Ethnic group

What is ETHNIC GROUP? What does ETHNIC GROUP mean? ETHNIC GROUP meaning & explanation

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• published: 26 Jul 2016
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What is ETHNIC GROUP? What does ETHNIC GROUP mean? ETHNIC GROUP meaning & explanation. An ethnic group or ethnicity is a category of people who identify with each other based on common language, ancestral, social, cultural, or national experiences. Unlike most other social groups, ethnicity is primarily an inherited status. Membership of an ethnic group tends to be defined by a shared cultural heritage, ancestry, origin myth, history, homeland, language or dialect, symbolic systems such as religion, mythology and ritual, cuisine, dressing style, art, and physical appearance. Ethnic groups, derived from the same historical founder population, often continue to speak related languages and share a similar gene pool. By way of language shift, acculturation, adoption and religious conversion, it is possible for some individuals or groups to leave one ethnic group and become part of another (except for ethnic groups emphasizing racial purity as a key membership criterion). Ethnicity is often used synonymously with ambiguous terms such as nation or people. In English, it can also have the connotation of something exotic (cf. "White ethnic", "ethnic restaurant", etc.). Depending on which source of group identity is emphasized to define membership, the following types of (often mutually overlapping) groups can be identified: Ethno-linguistic, emphasizing shared language, dialect or script — example: Basques Ethno-national, emphasizing a shared polity or sense of national identity — example: Soviet people Ethno-racial, emphasizing shared physical appearance based on genetic origins — example: Afro-Brazilians Ethno-regional, emphasizing a distinct local sense of belonging stemming from relative geographic isolation — example: South Islanders Ethno-religious, emphasizing shared affiliation with a particular religion, denomination or sect — example: Sikhs In many cases – for instance, the sense of Jewish peoplehood – more than one aspect determines membership. The largest ethnic groups in modern times comprise hundreds of millions of individuals (Han Chinese being the largest), while the smallest are limited to a few dozen individuals (numerous indigenous peoples worldwide). Larger ethnic groups may be subdivided into smaller sub-groups known variously as tribes or clans, which over time may become separate ethnic groups themselves due to endogamy or physical isolation from the parent group. Conversely, formerly separate ethnicities can merge to form a pan-ethnicity, and may eventually merge into one single ethnicity. Whether through division or amalgamation, the formation of a separate ethnic identity is referred to as ethnogenesis.