Construction Of Group Identity Research Articles

Saharan Jewry: history, memory and imagined identity

Scholars of North African Jewries have recently begun to study, rethink and challenge some of the field's terminology and conceptualisations of the Maghribi Jewish experience, including, for example, terms such as ‘Berber Jews’, ‘Arab Jews’ and even the most deeply entrenched ‘Sephardic Jews’. Such categories of analysis remain largely unexamined, despite the fact that they constitute an essential part of larger colonial and post-colonial discourses on the Islamic world and its diverse populations. In this article, I focus on one such category, ‘Saharan Jews’, and attempt to assess its meanings and articulations within the history and imagined identities of the Sahara. Using source materials including the reports of European colonial travellers, the communications of Mardochée Aby Serour to the Société de Geographie de Paris in 1870, French ethnological sources, local Arabic sources, select post-colonial writings, and blogosphere material, I debate the meaning of ‘Saharan Jews’, moving us from Sijilmasa to Timbuktu by way of the Saharan oases Tuat, Akka and other areas of Jewish settlement in the region. In these contexts, I pay particular attention to the construction of group identity through mechanisms like trade, minority–majority relations and local religious practices. As I evaluate the concept of ‘Saharan Jews’ for better understanding Jewish history in North and sub-Saharan Africa, I simultaneously call for a more nuanced approach to the social imagination of Jewish identities in post-colonial African societies.

Construcción de la identidad de grupo local. El espacio y el patrimonio material e inmaterial como referentes identitarios en Trujillo y Huertas de Ánimas

In this article, we analyse the identity tensions between people from Trujillo and people from Huertas de Animas in a conflict of local group identity construction derived from the administrative definition of Huertas de Animas as a neighbourhood or suburb of the town of Trujillo (Caceres, Spain). People from Huertas and Trujillo, in their attempt to reproduce and reaffirm their local identity, build their differences mostly with reference to their space and their heritage, both material and immaterial, especially festival rituals and the religious icons that are present in them, and music

Dancing Golden Stools

In this article the author concentrates on the use of Indigenous Religion among the Akuapem in Ghana for the construction of their group identity. She discusses the way in which the Akuapem make use of the celebration of an annual indigenous religious festival (Odwira) to strengthen their group identity by self-identification, differentiation and the perception of other cultural groups. Her specific focus is on the common Asante-Akuapem history, the foundation of the Akan Golden Stools, akom dancing and the Odwira festival procession and Durbars. She concludes that Indigenous Religion should not be left out in the study of the construction of group identities in the social sciences.

Negotiating identities through pronouns of address in an immigrant community

This article investigates forms of address, in particular the T/V distinction in German, in conversational interviews with German-speaking immigrants to English-speaking Canada and their descendants. From among 77 interviews conducted in two urban areas in Canada, we discuss instances of both the interactional use of and metalinguistic comments on forms of address. Our analysis is largely guided by conversation analysis and interactional sociolinguistics (e.g. Goodwin & Heritage 1990). Using Clyne, Norrby and Warren’s (2009) model of address as a backdrop, we investigate the construction of group identity and group socialization through the lens of positioning theory (e.g. van Langenhove and Harré 1993; Dailey-O’Cain and Liebscher 2009). This combination of analytical tools can explain shifts in both usage of and attitudes toward the T/V distinction that cannot be explained through language attrition arguments alone.

Living in History

Memories of war, terrorism, and natural disaster play a critical role in the construction of group identity and the persistence of group conflict. Here, we argue that personal memory and knowledge of the collective past become entwined only when public events have a direct, forceful, and prolonged impact on a population. Support for this position comes from a cross-national study in which participants thought aloud as they dated mundane autobiographical events. We found that Bosnians often mentioned their civil war and that Izmit Turks made frequent reference to the 1999 earthquake in their country. In contrast, public events were rarely mentioned by Serbs, Montenegrins, Ankara Turks, Canadians, Danes, or Israelis. Surprisingly, historical references were absent from (post–September 11) protocols collected in New York City and elsewhere in the United States. Taken together, these findings indicate that it is personal significance, not historical importance, that determines whether public events play a role in organizing autobiographical memory.

