Introduction

Abstract

The Guest Session makes a contribution to advance conceptual and applied research on borders by paving the way for a more continued dialogue between the emerging interdisciplinary field of critical border studies and anthropology. Specifically, this collection of articles sets out to do two things. On the one hand, to explore the potential of anthropological knowledge, methods, and practice for advancing research on borders and the border-migration nexus. On the other hand, to reflect on how borders are a stimulating research topic to push anthropological theoretical and empirical research forward. Far from being marginal in anthropological knowledge, borders should be regarded as a prominent “laboratory” where anthropologists can search and find appropriate analytical tools to respond to major challenges of the contemporary world. Or, taking up Fabietti’s (1997) pioneering argument, developing an “ethnography of borders” actually means developing an “ethnography of the contemporary”.

Keywords

• critical border studies
• anthropology
• bordering
• border-migration nexus
• ethnography of the contemporary