"This house belonged to Mendel Lis": Poles Requesting Jewish Houses Immediately after the Holocaust

Offering a microhistorical analysis of the Polish population's vocabulary and language during the postwar allocation of Jewish real estate to non-Jewish Poles - this article shows how Poles negotiated, conceptualized, understood, and normalized this process. Analyzing the colloquial postwar discourse concerning Jewish houses and closely reading Polish inhabitants' written requests reveals how Poles used various linguistic patterns to come to terms with the implications of the war, and establish their right to "inherit"their former neighbors' property. Focusing on one town, the article provides a valuable glimpse into the atmosphere and norms that shaped Polish-Jewish relations from the end of the war to the present day. It also elucidates the ambivalences, unease, and uncertainties expressed in communal debates on the future of Jewish property.