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Curating An American Immigrant Identity : German And Latin American Heritage Weekends As Placemaking In Louisville, Kentucky, 1974-1980., Sarah Elizabeth Mccoy May 2019

Curating An American Immigrant Identity : German And Latin American Heritage Weekends As Placemaking In Louisville, Kentucky, 1974-1980., Sarah Elizabeth Mccoy

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The multicultural Heritage Weekends, which began in 1974 in time for the bicentennial, were ethnic festivals in Louisville, Kentucky, and were used by different groups in disparate ways. German Americans and American Latinos used the festivals as placemaking, as they laid claim to the city of Louisville and curated their own interpretation of an American identity. Festival organizers, including city officials, however used the festivals as a way to encourage pluralism, while still promoting hegemony and assimilation. By analyzing newspaper articles and the history of both German Americans and American Latinos in the city, the work of heritage among ethnic …


Immigration, Identity, And Genealogy: A Case Study, Thomas Daniel Knight Jan 2019

Immigration, Identity, And Genealogy: A Case Study, Thomas Daniel Knight

History Faculty Publications and Presentations

This paper examines the life and experiences of a 19th-century immigrant from the British Isles to the United States and his family. It examines his reasons for immigrating, as well as his experiences after arrival. In this case, the immigrant chose to create a new identity for himself after immigration. Doing so both severed his ties with his birth family and left his American progeny without a clear sense of identity and heritage. The essay uses a variety of sources, including oral history and folklore, to investigate the immigrant’s origins and examine how this uncertainty shaped the family’s history in …


Name Changes In Search Of A New Identity: Southern And Eastern European Immigrants And The Fashioning Of White Identity In The United States, Kathryn A. Penick Jan 2019

Name Changes In Search Of A New Identity: Southern And Eastern European Immigrants And The Fashioning Of White Identity In The United States, Kathryn A. Penick

Regis University Student Publications (comprehensive collection)

This thesis examines the reasons, methods, and implications of the process by which immigrant individuals and families changed ethnic/heritage surnames to anglicized/Americanized surnames. Eastern and Southern immigrant groups are the focus of this work. Names have implications for group membership and personal identity; as a broad trend, the changing of family names was a significant way in which immigrant groups acculturated to mainstream American culture. In American history, immigration has been inextricably linked to issues of race and racial identity. These themes are explored in depth as they relate to personal and group identification and belonging.