Anthropology Commons^™

Assumed Identities And The Construction Of Self Among The West Indian Diaspora In The Greater Toronto Area (Gta), Badarinarayan A. Maharaj

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

In this thesis I explore the (re) construction of identity and sense of self among members of the West Indian diaspora in the Greater Toronto Area. The research took place between October 2021 and March 2022, taking the form of semi-structured interviews with people who identify as West Indian and participant observation at various West Indian establishments. My objective is to show how the cultural elements of sport, food, and music are experienced and engaged with by the members of the West Indian diaspora, and the ways in which it allows for the development and expression of a West Indian …

Quebec’S Uninhabitable Community: Identity And Community Among Anglo-Quebecer Out-Migrants, Evan A. Mardell

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

How do Anglo-Quebecers who have migrated to Ontario in the past 45 years perceive and negotiate their identity in relation to Quebec? Since 1971, 600 000 anglophones have left Quebec for other parts of Canada. This out-migration coincided with political tensions that influenced a complete economic and linguistic shift in power from English to French. The symbolic and literal reclamation of Quebec as a French province set the conditions for the partial erasure of the Quebec anglophone (Anglo-Quebecer) community and sense of identity. From a series of semi-structured interviews with anglophones who left Quebec within the past 45 years, I …

Indigenous Coaches And The National Aboriginal Hockey Championships, Dallas Gerald Hauck

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This thesis explores the National Aboriginal Hockey Championships (NAHC), an annual hockey tournament held in Canada where Indigenous youth compete in provincial/territorial teams. Research focused especially on the insights that coaches, organizers, and other tournament officials can provide into this tournament that aims to both highlight the skills of Indigenous players and also to provide cultural activities and enhance pride. Drawing on interviews at the NAHC at the 2019 tournament in Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada, this thesis aims to understand the impact the tournament has on those involved, as well as outside influences that constrain and impact the event. The major …

'We Are The Big Six:’ Maasai Perceptions And Organization Of Cultural Tourism In Kenya, Kara D. Kelliher

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Kenya’s wildlife has long been considered an international treasure. Travelling to the renowned Masai Mara National Reserve (MMNR) to capture the ‘big five,’ those five large wild animals considered to be Africa’s greatest, with their camera lenses, visitors will also see or even meet local Maasai living and/or working in the area. Employing ethnographic methods this research examines three sites: the Enkang Oloirien Village Homestay, Olapa village and the main entrance to the MMNR where Maasai women sell souvenirs to explore Maasai perceptions and organization of cultural tourism. Responding to literature which considers benefits from tourism to accrue when hosts …

"Too Hard To Pronounce"- Examining Immigration Ideologies In The Treatment Of Newcomer Youths' Names, Nadja Schlote

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This thesis examines how the treatment of newcomer youths’ names within social interactions between immigrants and the Canadian host society reveals immigration ideologies indicating either an integrationalist or assimilationist attitude. The data was collected from semi-structured interviews with newcomer youths and staff members at the Cross Cultural Learner Centre in London, Ontario, from April to August 2017. One the one hand, I examine how the newcomer youths’ names are treated by members of the dominant society, often including forms of name-based microaggressions that reflect an immigration ideology that includes a preference towards cultural assimilation. On the other hand, I demonstrate …

Soccer, Space, And Community Integration: Being And Becoming Canadian In London, Ontario Through The World's Game, Marcelo Eduardo Herrera

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Abstract:

In this thesis I explore various forms of participation in organized soccer in London, Ontario – a mid-sized Canadian city with a diverse and growing immigrant community. My research took place between April 2015 and September 2015 and is based on focus group discussions, individual interviews, and casual conversations mainly, but not exclusively, with players and non-players, parents of players, and team or club administrators from London’s soccer community. My work’s primary objective is to provide an informed account of how and why soccer has and continues to be used by immigrant groups in London to integrate into Canadian …

Hunting For (Dis)Connections In Northern Ontario: "Nature," Wild Meat, And Community In Hearst, Daphné Gagnon

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This thesis follows a group of hunters in the town of Hearst in Northern Ontario, as they move through space—from the town, to the hunting ground, and back to the home. The analysis presented draws on research that took place over a six-month period during the summer and fall of 2016 and involved a combination of library research, participant observation, 28 interviews, and numerous informal conversations. The analysis presented explores how hunting in Hearst is linked to 1) a sense of place and community membership, 2) local knowledge of, and attachment to, the surrounding “natural” environment and the regional fauna, …

”Not Just Based On Land”: A Study On The Ethnic Tibetan Community In Toronto, Diyin Deng

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The Tibetan identity first emerged as “resistance” (Winland 2002; Scott 1990). The united pan-Tibetan identity did not originally resonate with the diverse group of ethnic minorities living on the Tibetan plateau until post-Chinese occupation. Then, all the groups saw the mutual benefit of adopting the united Tibetan identity against what they perceived as a greater threat to their culture and values. As such the initial Tibetan identity that is projected internationally was harnessed as a “weapon”(Bauman and Vecchi 2004:74) against homogenizing Chinese citizenship and was intimately intertwined with activism.

