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Nakon proglašenja samostalnosti i suverenosti te međunarodnog priznanja Republike Hrvatske među znanstvenicima društvenih i humanističkih znanosti pojačan je interes za istraživanja hrvatskog iseljeništva u svijetu i Australiji. Radovi posvećeni ovoj kategoriji hrvatskog iseljeništva ponajviše propituju povijesni i kulturni aspekt hrvatske dijaspore, pitanje učenja i brige o hrvatskom jeziku među potomcima iseljenika, život političkih organizacija, hrvatskih katoličkih misija i društvenih institucija. Stoga se nametnula potreba za sveobuhvatnijim, interdisciplinarnim pristupom izučavanju hrvatske dijaspore, osobito u razdoblju kad je bila u punom zamahu stvaranja jezgre oko koje će se okupljati novi pridošlice, u rasponu od gotovo pola stoljeća na primjeru Hrvata u Australiji. Trebalo je istražiti manje poznata područja iseljeničkog iskustva jer su ondje pohranjene mnoge sastavnice koje utječu na život u dijaspori, na emocionalni i duhovni obzor zajednice, na traume i osjećaj 'drugosti' i otuđenja. Nametnulo se i pitanje pozicije hrvatskih žena u australskom društvu i obitelji o čemu se vrlo malo zna. Na posljetku, trebalo je dokazati ispravnost hipoteza o etno-nacionalnom karakteru hrvatske dijaspore, o ulozi mita o povratku u stvaranju i održavanju dijasporske svijesti, o stvaranju dijasporskih institucija kojima se gradio i održavao odnos dijaspore spram domovine porijekla i mainstreama Australije. Pokazalo se da je pojam mita o povratku nedovoljno istražen iako je sveprisutan fenomen u svim klasičnim dijasporama pa tako i u slučaju hrvatske dijaspore. Uočljivo je da se fenomen mita o povratku veže uz pojam dijaspore u gotovo svih teoretičara selilaštva do kasnih 80-ih, ali i u radovima brojnih teoretičara postmoderne kad nove interpretacije pojma dijaspora osvajaju područje društvenih i humanističkih znanosti. Trebalo je također razlučiti između pojmova mita i sna, između individualne žudnje i složenog društvenog konstrukta koji gradi dijaspora, a koji je istovremeno "materijal" za formiranje lepeze društvenih institucija dijaspore u kontekstu vremena i prostora izglobljenosti. Paradoksalno, institucije koje je stvarala da bi sačuvala identitet poslužit će dijaspori da lakše prebrodi proces akulturacije i odvajanja od stare domovine u procesu konstruiranja novog identiteta i umještanja u društvo mainstreama zemlje primateljice. Ovaj doktorski rad sastoji se od tri dijela čime je otvorena mogućnost sagledavanja fenomena dijaspore i uloge mita unutar dijasporske zajednice s tri različite pozicije (teorijske, povijesne i etnografske). Nakon uvodnog dijela u I. poglavlju, u II., III. i IV. poglavlju predstavljena su četiri osnovna pojma vezano za problematiku dijaspore: mit o povratku, značenjske mutacije samoga pojma dijaspore iz očišta eminentnih teoretičara dijaspore te pojmovi "dom" i "domovina" koji su u uskoj svezi s pojmom dijaspore. U navedena tri poglavlja prikazana su iskustva drugih teoretičara dijaspore koji se susreću sa sličnim problemima, procesima, i fenomenima kao i istraživač hrvatske dijaspore. U imaginariju i diskursima koje njeguje dijaspora neophodno je bilo objasniti pojam doma i domovine u smislu kako ih doživljava prosječan predstavnik hrvatskog iseljenika kao i mit o povratku i njegovu funkciju u razvoju dijasporske zajednice. U radu se analiziraju stavovi četvorice teoretičara dijaspore koji su dali značajan doprinos razvoju izučavanja transnacionalnih zajednica. To su William Safran, Robin Cohen, Fernando F. Segovia i Paul Gilroy. U V. poglavlju (u drugom, središnjem dijelu disertacije) donosi se povijesni pregled useljavanja Hrvata u Australiju s naglaskom na dva modela stvaranja institucija, političkog organiziranja i čuvanja identiteta i veza s domovinom (u hrvatskim zajednicama u Melbourneu i Sydneyu). Među hrvatskim doseljenicima rano se razvila politička aktivnost, formirane su brojne političke organizacije koje su bile isključivo podređene cilju stvaranja hrvatske države. Usprkos činjenici da su djelovale s različitih političkih opcija i da nisu bile jedinstvene po pitanju metoda djelovanja, ono što je povezivalo sve političke organizacije bila je ideja slobodne Hrvatske. Pripadnike dijaspore australska politička scena nije osobito zanimala pa nisu imali potrebu da se aktiviraju u stranačkom životu mainstreama. Nesporazumi i napetosti između predstavnika hrvatske zajednice i političkih vođa s predstavnicima australskih vlasti i australskom javnošću uglavnom su bili provocirani od strane indoktriniranih pojedinaca ili pak, jugoslavenskih tajnih službi koje su djelovale i na tlu Australije. U ovom poglavlju razmatraju se i drugi oblici društvenog i kulturnog života hrvatske dijaspore u Australiji. Osobito je važno pitanje identiteta, oblici zabave i kulturnih praksi, djelovanje katoličkih centara i stanje