Who's Ethnic?

In this essay, the essayist discusses the challenges of defining the term 'ethnic' in the present scenario of the World. There has not been a universally agreed definition of 'ethnic'. The text deals with the etymological definition and the definitions given by the different anthropologists. Yet, the universality can't be seen due to the different views on it by them.

Etymologically, the term 'ethnic' is derived from the Greek word 'ethnikos' which means gentile or no-Jews. This shows that all the people who are non-Jews are ethnic. Likewise, according to the Hebrew etymology of the word, non-Christians are ethnic. Thus, the etymological meanings of the term 'ethnic' are also controversial.

Scholars' definition is also by no means different from the etymological meanings of the word as they also define the term variously. Murdock says that ethnics are regarded as aliens, less than men, barbarians and different insulting words like chink, dago, frog, etc. Heller says that ethnocentrism is a natural attitude of our cultures towards aliens. According to Barth, if a group maintains its identity when the members interact with each other, it takes the form of ethnicity. According to Werner Sollors, two conflicting uses of ethnic and ethnicity have been felt by a number of people.

The first view, he puts forward, is inclusive or universal. In this view, we all are ethnic. The second view is exclusive. In this view, ethnicity is defined as otherness.

Herold Abramson argues that race is the most salient ethnic factor. It is one of the aspects of the larger cultural and historical phenomenon of ethnicity whereas M.G. Smith disagrees with it. he considers race as a special objective category. It can't be meaningfully discussed under the term ethnicity. Sollors has accepted Abramson's interpretation that ethnicity includes dominant groups in which race is merely one aspect of ethnicity. To support it, he puts these three views.

1.      The interpretation of the rites and rituals of culturally dominant groups sometimes provides the matrix for the emergence of divergent group identities.

2.      The discussions of ethnicity and the production of ethnic literature have been strongly affected by Afro-Americans.

3.      The process of group formation and the naturalization of group relationship have been a common feature since past in which race is merely one of the aspects of ethnicity.

Note: Ethnicity can be defined as the membership of a particular group or culture. It is called ethnic identity. The group identity of people in terms of their shared language, culture, food, festivals, costumes, etc. is ethnicity.