An Experience of Decollectivisation in Search of its European Itinerary: The Case of Lithuania

After the fall of the Iron Curtain, the post-communist European countries embarked on a process of decollectivisation, which, due to the historical legacy, the political environment, and the methods of privatisation chosen in each country, had its specific features and which has created a mosaic of agrarian structures in the old continent. Lithuania, having experienced Soviet collectivism, has returned to the model of family farms that was created during the interwar period. However, family farms which vary in size and production objectives coexist with agricultural enterprises with different legal statuses. This paper aims to analyse the mutation and territorial spread of agrarian structures in the face of radically changing political and economic contexts. Taking into consideration the lasting nature of territorial structures, it is necessary to assess the role of the historical factor in the transformation of rural areas and to determine how inherited territorial structures influence the adaptation of the new agrarian structures in the area. The transformation of agrarian structures is analysed at national and municipal territorial levels.