Analysing border geographies in times of COVID-19

When a new type of coronavirus was first reported in China in December 2019, it was not yet clear how rapidly and in what a short time frame COVID-19 would affect the entire world. In January 2020, Wuhan, the capital of Hubei, was quarantined and just two months later, the virus had spread to Central Europe; a subsequent wave of infections followed in many places, including the United States. As a result, presumed certainties began to erode: freedom of movement was restricted, entry restrictions were imposed and, paradoxically, precisely 25 years after the Schengen Agreement came into force, many EU internal borders were closed. This article focuses on these border closings, but also deals with drawing social boundaries in the wake of the pandemic. Thus, the border geographies examined range from the subject level to the global level and will be put into context with the security measures that have been introduced, the orderings and ordinances used, political re-nationalization reflexes and civil society resistance. The article ends with an outlook of some additional topics and questions from the perspective of Border Studies with and after the COVID-19 pandemic.