Ethnicity and ethnic groups
Ethnicity refers to a group identity that emerges from shared cultural heritage, encompassing aspects such as language, religion, traditions, and social practices. Ethnic groups are recognized by members and society through these cultural characteristics, creating a sense of belonging and distinctiveness. The concept of ethnicity is complex and has not been uniformly defined in academic discourse; various scholars highlight different features that characterize ethnic groups, including geographic origins, migratory patterns, and shared values. Ethnicity can also evolve, with individuals increasingly identifying with broader or pan-ethnic groupings, reflecting the dynamics of modern society.
In the context of the United States, the interplay between race and ethnicity is particularly nuanced, as societal perceptions can often blur the lines between the two. Historical experiences and socio-economic factors shape the experiences of different ethnic groups, leading to varying degrees of integration and recognition within the societal hierarchy. Furthermore, changing attitudes toward ethnicity suggest that identity is increasingly seen as a matter of personal choice, influenced by interethnic marriages and evolving cultural narratives. As such, discussions about ethnicity continue to reflect broader societal changes and challenges, emphasizing the importance of understanding the historical and structural contexts that shape ethnic identities.
Ethnicity and ethnic groups
SIGNIFICANCE:Ethnicity refers to a sense of belonging and identification with a particular cultural heritage. Ethnic groups are socially defined on the basis of their cultural characteristics. Members of ethnic groups consider themselves, and are considered by others to be, part of a distinct culture or subculture. These concepts help explain the cultural diversity that can occur in a given society.
Despite the considerable amount of attention devoted to the subject, scholars have not reached a consensus on the precise meaning of ethnicity. Since ethnicity is such a complex concept, many scholars have chosen to identify ethnic groups as those groups characterized by some of the following fourteen features: common geographic origins; migratory status; race; language or dialect; religious faith or faiths; ties that transcend kinship, neighborhood, and community boundaries; shared traditions, values, and symbols; literature, folklore, and music; food preferences; settlement and employment patterns; special interests in regard to politics; institutions that specifically serve and maintain the group; an internal sense of distinctiveness; and an external perception of distinctiveness.
In his book Ethnicity: Source of Strength? Source of Conflict? (1994) sociologist Milton Yinger defines an ethnic group as one whose members are thought by themselves and others to have a common origin and who share a common culture that is transmitted through shared activities that reinforce the group’s distinctiveness. The term “ethnic group” has been used by social scientists in two different ways. Some definitions of ethnic groups are broad and include both physical (racial) and cultural characteristics. Others are narrower and rely solely on cultural or nationality characteristics. In over two hundred works, sociologist Joe R. Feagin emphasizes that ancestry, whether real or mythical, is a very important dimension of ethnic group identity.
Sociologist William Yancey and his associates argue that ethnic groups have been produced by structural conditions which are linked to the changing technology of production and transportation. Structural conditions, including common occupational patterns, residential stability, concentration, and dependence on common institutions and services, reinforce kinship and friendship networks. According to Yancey, common cultural heritage is not a prerequisite dimension of ethnicity. Ethnicity is a manifestation of the way populations are organized in terms of interaction patterns, institutions, values, attitudes, lifestyle, and consciousness of kind.
New Definitions
A new consciousness is emerging concerning the meaning of ethnicity. Ethnic groups are joining together into larger ethnic groupings. The adoption of a pan-ethnic identity is common among Asian Americans, American Indians, and Hispanics. Sociologist Felix Padilla writes about the development of a Latino collective identity among Mexican Americans and Puerto Ricans. Ethnicity and one’s ethnic identity are becoming matters of choice, especially for White Americans of European descent. Most people have multiple layers of ethnic identity because of generations of interethnic marriages; these layers can be added to or subtracted from one’s current identity. Sociologists Richard Alba and Mary Waters acknowledge that people often know their ancestors are from a variety of ethnic groups but, for one reason or another, identify with only some of them (or none of them). Often, people identify with those with whom they have the least connection.
Sociologist Robert Blauner, in his influential book Black Lives, White Lives (1989), addresses the confusion that is often produced in the American consciousness by the concepts of race and ethnicity. Blauner argues that the imagery of race tends to be more powerful than the imagery of ethnicity and, therefore, often overshadows it. This is because race—although generally viewed by scientists and social scientists as a social construct rather than a scientific reality—is associated with biological and scientific imagery, whereas ethnicity is associated with cultural imagery. Other important concepts, such as class and religion, are also overwhelmed by the powerful social meanings of race. The confounding of race and ethnicity is a daily occurrence in American society. Blauner holds that African Americans represent both a racial and an ethnic group and argues that when Black individuals assert their ethnicity, White individuals perceive it instead as an assertion of racial identity. He postulates that part of the American heritage of racism has been to deny the ethnicity or cultural heritage of African Americans.
History and Interrelations of Ethnic Groups
In his book Ethnic America (1981), economist Thomas Sowell argues that the experiences of White ethnic groups and racial minorities have been different in degree rather than in kind. Historian Ronald Takaki, however, in his book From Different Shores (1987), challenges Sowell’s assumption. Takaki emphasizes the fact that only Black individuals were enslaved, only American Indians were placed on reservations, only Japanese Americans were placed in concentration camps, and only the Chinese were excluded from naturalized citizenship. To fully understand the experiences and histories of ethnic groups one must acknowledge the role of economic and governmental contexts within which particular ethnic groups have immigrated and adjusted. The time of immigration and the resources brought by the immigrants have affected not only their economic and political success but also their social class position in the United States.
In his book Race and Ethnic Relations (1994), sociologist Martin N. Marger describes the American ethnic hierarchy as consisting of three parts. The top third consists primarily of White Protestants from various ethnic backgrounds. The middle third consists of Catholics from various ethnic backgrounds, Jews, and many Asians. The bottom third consists of Black, Hispanic, Asian, and Indigenous Americans. The most important aspect of this ethnic hierarchy is the gap between those groups in the bottom third of the hierarchy and the other two segments.
Directions
Around the time of World War II and soon thereafter, the expectation was that ethnic Americans would assimilate and their sense of ethnicity would gradually disappear. This assumption was known as the melting pot theory. During the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, however, sociologist Nathan Glazer and political scientist Daniel Patrick Moynihan, among others, questioned the viability of the melting pot theory. Glazer, Moynihan, and others suggested that the United States was leaning more in the direction of cultural pluralism.
In the 1980s and early 1990s, the debate about the melting pot versus cultural pluralism, according to Alba, no longer dominated discussions of ethnicity, especially concerning White European ethnic groups. Alba argues that ethnicity is not less embedded in the structure of American society but rather that ethnic distinctions are undergoing change. He believes that ethnic distinctions based on European ancestry are dissolving, while a new ethnic group is forming based on ancestry from anywhere on the European continent.
Bibliography
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