilians and refugees, and a few with individuals who fought for Franco. Six short extracts from these interviews are available to read and listen to online. The complete collection is accessible at IWM London.

Topics: War & Conflict

Keywords: military history; politics; Spanish Civil War

World Bank Group Archives’ Oral History Program

World Bank Group Archives’ Oral History Program: The interviews recorded by the World Bank Group Archives’ Oral History Program present a powerful picture of the World Bank Group from its post-Bretton Woods beginnings to the present day. Its history, its evolution, and its staff are all vividly portrayed in these transcripts. The program, which began in 1960, was restarted in 1981, and has continued from 1990 to the present day, in four distinct phases. These Bank oral history interviews are supplemented by interviews conducted for three separate projects: a history of Bank President George Woods; the 50th anniversary history of the Bank; and a history of the Staff Association. Some persons were interviewed for more than one project.

These interview transcripts serve as learning and knowledge tools for Bank staff, its partners, clients and researchers who are interested in learning more about the Bank’s development practices and policies.

Oral History - guide to resources: International

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