hrvatskog jezika u obitelji. Glavni čuvari nacionalne svijesti u hrvatskoj dijaspori u Australiji su svećenici u hrvatskim katoličkim centrima. Osim što su bili čuvari vjerskog života, većinom su bili inicijatori i kreatori politika, novih institucija i drugih oblika organiziranih aktivnosti hrvatske zajednice u Australiji. Drugi čimbenik kao "alat" posredovanja između iseljeničke zajednice i domovine bili su tiskani mediji, političke tribine, radio satovi i informativni centri. Bilo je potrebno osvrnuti se i na pitanje procesa hibridizacije i "pomicanja" identiteta nove generacije australskih Hrvata, rođenih i školovanih u Australiji. Ti su Hrvati druge generacije polako gradili most spram australskog mainstreama, ali se nisu do kraja oslobodili osjećaja podijeljene naklonosti. Što se tiče hrvatskih žena, za razliku od Australki Anglo Keltskog porijekla, koje su već koncem 19. stoljeća podržavale sufražetski pokret i izborile pravo glasa početkom 20. stoljeća, Hrvatice, kao i većina žena drugih etničkih grupa, živjele su u izoliranim etničkim getima naučene na način života i ulogu žene kakav su poznavale u zavičaju gdje su odrasle. Navike iz konzervativne sredine u kojima su oblikovale svoj identitet majke i supruge, ponijele su i u Australiju, u zemlju čiji jezik nisu poznavale zbog čega su ostale daleko od života mainstreama. Čak i onda kad su počele raditi i privređivati izvan doma prošle su težak put oslobađanja iz svoga etničkog geta. Prva mjesta za društvenu interakciju Hrvatica bila su filantropska društva koja su same osnivale i vodile te kulturne udruge koje su im omogućavale kontakt s drugim etničkim grupama i društvom zemlje domaćina. VI. poglavlje donosi sedam životnih priča australskih Hrvata koje pružaju uvid u osobna iskustva iseljeničkog života pripovjedača, ali i u proces stvaranja dijaspore te u dinamiku društvenih odnosa u hrvatskoj zajednici u Australiji. Autori priča su Tomislav Gavranić, Carol Susan Su Mijić koja pripovijeda o svome suprugu Petru Mijiću, Dragica Hedješ, Drago Šaravanja, Luka Budak, Duška Tomašić i Vladimir Mark Jakopanec. Sudionici ovog istraživanja u svemu su različiti: dob, obrazovanje, vrijeme useljavanja, profesija. Jedina poveznica među njima je činjenica da su uključeni u procese dijaspore. Osim osobnih pripovijesti sedmoro sudionika istraživanja, disertacija donosi brojne komentare, mišljenja i izjave pojedinaca vezanih osobnim sudbinama za iskustvo dijaspore. Nakon dubinskog istraživanja teme mita o povratku u hrvatskoj dijaspori u Australiji, koji se upleo u sve oblike društvenog djelovanja dijasporske zajednice u obliku velikog narativa o mesijanskoj ulozi dijaspore u borbi za osamostaljenje Hrvatske, može se zaključiti da su hipoteze postavljene na početku ovog doktorskog rada i provjerene induktivnom metodom istraživanja bile ispravne. Pokazalo se da je hrvatska dijaspora društvena formacija koja odgovara definiciji klasične dijaspore, jer je nastala na etno-nacionalnom supstratu, svojim je transgraničnim vezama bila trajno okrenuta zemlji odselidbe, a u transnacionalnom prostoru, ostalim djasporskim zajednicama i grupacijama, stvarala je institucije radi očuvanja nacionalnog identiteta i funkcioniranja zajednice, gajila je mit o povratku kao narativ za učvršćivanje institucija i povezivanje unutar svoje grupe, te je zahvaljujući tim institucijama osigurala pretpostavku za postupnu integraciju u društvo domaćina. Heuristički pristup temi mita o povratku potvrdio je pretpostavku o terapijskom karakteru mita o povratku tamo gdje je psihička trauma bila evidentna i gdje i druge dijaspore imaju slična iskustva. Mit o povratku poslužio je kolektivnoj svijesti kao lijepilo ili balzam na rane iseljenih. Naposljetku, hrvatska je dijaspora u rasponu od završetka 2. svjetskog rata do međunarodnog priznanja Republike Hrvatske bila snažnija, kompaktnija i razvijenija društvena formacija što je politička i društvena situacija u Hrvatskoj bila kompleksnija i neizvjesnija, a cilj borbe za državu teže dohvatljiv, jer program koji si je zacrtala nije bio pravi povratak, nego legitimiranje vlastitog identiteta 'drugosti' u odnosu na društvo mainstreama kojega je mogla ostvariti jedino međunarodnim priznanjem njezina nacionalnog identiteta. Zaključno, proces ubrzane integracije pripadnika hrvatske dijaspore u australsko društvo u punom je zamahu kao i rastakanje hrvatske dijasporske zajednice kakvu smo poznavali do 90-ih godina 20. stoljeća. After the proclamation of independence and sovereignty as well as the international recognition of the Republic of Croatia, interest in the study of Croatian emigrants in the world and Australia increased among scientists in the social sciences and humanities. Research dedicated to this category of Croatian emigrants mainly deals with historical and cultural aspects of Croatian emigration, learning and caring for