Factors Determining Religious Identity Construction among Western-born1 Muslims: Towards a Theoretical Framework

The aim of this article is to analyze, on the basis of a particular theoretical approach to identity construction, the factors that shape and help delineate various types of (religious) identity constructions among Western-born generations of Muslims. The author argues that a theoretical framework that combines a socio-cultural use of religion in the construction of group identity with that of scriptural interpretation provides the optimal conceptual tool for not only understanding the formation of religious identity among Western-born and/or Western-raised generations of Muslims, but also for delineating between different types of identities being acquired by the Muslims living in the West.

Investigating Heritage Language and Culture Links: An Indo-Canadian Hindu Perspective

Although it is commonly believed that language and culture are inexorably linked, the precise nature of this relationship remains elusive. This study investigated the hypothesis that a loss in language signals a loss in culture if language is considered a central value. This hypothesis was investigated by rating the Hindi and English proficiency of 30 first and second generation Indo-Canadian Hindi speakers (15 parent–child pairs) and relating these to their reactions in a matched-guise task, featuring culturally charged English and Hindi scenarios recorded by the same speaker. The scenarios targeted one aspect of North Indian culture – the value of filial duty – in two contexts (marriage, career). It was hypothesised that, if language loss triggered culture loss, then speakers losing their Hindi (second generation), but not those maintaining it (first generation), would differ in their reactions to scenarios as a function of language. Findings revealed a language shift and the beginnings of a culture shift between the two generations. However, the shift in culture appeared not to be mediated by language. Implications of these findings for heritage language and culture maintenance, the language–culture relationship and group identity construction are discussed.

The first disciples of Jesus in Galilee

Early Christian writings provide little information about the Jesus movement in Galilee, but the study of the pre-Synoptic-, and especially the pre-Markan collections, can shed some light on this important period of the beginnings of Christianity. This essay starts by reconstructing the pre-Markan collection of Galilean controversies (Mk 2:1-3:6) and argues that its composition could have taken place in Galilee. These controversies reflect a process of construction of group identity whose main traits can be identified with the aid of social identity and cultural memory studies. This process can also be placed in the historical context of the emergence of sectarian groups within Second Temple Judaism. The contention of this enquiry is that the pre-Markan collection of the Galilean controversies can provide valuable information about the first disciples of Jesus in Galilee.

At War With Words (review)

