Ethnic Minorities and the Politics of Identity in Iran

The present review essay is of a novel format: two authors working in the same field introduce each other's works, and then pose a number of questions to each other. The aim is to facilitate dialogue between scholars occupied with similar issues, theories, methods or problems, and to share their discussions with others. Here, Alam Saleh, Lecturer in Middle Eastern Politics, University of Exeter, and Rasmus Christian Elling, Assistant Professor of Iranian Studies, University of Copenhagen, introduce each other's recent books on ethnic minorities, identity and nationalism in post-revolution Iran. These introductions are then followed by questions and answers in relation to the topics covered by the books.     

Ethnic/National Identity Incrimination in and through Social Constructionism

Social constructionism, and Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe’s discourse theory in particular, are well-known for their anti-essentialist understanding of identity. Hence these discourses have theoretically been utilized for understanding social identity construction and for deconstructing identities. However, I claim that social constructionism and Laclau and Mouffe’s discourse theory may have the as yet non-theorized operation of detecting and combating wholesale indictments of identities. This operation helps us diagnose how ethnic identity and affect become incriminated as supposedly inextricably intertwined with racism, chauvinism and related pathologies. Yet interestingly, instead of unveiling and critiquing the new hegemony of blanket indictment of ethnic identity/affect, social constructionism and Laclau and Mouffe’s discourse theory have been used to incriminate identity as such. The present article interprets Laclau and Mouffe’s discourse theory against the grain to chastise the tendency to declare ethnic identity/affect as the new enemy. It shows how such new, hegemonic incrimination aspires to fill the empty signifier of peaceful coexistence with otherness, yet runs the risk of effacing otherness. The article concludes with an example of a reconstructive alternative.     

Inconspicuous Consumption: Non-Display Goods and Identity Formation

In the study of ancient material culture, archaeologists have primarily focused on the use of objects for display and communication. This social function of material culture could only have developed on the basis of individual cognitive capacity for the use of goods as materializations of symbolic behavior. To explore the deeply held relationship of identity to material culture, this paper focuses on goods that are utilized away from the gaze of others. Using examples from the ethnographic present such as pharmaceuticals, underwear, and hygiene products, I develop the idea of “reflexive identity” to describe how people use material objects in private to define themselves prior to and independent of their social roles as perceived by others. The act of daily identity creation and affirmation through goods, particularly those that are inexpensive and disposable, indicates the extent to which human cognition and psychological sense of self are inextricably linked to the handling of material culture. The archaeological application of a reflexive identity enables us to understand how ordinary goods are a fundamental component of identity formation prior to and independent of individuals’ engagement with others.     

Minangkabau Migration: Developing an Ethnic Identity in a Multicultural Society

The ambiguity which often surrounds the definition of ethnic identity stems from its wide ranging utility in humanistic studies. The breadth and flexibility of meaning attached to ethnic identity assists in uncovering the diversity of issues which relate to migrants' everyday experiences, expectations and aspirations. This paper seeks to establish how a relatively recent group of migrants to Australia, the Minangkabau from West Sumatra, Indonesia, develop and maintain their sense of ethnic identity during the migration process and in their everyday lives. A framework is developed which places the development of ethnic identity into a wider social context by examining links with the country of origin, involvement in the host community and the home environment.     

Social Identity and Ethnic Interaction in the Western Pueblos of the American Southwest

With the increasing realization of the frequency of migration in prestratified societies, our understanding of ethnic interaction needs to become more sophisticated. This paper discusses ethnic interaction in prestratified societies on a theoretical level by examining currently used models based on Barth's concepts of interaction (Barth, F., Ethnic Groups and Boundaries, Little, Brown, Boston, 1969, pp. 9–39) and Bourdieu's concept of habitus (Bourdieu, P., Outline of a Theory of Practice, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1977). These current models are flawed, and an alternative model relying on reflexive decisions by agents who are constrained by their place within the existing social structure is presented. This model is then used to examine ethnic identity in Western Pueblo societies in three areas of central Arizona: Point of Pines, Grasshopper, and Silver Creek. All three areas were locations of prehistoric migration and subsequent interaction between migrants and indigenous peoples. However, the nature of the interaction differed considerably, with ethnicity being emphasized in some places, de-emphasized in others, and ignored all together in still others.     

杨端其人及其族别考

杨端是统治播州（今贵州遵义）达近七百二十五年的杨氏家族之始祖。近代以前,史载皆以杨端为山西太原汉人。上世纪四十年代学者谭其骧对其民族身份提出异议,认为杨氏族属为川南之罗族（今彝族）,文章发表后,又衍生出苗族、白族、仡佬族三说;杨端其人之存在,则在上世纪末禹明先撰文提出新见。杨端其人及其族别问题,事关黔北历史真伪、事关黔北少数民族文化与汉文化间复杂而微妙的关系。本文依据历史文献,对二学者之论逐一缕析,认为确有杨端其人,祖籍山西太原,汉族。     

族群认同、族群认同的发展及测定与研究方法

认同研究是社会心理学研究的一个重要领域,近十多年来,社会心理学家把社会认同理论运用于少数民族心理学研究,取得了一系列的研究成果。族群认同涉及到民族心理学研究的方方面面,成为民族心理学研究的核心问题。族群关系,族群文化适应,族群之间的偏见、歧视和冲突,都与族群认同的发展有关。本文综述西方学者近年来对族群认同、族群认同发展、族群认同测定等方面的研究在理论和方法上的新进展,旨在对我国的民族心理学研究提供某种借鉴。     

民族主义及其需要制造对立面的心理根源

美国著名心理史学家兼精神分析专家洛温伯格教授在文中探讨了与民族主义有关的心理问题,其中两个要点似乎很值得赞赏。其一,民族主义有着深刻的心理根源,甚至说它扎根于人自婴幼儿时期便具有的本能也不为过;其二,民族主义由划分“我们”与“他们”而来,是相对于“他们”的存在而存在的,因此有树立对立面的心理需要。但这仅是一方面。文中还指出了问题的另一方面,那就是超越狭隘民族主义,实现民族间和睦相处是可能的,这就需要运用高度的政治智慧,需要互相协商妥协和耐心等待。[编者按]     

Federal Restructuring in Ethiopia: Renegotiating Identity and Borders along the Oromo–Somali Ethnic Frontiers

When the Ethiopian state was reorganized as an ethnic federation in the 1990s, both ethnicity and governance experienced the impact of the change. Most importantly, ethnicity became the key instrument regarding entitlement, representation and state organization. For the larger ethnic groups, fitting into the new ethno‐federal structure has been relatively straightforward. In contrast, ethnic federalism has necessitated a renegotiation of identity and of statehood among several smaller communities that straddle larger ethnic groups. It has also led to the reconfiguration of centre–periphery relations. This contribution discusses how the federal restructuring of Ethiopia with the aim of matching ethnic and political boundaries led to renegotiation of identity, statehood and centre–periphery relations among several Somali and Oromo clans that share considerable ethno‐linguistic affinities.