Leslie Moch, born in Seattle, Washington, USA, in 1944. Ph.D. from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Professor of History at Michigan State University, East Lansing.
Fellow (1 September 2007 – 30 June 2008)
BRETONS IN PARIS: A HISTORY OF INTERNAL MIGRATION, NATIONAL INTEGRATION, AND INCLUSION/EXCLUSION
NIAS gave me a year to write, and as I had hoped, I was able to start and complete the manuscript for “The Pariahs of Yesterday: Bretons in Paris” – an historical study of the complex processes of migration and national integration. Aided by the facilities of the NIAS library, I was able to consult contemporary and historical publications. Aided by the research and computer staff, I was able to have a bibliography constructed and to employ voice recognition software. The wit and wisdom of the fellows, to say nothing of their informed conversation, gave me new insights and bibliographical suggestions for the problem under study. At the same time, I was able to discuss my work in scholarly forums in The Hague and at the University of Amsterdam, and well as participate in Posthumus Institute programs in Amsterdam and Leiden that familiarized me with the impressive Dutch and Belgian Ph.D. programmes.