The image of the Bohemian Forest in Czech and German-written literature since 1945. Landscape lost and rediscovered homeland, the space of meeting and passing by of the nationes

The image of the Bohemian Forest in Czech as well as in German written literature is above all determined by the troubled geopolitical development of this region. Most of Czech texts about Šumava originated during the time of the communist regime, while German-writing authors concern themselves with this theme mainly only after the year 1989. The Bohemian Forest is usually considered an area on the Czech side of the border by the Czechs, German-writing authors, on the contrary, regard the Bohemian Forest, i.e. "Böhmerwald" as a region going beyond borders, belonging geographically, historically and culturally to the borderland of the three states. The Bohemian Forest represents landscape as well as civilisation in both Czech and German written texts. Literature reflects particularly on current topics such as, for example, nature preservation, vanished German villages, the rediscovery of the Bohemian Forest after the year 1989 and others. Authors writing in Czech as well as ones writing in German also deal with the problem of relationships between the Czech and the Germans