the Croatian language among the descendants of emigrants, the life of political organizations, Croatian Catholic missions, and social institutions of Croats in Australia. Therefore, there was a need for a more comprehensive, interdisciplinary approach to the study of the Croatian diaspora, especially at a time when the creation of a core around which newcomers gathered for almost half a century was in full swing. Lesser-known areas of the emigrant experience needed to be explored as it contained many components that affect the life of the diaspora, the emotional and spiritual outlook of the community, the trauma and feelings of ‘otherness’ and alienation. The question of the position of Croatian women in Australian society and family, about which very little is known, was also raised. Finally, it was necessary to prove the accuracy of hypotheses about the ethno-national character of the Croatian diaspora, the role of the myth of return in creating and maintaining national consciousness of the diaspora, creating diaspora institutions that built and maintained the relationship with the old homeland, as well as towards the mainstream society of Australia. It turned out that the concept of the myth of return is insufficiently researched, although it is a ubiquitous phenomenon in all classical diasporas, including the Croatian diaspora. It is noticeable that the phenomenon of the myth of return is associated with the concept of diaspora in all theorists of migration until the late 80's, but also in the works of many postmodern theorists when new interpretations of the Diaspora overtook the social sciences and humanities. It was also necessary to distinguish between the concepts of myth and dream, between individual desire and the complex social construct created by the Diaspora, which is at the same time "material" for forming a range of social institutions of the diaspora in the context of time and space. Paradoxically, the institutions she created to preserve her identity will allow the Diaspora to more easily overcome the process of acculturation and separation from the old homeland in the process of constructing a new identity. This doctoral thesis consists of three parts, which open the possibility of understanding the phenomenon of the diaspora and the role of myth within the diaspora community from three different positions (theoretical, historical, and ethnographic). After the introductory part in Chapter I, follow chapters II., III., and IV. The first part of the paper presents four basic concepts related to the diaspora: the myth of return, semantic mutations of the term diaspora from the point of view of eminent diaspora theorists, and the concepts of "home" and "homeland" which are closely related to the diaspora. The three chapters listed above represent the experiences of other diaspora theorists who encounter similar problems, processes, and phenomena as the Croatian diaspora researcher. In the imagery and discourses nurtured by the diaspora, it was necessary to explain the concept of home and homeland in terms of how they are perceived by the average Croatian emigrant and the myth of return as well as its function in the development of the diaspora community. The paper analyses the views of four diaspora theorists who have made significant contributions to the development of the study of transnational communities. These are William Safran, Robin Cohen, Fernando F. Segovia, and Paul Gilroy. Chapter V. (the second, central part of the dissertation) provides a historical overview of the Croatian immigration to Australia with an emphasis on two models of institution building, political organization and preservation of identity and ties to the homeland (the Croatian communities in Melbourne and Sydney). Political activity developed early among Croatian immigrants, and numerous political organizations were formed that were exclusively subordinated to the goal of creating the Croatian state. Despite the fact that they acted from different political options and were not united in terms of methods of action, what connected all political organizations was the idea of a free Croatia. Members of the diaspora were not particularly interested in the Australian political scene, so they did not need to be active in the political life of the mainstream. Disagreements and tensions between representatives of the Croatian community and political leaders with representatives of the Australian authorities and the Australian public were mainly triggered by indoctrinated individuals and the Yugoslav secret services, which also operated in Australia. This chapter also discusses other forms of social and cultural life of the Croatian diaspora in Australia. The issue of identity, forms of cultural practices, religiosity, and the state of the Croatian language in the family is particularly important. The