‘In a village, everybody knows the stranger’: Constructing local belonging of refugees in rural areas in Germany

Abstract This article explores the local belonging of refugees in rural areas in Germany from the perspectives of both migrants and local integration actors. It analyses the development of a personal sense of belonging and the construction of the politics of belonging, with the aim of understanding belonging as a socio‐spatial process. The analysis is based on 64 semi‐structured and semi‐narrative qualitative interviews conducted in eight rural communities and small towns in different regions across Germany. The findings indicate that the sense of belonging to rural localities among refugees is influenced not only by personal and biographical experiences but also by overarching policies and administrative practices. They also reflect the expectations of the receiving communities, which imply imaginaries of rural communities. In addition to convivial everyday experiences, the demarcation of boundaries in everyday life appears to be particularly powerful for a sense of belonging.