What is Ethnicity? - Lecture Flashcards

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering definitions, Max Weber's concepts, race vs. ethnicity distinctions, and panethnicity based on Prof. Ivelisse Cuevas-Molina's lecture notes.

Ethnicity (Oxford Definition)

The fact or state of belonging to a social group that has a common national or cultural tradition.

Ethnic (Merriam-Webster Primary Definition)

Of or relating to large groups of people classed according to common racial, national, tribal, religious, linguistic, or cultural origin or background.

Ethnic (Archaic Definition)

Of or relating to the Gentiles or to nations not converted to Christianity; heathen or pagan.

Weberian Definition of Ethnicity

A conceptualization of ethnicity defined by Max Weber as a belief in shared descent based on geographic or ancestral origin and distinguishable customs that form a common bond.

Belief in Shared Descent

A foundational element of Weberian ethnicity involving ancestral or geographic origins and distinguishable customs that establish a common bond among group members.

Common Culture

The shared values, beliefs, practices, customs, food, language, and religion that characterize an ethnic group.

Culture Wheel

A visual framework illustrating elements of shared culture, including values, language, traditions & rituals, techniques & skills, tools & objects, the arts, food & drink, knowledge & stories, and greater community.

Social Construction of Ethnicity

The understanding that ethnicity is not biologically fixed but is created and shaped through social processes, group distinctions, and migration context.

Origins of Ethnicity in Migration

The emergence of distinct ethnic group identity driven by global movement, resulting in social heterogeneity and group competition over scarce resources.

Heterogeneity through Distinction

The process by which migration leads to diverse group identities as groups mark cultural boundaries and differentiate themselves from others.

Competition for Scarce Resources

A material driver in migration contexts that reinforces ethnic boundaries and group solidarity as groups compete for limited political, social, or economic goods.

Phenotype vs. Culture

A key distinction between race and ethnicity, where race is based on physical appearance (phenotype) while ethnicity is rooted in shared cultural practices and heritage.

Ascription vs. Agency

A contrast between race and ethnicity, where racial status is primarily ascribed by external society, whereas ethnic identity involves subjective agency and self-identification.

Single vs. Multiplicity

A structural difference where individuals are often externally limited to a single racial category, whereas ethnic identity allows for multiple layered affiliations.

Immutability vs. Flexibility

A point of differentiation between race and ethnicity, contrasting the rigid, immutable perception of race with the contextual flexibility of ethnic identity.

Panethnicity

An overarching group category wherein distinct subgroup differences are homogenized into a broader categorical, cultural, and cognitive identity.

Linked Fate

A cognitive dimension of pan-ethnic consciousness where individuals perceive that their personal well-being is closely tied to the status and outcomes of the broader group.

Institutional Origins of Panethnicity

External drivers such as scientific classification systems and governmental census categories that create and reinforce broad pan-ethnic designations.

Collective Action (Panethnicity)

The strategic organization of diverse subgroups under a shared pan-ethnic label to gain political leverage, coalition strength, and unified representation.

Pan-ethnic Benefits

The advantages and resources secured by subgroups when uniting under a broader pan-ethnic umbrella rather than operating as smaller, separate groups.