main guardians of national consciousness in the Croatian diaspora in Australia are Croatian Catholic centres. Apart from being the centres of religious life, they were mostly the initiators and creators of policies, new institutions as well as other forms of organized activities of the Croatian community in Australia. Another factor as a "tool" of mediation between the emigrant community and the homeland was the print media, political forums, radio shows and information centres. It was also necessary to address the issue of the process of hybridization and identity "shifting" of the new generation of Australian Croats, born and educated in Australia. These second-generation Croats were slowly building a bridge to the Australian mainstream, but they did not completely abandon the feeling of shared affections. Unlike Australian women of Anglo-Celtic descent, who supported the suffragette movement in the late 19th century and won the right to vote in the early 20th century, Croats, like most women of other ethnic groups, lived in isolated ethnic ghettos accustomed to lifestyles and roles aligned with women as they knew them in their homelands. Habits from the conservative environment in which mothers and wives formed their identities were taken to Australia, a country whose language they did not know, which is why they stayed away from the mainstream life. Even when they started working and earning money outside the home, they went through a difficult path of liberation from their ethnic ghetto. The first places for the social interaction of Croatian women were philanthropic societies, which they themselves founded and led, and cultural associations that enabled them to make contact with other ethnic groups and the society of the host country. Chapter VI brings seven life stories of Australian Croats that provide insight into the personal experiences of the emigrant life of the narrator, but also in the process of creating a diaspora and the dynamics of social relations in the Croatian community in Australia. The authors of the stories are Tomislav Gavranić, Carol Susan Su Mijić who tells stories about her husband Petar Mijić, Dragica Hedješ, Drago Šaravanja, Luka Budak, DuškaTomašić and Vladimir Mark Jakopanec. The participants in this research are different in everything: age, education, time of immigration. The only link between them is the fact that they are involved in the processes of the diaspora. In addition to the personal narratives of the seven research participants, the dissertation brings numerous comments, opinions, and statements from individuals related to personal destinies within the diaspora experience. After in-depth research on the myth of return in the Croatian diaspora in Australia, which involved all forms of social activity of the diaspora community in the form of a great narrative about the messianic role of the diaspora in the struggle for Croatian independence, it can be concluded that hypotheses set at the beginning were valid. Furthermore, the research method was correct because it turned out that the Croatian diaspora is a social formation that meets the definition of the classical diaspora because because it was created on an ethnonational substrate, with its cross-border connections it was permanently oriented toward the country of emigration. In the transnational space, it was oriented toward other diasporic communities and groups. It created institutions to preserve the national identity and functioning of the community, and it nurtured the myth of return as a narrative for the consolidation of institutions and connections within its group. Thanks to these institutions it provided the prerequisite for acculturation and gradual integration into the host society. The heuristic approach to the topic of the myth of return confirmed the assumption about the therapeutic character of the myth of return where psychological trauma is evident and other diasporas have similar experiences. The myth of return served the collective consciousness as a glue or balm to the wounds of the emigrants’ souls. Finally, the Croatian Diaspora, since the end of World War II. and all the way up to the international recognition of the Republic of Croatia, was a stronger, more compact, and more developed social formation at the time when the political and social situation in Croatia was more complex and uncertain, and the goal of the struggle for the state more difficult. Hence, the myth which was maintained in the Croatian community was not a real yearning to return to the homeland but rather the need for legitimizing one's own identity of "otherness" in front of mainstream society. In conclusion, the process of accelerated integration of members of the Croatian diaspora into Australian society is in full swing, as is the dissolution of the Croatian diaspora community as we knew it.