Why Have Ethnicities been Transformed Into Nationalities

Why Have Ethnicities been Transformed Into Nationalities?

UNIT 4 – Ethnic & Political Geography What’s the difference between race & ethnicity? • Warm-up: On a clean sheet of paper, define each of the following terms in your own words AND give an example of each: – Race – Ethnicity • Objectives: 1. 2. 3. Explain the structure of the contemporary political map. (Types of political entities include nations, states, nation-states, stateless nations, multinational states, multistate nations, and autonomous regions. ) Apply the concepts of centrifugal and centripetal forces at the national scale. Political boundaries do not always coincide with patterns of language, religion, ethnicity, nationality, and economy.

Dalton Conley While race and ethnicity share an ideology of common ancestry, they differ in several ways. First of all, race is primarily unitary. You can only have one race, while you can claim multiple ethnic affiliations. You can identify ethnically as Irish and Polish, but you have to be essentially either black or white. The fundamental difference is that race is socially imposed and hierarchical. There is an inequality built into the system. Furthermore, you have no control over your race; it's how you're perceived by others. For example, I have a friend who was born in Korea to Korean parents, but as an infant, she was adopted by an Italian family in Italy. Ethnically, she feels Italian: she eats Italian food, she speaks Italian, she knows Italian history and culture. She knows nothing about Korean history and culture. But when she comes to the United States, she's treated racially as Asian.

John Cheng I think most people associate race with biology and ethnicity with culture. It's important to stress the culture and language part of it. Ethnicity isn't just a question of affiliation; it's also a question of choice. It's also a question of group membership. And it's usually associated with a geographic region. It's also often confused or conflated with nationality, but that's not the same thing. Today people identify with ethnicity positively because they see themselves as being part of that group. People can't just simply say, "Well, I want to become a member of that race. " You either are or are not a member of that race. Whereas, if you wanted to look at ethnicity based on culture, you could learn a language, you can learn customs - there are things that you can learn so that you could belong to that group. I think the most powerful argument about the differentiation between race and ethnicity is that race becomes institutionalized in a way that has profound social consequences on the members of different groups.

What’s the difference between race & ethnicity? ? ? • Race: Identity with a group of people descended from a common ancestor • Most biologists and anthropologists do not recognize RACE as a biologically valid classification, in part because there is more genetic variation within groups than between them.

Ethnicity: Identity with a group of people that share distinct physical and mental traits as a product of common heredity and cultural tradition

Distribution of Ethnicity/Race in the US

What is your nationality? n n What characteristics define your nationality? Nationality: Identity of a group of people who share a legal attachment & personal allegiance to a particular country

Nationality • Legal Status – Voting, Passports, Civic Duties • Cultural Tradition – Language, Religion, etc.

Nationality in the US • We view nationality & ethnicity as two distinct things – Italian-Americans – Polish-Americans – Japanese-Americans – African-Americans

What is a nation? What is a state? • Nation: • People with shared cultural identity & common ethnicity • Basques, Palestinians, & Kurds • State • A politically organized unit that is sovereign or independent • Recognized by the international community • Germany, United Kingdom, & Israel

What is a Nation-State? • Territory that is occupied by a particular ethnicity (no pure nationstates exist) – Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Finland, Georgia, Greece, Moldova, Slovenia, Israel, Armenia, Iran, & Turkey

Multi-Ethnic State • State with more than one ethnicity – Belgium 1. Flemish: Dutch Speaking 2. Walloons: French Speaking

Multi-National State • 2 ethnic groups with traditions for selfdetermination that agree to co-exist peacefully by recognizing each other as distinct nationalities – United Kingdom: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland

Multi-State Nation • A nation that spans more than one political state • Examples: – Kurds (one nation spanning multiple states) – Koreans (one nation, 2 states)

Stateless Nation • A nation without a state. • Examples: – Kurds – Palestinians

Nationalism • Loyalty & devotion to a nation • Helps to ensure survival of state, but can be taken to the extreme • American patriotism, Pledge of Allegiance, music, media

Centripetal Force • Nationalism is an example • An attitude that tends to unify people & enhance the support of the state (CENTER) • Can you think of more centripetal forces?

Centrifugal Force • Centrifugal Force- an attitude that tends to de-unify people, spreading away from center • FORCE AWAY!!! • Can you think of examples of centrifugal forces? Balkanization/Devolution

Soviet Union. Largest Multi-National state • When the Soviet Union collapsed it’s 15 republics became 15 independent states 1. Baltics: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania 2. European: Belarus, Moldova, Ukraine 3. Central Asia: Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan 4. Caucuses: Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia 5. Russia

Former Soviet Union

Turmoil • The smaller Caucus states of the Former Soviet Union were not given selfdetermination • It is especially difficult for Russia to keep all these ethnicities happy • Look at the Ukraine today!!!

Dagestan Video • http: //www. learner. org/series/powerofplace /page 8. html

Map • Shade territories former USSR • Pin Dagestan • Add a description of the physical geography of the region • Add a definition of centripetal & centrifugal force • Add an explanation of how they apply to the area • SHARE WITH ME!!!!