Editorial introduction: Locating geographies of Diaspora

This special issue of the International Journal of Population Geography continues a theme raised in previous issues, that is, the perceived need for a greater engagement between population geography and other parts of the discipline and of the social sciences more generally. It is suggested that new approaches to the study of geographies of international migration, such as diaspora studies, may represent a valuable space of interdisciplinary connection. In this spirit, this special issue on Geographies of Diaspora aims to demonstrate the contribution that geographers can make to the study of diaspora, as well as the potential for geographies of diaspora to enable a greater engagement between population geography, human geography and other disciplines. Papers by Paul White, Kathy Burrell, Michael Samers, David Howard, Alison Blunt and Yvonne McKenna all contribute to our understandings of diasporic groups and processes, while engaging with current debates in the theorisation of diasporas and transnationalism. A particular contribution of this collection is its demonstration of the potential for approaches grounded in everyday practices or in political/economic structures to address critiques of postmodern approaches to diaspora, without losing the value of non-essentialised approaches to identity. Furthermore, the papers demonstrate the need for approaches that can recognise the specificity of diasporic experiences and the contingency of historical and material processes that give rise to different diaspora spaces. The special issue, then, contributes to the ongoing re-conceptualisation of the concept of diaspora, and reflects the contribution that can be made to this process by geographical approaches.