ETHNIC IDENTITY
AN ESSAY BY AMJAD JAIMOUKHA
ETHNIC IDENTITY IS THE AMALGAM OF CONCEPTUAL AND BEHAVIOURAL CHARACTERISTICS THAT ARE FOUND IN A GROUP OF PEOPLE THAT SET IT APART FROM ANY OTHER. CENTRAL TO THIS NOTION IS COLLECTIVE CONSCIOUSNESS OF COMMON ANCESTRY. EACH ETHNIC GROUP MAY HAVE DIFFERENT IDEAS ABOUT THE CHARACTERISTICS THAT MAKE UP ITS IDENTITY. EVEN SUB-GROUPS MAY EMPHASIZE DIFFERING SETS OF CHARACTERISTICS, WHICH ARE FUNCTIONS OF COMPLEX FACTORS, SOME OF WHICH ARE QUITE DYNAMIC. FOR EXAMPLE, LANGUAGE WITHIN AN INTEGRAL, MONOLITHIC AND STABLE GROUP IS REGARDED AS A STATIC DEFINER OF ETHNIC IDENTITY, WHEREAS WITHIN A MINORITY UNDER THREAT OF LINGUISTIC ASSIMILATION, LANGUAGE BECOMES AN EMOTIVE AND DYNAMIC FACTOR WHICH AFFECTS AND INFLUENCES PEOPLE IN DIFFERENT WAYS.
ETHNIC IDENTITY IN A CHILD IS FORMED BY THE COLLECTION OF CONCEPTUAL AND EMOTIONAL INPUTS FROM THE PARENTS, FAMILY, SCHOOL, PEARS, THE MEDIA, CULTURAL ORGANS, ETC. APART FROM PHYSICAL APPEARANCE AND BODILY FUNCTIONS AFFECTED BY THE GENES, NONE OF THE FACTORS THAT SHAPE ONE'S IDENTITY IS INHERITED. THE ENVIRONMENT DETERMINES LINGUISTIC AFFILIATION, VALUES SYSTEM, SENSE OF BELONGING AND OTHER LEARNED ETHNIC IDENTITY DETERMINANTS (EID's). THIS PICTURE IS COMPLICATED WHEN INTERACTION BETWEEN GENETIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS CAUSES FRICTION AND CONFLICT. THIS INVARIABLY OCCURS IN MULTI-ETHNIC SOCIETIES IN WHICH PHYSICAL APPEARANCE BECOMES AN EMOTIONAL ISSUE. INTEGRATION OF THE VARIOUS ETHNIC GROUPS BECOMES PROBLEMATIC, EVEN IF A COMMON CULTURE IS SHARED. HOWEVER, IF PHYSIOGNOMICAL DIFFERENCES ARE NOT PRONOUNCED, OR IF THEY PRESENT NO BARRIER TO ACCEPTANCE INTO ANOTHER GROUP, THEN A PERSON WILL HAVE A CHOICE REGARDING HIS ETHNIC ALLEGIANCE. THE MOTIVATIONS FOR SUCH SWITCHES IN ALLEGIANCE ARE VARIED, BUT THE DESIRE TO BELONG TO A MORE DOMINANT GROUP IN TERMS OF ECONOMIC STATUS, POLITICAL POWER OR CULTURE, MAY BE THE MOST PRESSING.
EID'S CAN BE DIVIDED INTO TWO CATEGORIES IN TERMS OF OBSERVABILITY : INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL ONES. THE LATTER ARE THOSE THAT CAN BE PERCEIVED DIRECTLY BY AN OUTSIDER. THESE INCLUDE PHYSICAL APPEARANCE, DRESS, LANGUAGE, FOLKLORE, RELIGIOUS RITES, MANIFESTATIONS OF CUSTOMS AND TRADITIONS, ETC. THE INTERNAL ONES ARE THOSE THAT ARE DIFFICULT TO OBSERVE DIRECTLY BY AN OUTSIDER. THEY ARE CONCERNED WITH SELF-PERCEPTION, OUTLOOK ON LIFE, INTERNALISED ATTITUDES TOWARDS, AND PERCEPTIONS OF, FELLOW MEMBERS OF ONE'S ETHNIC GROUP AND OUTSIDERS, PERCEPTION OF PAST HISTORY, ETC.
LANGUAGE IS A CRUCIAL AND DYNAMIC FACTOR THAT PLAYS A MAJOR ROLE IN CREATING A SENSE OF SEPARATENESS. HOWEVER, SOMETIMES A UNIQUE LANGUAGE IS NOT REGARDED AS ESSENTIAL FOR A SEPARATE ETHNIC IDENTITY; OTHER EID's MAY BE CONSIDERED MORE IMPORTANT. THE SAME COULD BE SAID ABOUT OTHER EID's; THEY MAY BE LEARNED, MADE SUBSERVIENT OR ASSIGNED SYMBOLIC SIGNIFICANCE. AN OUTSIDER WILL BE UNABLE TO APPRECIATE ALL THE FACTORS THAT DETERMINE ETHNIC IDENTITY OF A PARTICULAR GROUP OR INDIVIDUAL. HE CAN ONLY OBSERVE EXTERNAL EID's, BUT WILL FAIL TO IDENTIFY INTERNAL ONES, AT LEAST DIRECTLY. HE MIGHT CONCLUDE THAT A GROUP UNDERGOING LINGUISTIC ASSIMILATION IS LOSING ITS ETHNIC IDENTITY. THIS CAN EITHER BE TRUE OR FALSE, BUT IF SELF-PERCEPTION OF THE GROUP REGARDING ITS SEPARATENESS REMAINS INTACT, THEN CLEARLY THE CONCLUSION IS WRONG.
