Ethnicity, Race, and Nationality AP Human Geography Unit of Study: Cultural Geography.

Ethnicity, Race, and NationalityAP Human GeographyUnit of Study: Cultural Geography

Overview

• Ethnicity is growing in importance as people all over the world embrace their cultural heritage.

• Personal and group identities are important and ethnicity is likely to remain diverse even with the globalization of religions, languages, economics, and politics.

What is ethnicity?

• Ethnicity is identity with a group of people who share the cultural traditions of a particular homeland or hearth.

• Ethnicity comes from the Greek word ethnikos, which means national.

Importance of Ethnicity to Geographers

• Where? Like other characteristics of culture, geographers are interested in where ethnicities are distributed.

• An ethnic group is tied to a particular place, because members of the group—or their ancestors—were born and raised there. The cultural traits displayed by an ethnicity derive from a group’s homeland.

Importance of Ethnicity to Geographers

• Why care? Ethnic identity comes from the interplay of migration and isolation from other groups.

• Why ethnicities are distinct comes from their interaction with and isolation from other groups.

Importance of Ethnicity to Geographers

• Globalization. Although there are ethnic groups that fight to gain control of territory, NO ethnicity is attempting or even aspiring to achieve global dominance.

• Even if globalization engulfs language, religion, or other cultural elements, the diversity of ethnic identity will remain.

Assimilation v. Acculturation

• Assimilation: the process of responding to new situations in conformity; “blending” in

• Acculturation: the process by which a human being acquires the culture of a particular society

African Americans in the U.S.

Hispanic Americans in the U.S.

Asian Americans in the U.S.

Native Americans in the U.S.

Ethnicities in Africa: First…a look at the political map!

Ethnicities in Africa

What is race?

• Race is identity with a group who share a biological ancestor and it is distinct from ethnicity.

• Example: In the U.S., Asians are a race and Asian Americans encompass basically the same ethnic group of people, though Asian American is a broad grouping for people from diverse Asian backgrounds.

Important Term

• Racism: the belief that race is the primary determinant of human traits and capacities and those racial differences produce an inherent superiority of a particular race.

What is nationality?

• A nationality is identity with a group of people who share legal attachment and personal allegiance to a particular country.

• A nation or nationality is a group of people tied together to a particular place through legal status and cultural traditions.

Differences…

• Ethnicity describes cultural identity while nationality describes political ties and ideas about voting, passports, and civic duties.

• American is a nationality, Hispanic-American or African-American are ethnicities, and race is the genetic heritage with skin color being the most visible trait.

Self-identification

• What is it? the act of identifying yourself as a particular kind of person, including your ethnicity and race

Nationalism

• Nationalism is loyalty and devotion to a nationality.

• Nationalism promotes one nationality and culture above that of other nations.

How is nationalism fostered?

• Mass media (controlled in some states—believed to be a risk to the government)

• Flags, songs, symbols, holidays

• Propaganda (often negative images about other countries)

Samples of symbols or images that promote nationalism

Sample of propaganda intended to promote a particular attitude about war

Centripetal and Centrifugal Forces

• A centripetal force is an attitude that tends to UNIFY OR CONNECT people and enhance support for a state (country).

• A centrifugal force is an attitude that tends to DIVIDE people and decrease support for a state.

Do you know the difference?

Centripetal or centrifugal?

1.flag

2.civil war

3.interstate system

4.national anthem

5.poor economy

The Index of Residential Dissimilarity —What is it?

• Segregation is a shorthand expression for the extent to which members of an ethnic group are not uniformly distributed in relation to the rest of the population.

• Think of separation!

The Index of Residential Dissimilarity —What is it?

• A commonly employed measure for quantifying the degree to which a distinctive group is segregated is the index of residential dissimilarity.

• It indicates the difference between the distributions of two component groups of a population, with a theoretical range of values from 0 (no segregation) to 100 (complete segregation).

The Index of Residential Dissimilarity —What is it?

• Example: Detroit, Michigan– 1. Population (2011): 9.8 million people– 2. Overall segregation index—83 (established

by the U.S. Census Bureau)– 3. Index of Dissimilarity:

• Blacks: 89• Hispanic: 42• Asian: 48

The Index of Residential Dissimilarity —What is it?

• Evidence from cities throughout the world makes it clear that most ethnic minorities tend to be sharply segregated from the charter group.

• Charter means “first,” referring to the first group that has a lasting impact on the cultural landscape.

To what extent is America a “melting pot”?

Well…let’s talk about it…

Schoolhouse Rocks!

To what extent is America a “melting pot”?

• It is really more of an American myth than reality.• Wilbur Zelinsky: “Doctrine of First Effective

Settlement”– Cultural areas of the U.S. are European in origin– His doctrine refers to the first group that is able to

establish a viable, continuing society within a specific territory.

– United States—first group to establish core as spread culture as the U.S. expanded

Interactive Map Showing Settlement PatternsInteractive Map Showing Settlement Patterns

Now…let’s see how much you remember…

Question 1

Which of these is an example of a cultural trait?

A.sleeping

B.eating a meal

C.wearing a turban

D.walking

E.parenting

Question 1

Which of these is an example of a cultural trait?

C. wearing a turban

Question 2

An ethnicity is typically distinguished by all but which of the following?

A.art

B.culture

C.history

D.traditions

E.sovereignty

Question 2

An ethnicity is typically distinguished by all but which of the following?

E. sovereignty

Question 3

Elements of nationalism include all of the following except

A.a common culture.

B.shared attitudes.

C.shared emotions.

D.political structures

(type of government).

Question 3

Elements of nationalism include all of the following except

D. political structures

(type of government).

Question 4

In the United States, which of the following is shared by all Americans?

A.nationality

B.language

C.religion

D.race

E.ethnicity

Question 4

In the United States, which of the following is shared by all Americans?

A.nationality

Question 5

Latinos and Hispanics are clustered in which areas of the United States?

A.Northeast, cities

B.West, Southwest

C.Southwest, Northwest

D.cities

E.rural areas

Question 5

Latinos and Hispanics are clustered in which areas of the United States?

B. West, Southwest

Question 6

Self-identification includes

A.ethnicity

B.race

C.religion

D.all of the above

Question 6

Self-identification includes

D. all of the above

Question 7

Which of the following is not a strong centripetal force in the United States?

A.network television

B.the Pledge of Allegiance

C.a common currency

D.diverse ethnic groups

Question 7

Which of the following is not a strong centripetal force in the United States?

D. diverse ethnic groups