My research focuses on the formation of diasporic Tibetan identities within …

The Richness Of Food: A Zooarchaeological Analysis Of Huaca Santa Clara And Huaca Gallinazo, North Coast Of Peru, Arwen M. Johns

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This thesis is a zooarchaeological study examining the entangled nature of human-animal relations within processes of food production, preparation, and consumption at Huaca Santa Clara and Huaca Gallinazo in the Virú Valley, North Coast of Peru. It assesses how the consumption of animal products influenced social differentiation and identities during early state development in the Early Intermediate Period (200B.C.E – 800 C.E.). This thesis takes a social zooarchaeological approach and utilizes the framework of relational ontology to emphasize the social and symbolic roles of animals. Faunal remains suggest that individuals at Huaca Santa Clara had comparatively equal access to animal …

Language As Function Or Fashion? Multilingual Identity Formation Through Korean Language Learning, Hannah C. Cho

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This research examines identity in relation to the Korean language learning experiences of non-Korean and ethnic Korean learners. Based on participant observation and interviews done in Toronto and an international online survey, I use a language-ideological perspective to look at why and how people choose to learn (or not learn) a particular language. Specifically, I analyze how nationalist, functionalist and cosmopolitan language ideologies position learners in various ways and in turn, affect their sense of ethnic, cultural and other forms of identity. I show how these ideologies are interrelated and have different effects on how the identities of non-Koreans and …

Constructing ‘Farmer’ And ‘State’ Identities In Moral Discourses About Semi-Subsistence Agriculture In North-East Brazil, Karen E. Pennesi

Anthropology Publications

Anthropological analysis elucidates how discourses about agriculture in one North-east Brazilian community reflect relational roles of citizens and the state, the position of farmers in society, and the relationship of individuals to their work. In these discourses, farmers are positioned as moral, hard-working, autonomous citizens, justifying their participation in low-paying activities. The declining numbers of agricultural workers is explained as a result of individual laziness or government irresponsibility. In using these discourses to take stances publicly on agricultural issues, speakers assign responsibilities and moral status to agents. In constructing rural identities, such moral discourses emphasise the symbolic value of subsistence …

The Reciprocal Influences Of The Old Order Mennonite Community And Tourism In St. Jacobs, Ontario, Mingyuan Zhang

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This research examines the reciprocal influences of the Old Order Mennonite community and tourism in St. Jacobs, Ontario. It is an ethnographic account of encounters between tourists and the Old Order Mennonite community who have both benefited from and been challenged by tourism development for four decades in the area of St. Jacobs. Cultural generalization and different ways of over-representing and misrepresenting the Old Order Mennonite identity has triggered tourists’ curiosity to seek the nostalgic past and social interactions with the Old Order Mennonite community. Even though tourism in St. Jacobs has been initiated and managed with the purpose of …

Challenging Essentialized Representations Of Romani Identities In Canada, Julianna Beaudoin

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Roma are one of the world’s most marginalized and exoticized ethnic groups, and they are currently the targets of increasing violence and exclusionary polices in Europe. In Canada, immigration and refugee policies have increasingly dismissed Roma as illegitimate or ‘bogus’ refugee claimants, in large part because they come from ‘safe’ European countries. These policies are reinforced through Canadian media discourse that primarily situates Roma as abusers of the refugee system. This dissertation on Romani identity challenges these demeaning and essentializing representations by focusing on three areas most relevant to Romani identities: first, historical representations; second, the role of media in …

The Call Of The Wild Geese: An Ethnography Of Diasporic Irish Language Revitalization In Southern And Eastern Ontario, Jonathan R. Giles

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This research examines the ideological and social dynamics that govern the use of the Irish language by a network of speakers and learners in Southern and Eastern Ontario. In what follows, I investigate the invocation of powerful historical discourses and symbolic references that has resulted in the creation of a vibrant network dedicated to reviving Irish in a diasporic setting through immersion. Using Irish at language immersion events is informed by diverse factors – levels of participant fluency, the prevalence of language-specific acquisition and socialization strategies, as well as by the need of attendees to talk about their stories and …

Rank, Competition, And The Etiquette Of Community At A Squash Club, David E. Levine

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This research uses a micro-level approach to focus on the day to day lives of squash players at a Toronto squash and fitness club. How different members conceived of the club as a community was one important aspect of my research. The club’s skill hierarchy and structure were also important ideas that influenced the everyday behavior of members, as it affected who members tended to develop relationships with. The greater social status of higher ranked players and how this was maintained is another important theme of this work. Members’ squash identity was usually grounded and initiated within the context of …

Aboriginal Fractions: Enumerating Identity In Taiwan, Jennifer A. Liu

Aboriginal Policy Research Consortium International (APRCi)

Notions of identity in Taiwan are configured in relation to numbers. I examine the polyvalent capacities of enumerative technologies in both the production of ethnic identities and claims to polit- ical representation and justice. By critically historicizing the manner in which Aborigines in Taiwan have been, and continue to be, constructed as objects and subjects of scientific knowledge production through technologies of measuring, I examine the genetic claim made by some Taiwanese to be ‘‘fractionally’’ Aboriginal. Numbers and techniques of measuring are used ostensibly to know the Aborigines, but they are also used to construct a genetically unique Taiwanese identity …