Subregion of the European continent
Digital rendering of Europe , focused over the continent's eastern portion
Eastern Europe is a subregion of the European continent . As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. Its eastern boundary is marked by the Ural Mountains , whilst its western boundary is defined in various ways.[ 1] Most definitions include the countries of Belarus , Russia , Ukraine , Moldova , and Romania while less restrictive definitions may also include some or all of the Balkans , the Baltic states , the Caucasus , and the Visegrád group .[ 2] [ 3]
The region represents a significant part of European culture ; the main socio-cultural characteristics of Eastern Europe have historically been defined by the traditions of the East Slavs and Greeks , as well as by the influence of Eastern Christianity as it developed through the Eastern Roman Empire and the Ottoman Empire .[ 4] [ 5] Another definition was created by the Cold War , as Europe was ideologically divided by the Iron Curtain , with "Eastern Europe" being synonymous with communist states constituting the Eastern Bloc under the influence of the Soviet Union .[ 5] [ 6] [ 7] [ 8] [ 9] [ 4] [ 10] [ 11]
The term is sometimes considered to be pejorative, through stereotypes about Eastern Europe being inferior (poorer, less developed) to Western Europe ; the term Central and Eastern Europe is sometimes used for a more neutral grouping.[ 12] [ 13] [ 14] [ 15] [ 16]
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^ a b Ramet, Sabrina P. (1998). Eastern Europe: politics, culture, and society since 1939 . Indiana University Press . p. 15. ISBN 978-0253212566 . Archived from the original on 30 March 2024. Retrieved 5 October 2011 .
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^ [1] Archived 3 April 2015 at the Wayback Machine . Eurovoc.europa.eu. Retrieved on 4 March 2015.
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^ Mälksoo, Maria (4 May 2019). "The normative threat of subtle subversion: the return of 'Eastern Europe' as an ontological insecurity trope" . Cambridge Review of International Affairs . 32 (3): 365–383. doi :10.1080/09557571.2019.1590314 . ISSN 0955-7571 . S2CID 159184190 . Archived from the original on 2024-03-30. Retrieved 2022-11-16 .
^ Twardzisz, Piotr (25 April 2018). Defining 'Eastern Europe': A Semantic Inquiry into Political Terminology . Springer. p. 18. ISBN 978-3-319-77374-2 . Archived from the original on 2023-06-29. Retrieved 2023-01-03 .
^ Hall, Derek (July 1999). "Destination branding, niche marketing and national image projection in Central and Eastern Europe" . Journal of Vacation Marketing . 5 (3): 227–237. doi :10.1177/135676679900500303 . ISSN 1356-7667 . S2CID 154698941 .
^ Zarycki, Tomasz (2014). Ideologies of Eastness in Central and Eastern Europe . doi :10.4324/9781315819006 . ISBN 9781317818571 . S2CID 129401740 . Archived from the original on 2022-11-16. Retrieved 2022-11-16 .
^ "Eastern promise and Western pretension – DW – 09/07/2018" . dw.com . Archived from the original on 2022-11-16. Retrieved 2022-11-16 .