Abstract

In late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century Habsburg Austria, regulations permitted residents free movement, while at the same time the government strived for ubiquitous monitoring and surveillance of any change of place and stay. This policy relied on reporting by several parties, such as landlords, innkeepers or employers – and not only the police and local authorities. Registration was based on and created differences and inequalities between citizens and foreigners as well as among citizens, who were subjected to vigilance that was strict in different ways. The article compares various registration practices; it describes social sorting through registration; and it highlights incentives for registering or avoiding registration for legal, material or symbolic reasons and status.