THIS ARGUMENT UNDERLINES THE NEED TO CONSIDER BOTH INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL IDENTITY DETERMINANTS WHEN STUDYING THE FACTORS THAT HAVE A BEARING ON THE ETHNIC IDENTITY OF A PARTICULAR GROUP. IT IS ESSENTIAL TO DESIGN METHODS FOR ASSESSING THE CONTRIBUTION OF INTERNAL DETERMINANTS IN AN INDIRECT MANNER. PERHAPS A PROPERLY PLANNED QUESTIONAIRE MAY BE HELPFUL IN THIS RESPECT.
SELF-PERCEPTION IS A VERY COMPLEX EID TO ANALYSE AND STUDY. IT IS PERHAPS THE MOST CRUCIAL ONE. YET, IT IS VERY DIFFICULT TO GAUGE BECAUSE IT PARTLY RESIDES IN THE IRRATIONAL DOMAIN IN A HUMAN BEING. IT HAS MANY COMPONENTS AND IS FORMED AND AFFECTED BY A VARIETY OF FACTORS. IT IS POSSIBLE FOR SELF-PERCEPTION TO EXIST AS THE SOLE EID. A PERSON MIGHT CONSIDER HIMSELF AS BELONGING TO A PARTICULAR ETHNIC GROUP YET BE IGNORANT OF ITS LANGUAGE, CULTURE, HISTORY, ETC. HE MIGHT EVEN BE INDISTINGUISHABLE FROM PERSONS OF ANOTHER ETHNIC GROUP, BUT INSIDE HIMSELF HE FEELS THAT HE IS DIFFERENT, EVEN THOUGH THIS FEELING IS NOT MANIFESTED IN EVERYDAY LIFE. ON THE OTHER HAND, IF A PERSON FEELS THAT HE BELONGS TO AN ETHNIC GROUP OTHER THAN HIS NATIVE ONE AND IF HE IS ACCEPTED BY THE ADOPTIVE GROUP, THEN ONE IS COMPELLED TO CONSIDER HIM AS BELONGING TO THE LATTER GROUP, EVEN THOUGH HE MIGHT STILL RETAIN VESTIGES OF HIS ORIGINAL IDENTITY.
THUS FAR, IT HAS BEEN ASSUMED THAT A PERSON BELONGS TO A SINGLE ETHNIC GROUP. THIS ASSUMPTION IS NOT ALWAYS VALID, AND ONE CAN THINK OF INSTANCES IN WHICH A PERSON PERCEIVES HIMSELF TO BELONG TO TWO, OR EVEN MORE, ETHNIC GROUPS. AN OBVIOUS CASE IS THE OFF-SPRING OF MIXED MARRIAGES WHO ARE INCULCATED WITH THE CULTURES OF BOTH PARENTS AND WITH A SENSE OF IDENTIFICATION WITH BOTH. ANOTHER EXAMPLE IS WHEN PARENTS OF ONE GROUP CHOOSE TO INSTIL IN THEIR CHILDREN THE CULTURE OF, AND A SENSE OF BELONGING TO, THEIR OWN GROUP AND THAT OF THE MAJORITY ONE. THESE EXAMPLES ASSUME THAT THE OFF-SPRING ARE NOT REJECTED BY EITHER ETHNIC GROUP.
CULTURAL REVIVAL
CULTURAL REVIVAL IS DEFINED AS A CONSCIOUS EFFORT TO REVIVE THOSE ELEMENTS THAT ARE REGARDED AS CRUCIAL TO INDUCE A RENEWED SENSE OF PRIDE IN BELONGING TO ONE'S ETHNIC GROUP AND TO ENHANCE ITS UNIQUE QUALITIES. THIS IS NOT TO SAY THAT A SENSE OF SEPARATENESS SHOULD BE FOSTERED, AS THIS MAY LEAD TO CONFLICT WITH OTHER GROUPS IN SOCIETY.
THE MOTIVATION FOR EMBARKING ON A CULTURAL RENAISSANCE IS THE PERCEPTION BY AN ETHNIC GROUP OF A THREAT, WHICH MIGHT BE PHYSICAL OR CULTURAL. THE FORMER, WHICH MIGHT BE REAL OR PERCEIVED, IS FELT MORE KEENLY BECAUSE OF ITS LIFE-THREATENING POTENTIAL. WHEN FACED WITH SUCH A MENACE, A GROUP ENDEAVOURS TO EMPHASIZE THOSE ELEMENTS THAT ARE CONDUCIVE TO UNITY AND WHICH ADDRESS THE EMOTIONAL DOMAIN. CULTURAL SYMBOLISM IS PROMOTED AND IMAGES OF PAST HEROISM AND MYTHOLOGY ARE INVOKED.
A CULTURAL THREAT, SUCH AS ASSIMILATION, GIVES RISE TO DIFFERENT REACTIONS. IN THE ABSENCE OF VERITABLE INSTITUTIONS THAT SPECIFICALLY WORK FOR CULTURAL PRESERVATION AND PROMOTION, EVENTUAL DISAPPEARANCE OF CULTURE IS INEVITABLE. THIS IS THE CASE WITH THE CIRCASSIANS IN THE DIASPORA WHO HAVE THUS FAR FAILED TO CHECK THE DECLINE OF THEIR HERITAGE. UNLESS URGENT AND CONCERTED ACTION IS TAKEN, CIRCASSIAN CULTURE WILL BE DOOMED TO EXTINCTION.
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