Reviewed by: At war with words ed. by Mirjana N. Dedaić and Daniel N. Nelson Chaoqun Xie At war with words. Ed. by Mirjana N. Dedaić and Daniel N. Nelson. (Language, power and social process 10.) Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter, 2003. Pp. xxiv, 479. ISBN 3110176505. $32.95. This book, co-edited by a sociolinguist and a political scientist, is important for anyone with an interest in the language of politics and the politics of language. As Michael Billig states clearly in the preface (‘Language as forms of death’), the major theme of this volume is that ‘the words of war are central to the activity of war’ (xv). On the one hand, language plays a vital role before, during, and after wars. On the other, wars can affect the status of national language. These two important assumptions, as pointed out by Mirjana N. Dedaić in the introduction (‘A peace of word’), guarantee the unity and coherence of this well-researched and interesting book. This volume contains two thematic sections. Section 1, ‘War discourse’, contains seven papers. Kathryn Ruud does a qualitative analysis of the discourse of conservative political talk radio, focusing on the tactics of polarization used in the construction of group identity. Suzanne Wong Scollon defends the view that ideologies underlie the ordering of discourse and that the same utterance can be interpreted differently. In fact, interpreting is never neutral or objective; objectivity is a sheer myth. Paul A. Chilton adopts a cognitive discourse-analytical approach and demonstrates that ‘Justification of war is a form of political action that takes place most massively through language’ (95). Robert E. Tucker and Theodore O. Prosise deal with the inability of ordinary language to represent the destructive power of weaponry. Kweku Osam addresses the discursive strategies of political resistance and competition, investigating various discourse structures (including thematic structures, local semantics, style, and rhetorical features) designed for the achievement of specific political purposes. The last two chapters discuss how the Second World War is represented by mass media and by members of society in Austria. Alexander Pollak elaborates on six major discursive strategies employed to represent the events of the Second World War with ‘a certain color and shape’ (183). Gertraud Benke and Ruth Wodak examine how members of different generations react to Austria’s Nazi past. Section 2, ‘Language wars’, features six papers on how political power and cultural hegemony impact on language. The countries or regions investigated include Croatia (Keith Langston and Anita Petistantić), Okinawa (Rumiko Shinzato), Palau (Kazuko Matsumoto and David Britain), Cyprus (Marilena Karyolemou), Northern Ireland (Renée Dickason), and the United States (Mark Allen Peterson). From these case studies, we can see that national language is often manipulated as a symbolic power. In point of fact, it is often the case that political power and hegemony largely influence, dominate, or even decide the status of a national language. In the conclusion, ‘Word peace’, Daniel N. Nelson points out, among other things, that ‘The struggle for identity lies at the nexus of war and peace’ (457). The book concludes with a name index and a subject index. Drawing on a variety of theories, methodologies, and multiple sources of data within various linguistic, political, social, and cross-cultural contexts, this collection of papers looks into how political ideology manipulates war discourse and language policy. This volume provides some new empirical data for research in political linguistics, compellingly showing that both linguists and political scientists can learn from each other and contribute to the understanding and interpretation of language that is an essential part of human life. In this sense, this book should be of interest to a wide audience. In sum, this volume shows that the study of political discourse, like other lines of inquiry, can and should be approached from different angles, and theoretical or methodological orthodoxy is of little benefit to a deeper or more accurate picture of the relationship between political ideology and language use. Finally...

‘Died in the Service of Portugal’: Legitimacy of Authority and Dynamics of Group Identity among the Atsabe Kemak in East Timor

The paper examines the metaphors and dynamics of Atsabe Kemak group identity construction, with a strong emphasis on local cultural ‘remembering’ of Atsabe history vis-à-vis relations of power. The analysis utilizes the analytical frameworks of Foucault's notion of discourse and Bourdieu's concept of habitus. The secondary burial of a former chieftain highlights the dynamics of Atsabe Kemak responses to new nation-building processes and to international influences that have appeared during the United Nations' transitional administration.

Social identities and the 'new genetics': Scientific and social consequences

The use of social identities in genetic research is increasing, yet for the most part their use remains untheorized. The possible consequences of this practice extend beyond the essentialization of social identities, to the production and application of genetic information. This paper examines the four processes linking the construction of social identities with the allocation of 'collective genetic affinities', and deconstructs the assumptions underlying the putative contribution of social identities to genetic variation. Doubts are raised about the reproducibility, comparability and universality of social identities as markers of collective genetic affinities. It is argued that most classifications of social identity have limited external and internal validity, producing misleading information concerning the distribution of genetic variation and the relevance thereof to gene-gene and gene-environment interactions. This has a variety of consequences for public health: increasing demands for dedicated services to address the heightened genetic risk of particular social groups, while undermining the therapeutic utility of genetic technologies. These, in turn, have feedback effects on the social construction of group identities, whereby the use of social identities in the production and application of genetic research impacts on (and is impacted on by) processes that lead to the construction of social identity. These processes are likely to have powerful discriminatory effects that nonetheless give the appearance of being naturalized and neutralized through geneticization.

An Alliance of Interest and Identity? Explaining The Campaign Against Manchester Airport's Second Runway

This article examines the campaign against the construction of Manchester Airport's second runway. Articulating insights from rational choice theory within a framework of discourse theory, it provides a set of theoretical tools with which to problematize and explain the Manchester case. Attention is focused on the strategic construction of group identities and interests by leading protest brokers who organized and orchestrated the campaign. The article offers explanations of how and why conservative local residents and radical eco-warriors were able to form an unlikely working coalition to resist the expansion of the airport. The article concludes with an examination of the overall impact and significance of the campaign for local residents and green protesters.