Elya Tzaneva
Papers of BAS. Humanities and Social Sciences
Vol. 5, 2018, No. 1
ETHNOCULTURAL SYMBOLISM AS A RESEARCH TOOL FOR IDENTITY ISSUES IN A “GLOBAL VILLAGE”
Elya Tzaneva
Abstract. The article offers some methodological insights on the recent studies of ethnic phenomenon (particularly, of ethnic identity) in times of globalization and mobility. On the basis of what is happening with ethnic cultures in these processes, thoughts are shared on the necessity of finding a precise scholarly lexicon and suitable combined approach to this subject today: the term ethnic as a scholarly construct is suggested to combine the contents of both ethnos and ethnicity and to denominate the past and present specifics and dynamics of ethnic identity issues. The potentials of ethnocultural symbolism are also explored as an instrument for studying ethnic identity today in a constructivist perspective, because of its capacity to order and sort out, trace the dynamics, and reveal the malleable position of different identity components.
Keywords: ethnic, culture, identity, globalization, mobility