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The Acadamy Research Fellow -project focuses on one of the most profound, yet overlooked social changes that Finland has encountered during the last century: the drastic transition from a predominantly agrarian society into an urban society. This cross-disciplinary project regenerates methodologies of history, youth studies, and rural studies in order to track the legacy of rural roots from World War II up until the present. Important cultural and social shifts in the construction of rural youth and rural identity formation will be identified through three generations: 1) contemporary youth (b. 2000–2004), 2) the middle-aged (b. 1970s) and 3) the baby boomers (b. 1945–1955). The study focuses on the life-long meanings that rural roots have had in the life course of different generations. How do the individual interpretations and cultural meanings of rural youth shift over time, from youth to old age and from one generation to another? How is history present in the lives and choices of contemporary rural young people? The project started at the University of Oulu in autumn 2019 and continues at the Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥ since autumn 2021.