Letters between Guatemala and Germany: A family correspondence from the time of National Socialism (1935-1939)

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• 1. Project Group
• 2. Short description

1. Project Group

Scholars

• Dr. Ricarda Musser   
• Daniel Cuesta Ágredo   

IAI staff

• Toni Matzdorf   
• Christina Billand   
• Ariane Herms   

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2. Short description

Point of departure

In 2017, the IAI acquired an estate consisting of around 350 letters and postcards and a photo album. These objects come from the estate of Carlos Becker, who came from Guatemala, where his family lived and where he was born, to Hamburg in 1935 at the age of 18 to complete a vocational training course. 

Carlos Becker was the recipient of these letters and postcards. He received almost all of these items from his parents, siblings and friends in Guatemala; a few came from other members of his family and acquaintances in Germany. Some of the correspondence from Guatemala is in Spanish, some in German. There are also frequent switches between languages within a letter, as well as letters that are composed of texts from several authors. The first letter in the bundle is dated July 15, 1935 the last is dated September 14, 1939.

The letters and postcards that Carlos Becker sent to Guatemala are not available. 

It seems that Carlos Becker has originally brought the photo album with some photographs of his family with him from Guatemala. He continuously added photos that his family enclosed with their correspondence and photos taken in his new living environment in Hamburg.  

Even before the First World War, around 1,000 people from German-speaking territories lived in Guatemala. A large proportion of them worked in agriculture, with coffee cultivation being the most important economic sector. However, Carlos Becker's father ran a banana plantation and supplied the United Fruit Company. National Socialism and the Second World War had a decisive influence on the Becker family's fate. Due to the military service that Carlos Becker completed in Germany after finishing his education, he lost his Guatemalan citizenship. This complicated his return to Guatemala and in the last letter of the bundle his father expresses his concern about Carlos Becker's whereabouts, as their contact had been interrupted.

The Becker family's letters from Guatemala report on everyday life in the so-called "German colony", economic successes and failures, as well as plans for the future. Political events in Germany and Guatemala are also discussed in detail in the letters. Another important topic of the letters are questions of multiple identities and affiliations between two continents (including different languages, cultural practices and norms, representations). Interesting references can be made here to current social debates on migration processes between Germany and Latin America.

The collection of letters and the photo album form the basis of the research project.

Objectives

The aim of the research project is to use the microhistory approach to gain new insights into the perception and confrontation of German-speaking migrants in Guatemala with National Socialism as well as questions of identity between two continents. The overall aim is to contribute to the research into historical migration processes and the reconnection of migrants to their country of origin. The current social debates on migration processes between Germany and Latin America will also be addressed. 

Task Schedule

11/23-02/24 Transcription of letters and postcards

03/24-04/24 Familiarization with the software ediarum

05/24-02/25 Research in archives and libraries, systematization and analysis of the information with the aim of scientific commentary and contextualization of the letter edition, creation of the commentary apparatus, identification and acquisition of introductory scientific contributions for the printed and electronic version of the edition

03/25-05/25 Finalizing the manuscript

06/25-09/25 Preparation of a scientific colloquium, participation with presentations on the project at national and international conferences 

10/25 Organization of a virtual scientific colloquium on historical transatlantic migration with scientists from Latin America and Europe and presentation of the scientific edition of the letters

Milestones

- Presentation of the results of the project at the 70th Annual Conference of SALALM (Seminar on the Acquisition of Latin American Library Materials) 2025 and the 55th German Historians' Conference 2025

- Publication of the scholarly edition of the letter collection in virtual and conventional form

- Organization of a virtual scientific colloquium with participants from Latin America and Europe on questions of historical migration and identity between Germany and Central America

Expected Results

The edition of the Becker family's letters contributes to the history of migration and remigration between Germany and Guatemala in the 20th century from the perspective of micro-historical research. Research on biographically oriented historical migration processes between Germany and Latin America has rarely focused on the countries of Central America. The project will provide new insights into this.  

The publication, the presentation of the results at national and international conferences and the organization of a virtual colloquium will make the source material known, stimulate interdisciplinary discussions and promote new collaborations.