Constructing Social Space during Displacement: Ethnographic Perspectives from the IDP Settlement of Khurvaleti

This article examines the construction of social space among the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) of Georgia residing in the settlement of Khurvaleti, with particular attention to how displaced communities reconstruct identity, memory, and social cohesion through everyday practices. Based on ethnographic fieldwork, the analysis explores how spatial experience is shaped not only by material conditions but also by symbolic, emotional, and embodied engagements with place. Concepts such as transitional states of belonging, the tension between physical dwellings and emotional attachments, and the significance of everyday memory practices guide the interpretation of data. The findings reveal that IDPs actively participate in gardening, agriculture, and ritual practices as symbolic means of bridging present experiences with their pre-displacement lives, expressing both nostalgia and pragmatic adaptation. Agricultural activities – particularly gardening and fruit tree cultivation – emerge as key mediators of memory and identity, reinforcing a sense of continuity with the past through embodied engagement with the environment. At the same time, the settlement is marked by ambiguity and a persistent search for rootedness, reflecting the emotional complexities of displacement. These spatial and emotional dynamics highlight the interweaving of structure and sentiment in the creation of a sense of home. Ultimately, the article argues that social space in Khurvaleti is continually produced and contested through everyday practices and communal interactions, demonstrating how IDPs actively negotiate continuity and transformation within disrupted lifeworlds.