Chapter 7Ethnicity7.5, 7.6, & 7.7

• Ethnicities & Nationalities

• Combining & Dividing Ethnicities

• Ethnic Diversity in Western AsiaRECALL:

What is a nation?

•Nation: a group of people with a common identity-Can live in a country or be stateless!

-Cultural identity: -Ancestry or historical events - Language

-Ethnicity - Religion

Ethnicity – Identify with a group who share

cultural traditions from a homeland or hearth

◦ Clustered in regions, within cities, & inside cities

Nationality◦ Identity with people who share legal attachment to

a particular country/state

Nationality = citizens of the United States

Ethnicity = groups with ancestry & cultural traditions

◦ Race distinguishes blacks & other persons of color from whites

Ethnicity versus Nationality

In

the

U.S.

What about Quebec?

Ethnicities & Nationalities in the UK British Isles several thousand islands (2 major)

◦ Eire Republic of Ireland & Northern Ireland

◦ Great Britain England, Wales, & Scotland

4 Main Ethnicities in the UK:

◦ English from Germanic Tribes

◦ Welsh Celtic people conquered in 1282

◦ Scots Celtic people united with England in 1603

King James I after Queen Elizabeth’s death

◦ Irish Celtic people ruled by England until 1921

British = nationality

English = ethnicity

Nationalism – Loyalty & devotion to one’s nationality One nation above all others

Can be seen as: centripetal or centrifugal force:

◦ Positive effects = CENTRIPETAL FORCE

Centripetal – forces that unifies people

States promotes nationalism by promoting symbols

(flags, songs, & holidays)

◦ Negative effects = CENTRIFUGAL FORCE

Centrifugal – forces that divide people Unity achieved by the negative images of others

NATIONALISM

CENTRIFUGAL FORCES: Breakup of a state

AKA- Balkanization & centrifugal

forces

◦ How does this happen?

Ethnocultural forces

Economic forces -Spatial forces

Disparity: Unevenness between two

groups of people

◦ Balkanization – breakdown

of a state due to conflicts among

nationalities

Desire of Self-determination

– the right to govern themselves

◦ Obviously lead to tension inside a state!

• Multi-ethnic state - state that

contains more than one ethnicity

Multinational state – state with

more than one nation

Can there be tension in a:

Ethnic Competition Lebanon

◦ 60% Muslim; 40% Christian

Christians Maronite – ethnic descendants from Phoenicians

Greek Orthodox

Muslims Belong to several Shiite sects

Ethnically consider themselves Arabs

◦ Diversity in Lebanon at the surface appears to be more religious than ethnic.

Achieved independence in 1943 required each religion involved in the government political self-rule

Civil War: 1975-1990 Each religion ½ of 128 seats in Parliament

Israel, United States, & Syria did send troops during the conflict

Ethnic Competition Sri Lanka

◦ Inhabited by 3 principal ethnicities:

1. Sinhalese – 74%

Migrated from northern India in fifth century B.C.

Converted to Buddhism

2. Tamil- 16%

Migrated from India in third century B.C.

Practice Hinduism

3. Moors- 10%

Ethnic Arabs

Migrated from southwest Asia in 8th century A.D.

Practice Islam

Ethnic Competition Sri Lanka

◦ 2000 years ago conflict between Sinhalese & Tamil

Suppressed during 300 year of European control

◦ 1948 Gained independence

Sinhalese dominated the government, military, & commerce

Tamils felt discriminated & rebelled starting in 1983

◦ 2009 – conflict ended with the defeat of Tamils

Dividing South Asian Ethnicities Among Nationalities

British ending British Colonial Empire – post WWII

◦ 1947 dividing Indian subcontinent

India – predominantly Hindu

Pakistan – predominantly Muslim East & West noncontiguous state

East Pakistan 1971 became Bangladesh based on ethnicity

Conflict between Hindus, Muslims, & British

Conflict between Hindus, Muslims, & British

in colonial rule:

◦Mahatma Gandhi – Hindu lead nonviolence

& reconciliation desired one unified state

Assassinated in 1948

Dividing South Asian Ethnicities Among Nationalities

Independent states

◦ Massive Migration to Hindu & Muslim state

◦ Extremists on both sides

Since 1972 disagreements on the boundary

Kashmir

Dividing South Asian Ethnicities Among Nationalities

Dividing Kurds Among Nationalities Kurds◦ Large population but are divided among many countries

& a minority in every one Caucasus mountains Iran, Iraq, Syria, & Turkey

◦ Sunni Muslims speak an Iranian group of Indo-Iranian branch of Indo-European language Distinctive literature, dress, & cultural traditions

STATELESS - a nation with NO boundaries & NO government of its own a nation without a state!

◦ After WWI, the European allies demarcated land for the Kurds called Kurdistan.

1920 - Turks fought to expand their territory before treaty signed

1923 - Treaty of Lausanne - Kurdistan = part of Turkey

Turks tried to suppress Kurdish culture (banning language)

Kurds have tried in many states to seek sovereignty remain largest stateless nation

Distribution of Kurds

Ethnic Diversity in Western Asia: Iraq

Ethnic make-up

◦ ¾ are Arabs

2/3 are Shiite

1/3 are Sunni

◦ 1/6 are Kurds IRONICALLY: Iraq stronger loyalty to a tribe or clan than to a

nationality or major ethnicity

US lead attack on Iraq to remove Saddam Hussain

◦ Brutal dictator who created weapons of mass destruction & connections to terrorist cells

US discovered complex & violent struggle amongst ethnic groups

Ethnically

diverse

Ethnic Diversity in Western Asia: Iran Ethnic make-up

◦ Persian – most numerous Shiite adheres

Descendants of Indo-European tribes

Persian Empire – Iran west to Egypt conquered by Muslims

& converted to Islam

◦ Azeri

◦ Baluchi

Ethnically

diverse

Western Asia is ethnically diverse!

Ethnic Diversity in Western Asia:

Afghanistan Ethnic make-up

◦ Pashtun -Tajik - Hazara

Ethnic conflict since 1979 Soviet Union invasion

◦ Soviet Union withdrew in 1989 &

1992 Soviet-installed government withdrew

Faction of Pashtun, the Taliban (“religious students”) gained

control over most of the country in 1995 &

proceeded to rule with policies based on Islamic

fundamentalism.

United States invaded in 2001 & overthrew the

Taliban government

◦ New struggle for power among many ethnic groups

Ethnic Diversity in Western Asia:

Pakistan Ethnic make-up

◦ Punjabi-Sunni - Baluchi –Sunni - Pashtun- Shiite

Fighting between

Pakistan’s army &

supporters of the

Taliban forced

migration into

camps led by

international relief

organizations