Gastfreundschaft der Kulturen
Der Weg zwischen Multikulti und neuem Nationalismus
📕 E-BookWhat makes a host culture — and why is its awareness of itself the very precondition for successful integration? Johannes Heinrichs attempts a sober investigation committed to thinking, beyond party politics, camp mentality and hysteria.
As early as 1994 — years before the German debate on a “guiding culture” (Leitkultur) — Heinrichs introduced the concept of the host primary culture. His central thesis: a multicultural society in the sense of complete parity of all cultures is neither realistic nor desirable. Only the distinction between host culture and guest culture makes a cultivated coexistence possible. Cultures brought along enjoy, as secondary cultures, a right of hospitality within the primary culture — without the individuals having to remain mere guests.
What is decisive here: an enlightened awareness of cultural identity has nothing in common with nationalism. On the contrary — it is the condition for successful integration. These basic rules, gained from reason, are, according to Heinrichs, disregarded by left-wing multicultural ideologues as much as by right-wing nationalists, and ignored by the political centre.
This edition
The second, expanded new edition (first published by ibidem in 2017) supplements the first edition with:
- the essay Kulturelle Solidarität — der unerkannte Kern des Migrationsproblems (Cultural Solidarity — the Unrecognised Core of the Migration Problem)
- a critical open letter to Bassam Tibi, who coined the concept of Leitkultur
- a summary, “Ergebnisse und Ergänzungen” (Results and Additions)
A contribution to bringing objectivity to a debate that is particularly difficult to conduct in Germany — and one that has gained in topicality through the migration question.
Reflexivity Press · Collected Works vol. 36 · 220 pages · first edition 1994, expanded new edition 2017 (ibidem)
Bibliography
- Year
- 2025
- Edition
- Johannes Heinrichs Edition
- Series
- Gesammelte Werke (Volume 36)
- Licence
- Copyright
Electronic original edition: This edition is page-identical with the edition of 2017 (ibidem-Verlag, Stuttgart); the first edition appeared in 1994 (Die Blaue Eule, Essen). Page numbers and typesetting match the original and can be cited without restriction. Only the front matter, the imprint and the author biography have been renewed for this Reflexivity Press edition.
Where to buy
Price: 19.90 EUR/USD
| Language | Books | Format | Buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🇩🇪 Deutsch | Gastfreundschaft der Kulturen |