Ethnicity Examples, Types & Groups | What is Ethnicity? – Video & Lesson Transcript | Study.com

Video Transcript

What Is Ethnicity?

What are the major things that make you feel as though you belong in a certain group? Among other things, you probably speak the same language, celebrate the same traditions, and share a common history with others in the group. These elements comprise the culture to which you belong. When that is considered in the context of your nationality and race, it could be a strong indicator of your ethnicity.

Broadly speaking, a person’s ethnicity is their heritage and ancestral roots. Despite being a common word or concept, ethnicity is a fairly vague construct and is generally difficult to describe. This is due in part to differing contexts. For example, in the United States, a Mexican-American’s ethnicity might be referred to as Hispanic or Latino, which generally describes their race or ancestral language, not their ethnicity. In another country, that same person’s ethnicity might be described as Mexican, referring to their culture and heritage.

Identifying Ethnicity

The previous example illustrates how difficult it is to define or identify a person’s ethnicity, which is why many demographers and government institutions use broad categories. In the United States, for example, much of the population would likely be referred to as ethnically European because their ancestral roots are in one of many European countries. However, individually these people would probably identify their ethnicity by a specific country like Italy or Ireland, or a region.

One of the more productive and less complicated ways of identifying ethnicity is through self-identification, when a person chooses how they describe their ethnicity. For instance, an African American might broadly be categorized as ethnically African, but because their parents emigrated from the Republic of Congo and have maintained their cultural traditions, that person might self-identify as ethnically Congolese. It might be useful to explore some of the more well established ethnic groups to shed some light on the different elements used to define them.

Arab

One of the most common ethnicities that you’ve probably heard mentioned is Arab, which refers to people from western Asia and northern Africa. As one of the largest ethnic groups, these individuals share the Arabic languages, are largely Muslim, and practice many of the same traditions. In this case, it is language, religion, ancestral origin and, to a lesser extent, race that comprise this ethnic category.

The UK

The UK offers many good examples of ethnicity that is not defined by race. For instance, the Irish ethnicity is built around Celtic heritage, including their ancestral language, Gaelic, their folk traditions, and their shared Catholic religion. Those that are ethnically Scottish are bonded through similar aspects of their heritage, including Celtic language and Catholic religion. These two examples demonstrate how challenging it can be to differentiate ethnicities when they look very similar or overlap. In this case, these individuals could accurately be categorized as being of Celtic ethnicity, which also includes the Welsh, but that doesn’t mean they’re the same. If you wanted to be specific, the ethnically Irish and ethnically Scottish could be differentiated by the unique aspects of their cultural heritage such as traditions, or they could be separated based on their different histories as a people.

Kurds and Romani

Finally, there are some ethnicities that are built around a shared history, ancestry, and relationship with those around them. The Kurds, for example, occupy parts of Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Syria, but identify as being distinctly different from other citizens of those countries, despite the fact that they share much in common. In this case, the Kurds are self-differentiated based on their origins in a particular region of what were once the Persian and Ottoman empires.

The Kurds represent the important role that ethnicity plays in the lives of many people. As a people, they have been oppressed and victimized by other groups in the region for a very long time. This has made their ethnicity a very important aspect of their identity, as it is one of the main reasons that they have been marginalized. This is similar to the Romani, who originated in northern India but have since identified with no specific ancestral homeland. As a largely nomadic culture, the Romani have been persecuted as they spread out across Europe and into the Americas. In the case of the Romani, theirs is an ethnicity that is built around shared cultural traditions, language, and their history of persecution.

Lesson Summary

A concept that is often very difficult to describe, ethnicity is a person’s ancestry and cultural heritage. In some cases, ethnic categories can be broad and closely tied to race, while in others they can be specific and built around a particular history. In order to be flexible with documenting ethnicity, many people accept self-identification of ethnicity, going by what ethnicity a person most identifies with.

There are many different ethnic groups and cultures around the world, many of which are built around different aspects of a shared culture. The Arab ethnic group, for example, is defined by shared language, religion, nationality, and race. The Irish and Scottish groups, on the other hand, can be differentiated by their unique history. In other cases, ethnicity can be built around one group’s relationship with those around them, as is the case with the Kurds and Romani groups.

Key Concepts of Ethnicity

• Ethnicity: A person’s heritage and ancestral roots
• Self-identification: How a person chooses to describe their ethnicity
• Ethnicity is often defined by a shared language, religion, nationality or race

Learning Outcomes

Study this lesson on ethnic groups, then use what you’ve learned to:

• Clarify the meaning of ethnicity
• Recognize how to identify someone’s ethnicity
• Compare different ethnicities throughout the world