Population, ethnicity, and nation-building: Themes, issues, and guidelines

Ethnic conflicts have been among the most-reported international events in the early 1990s. Ethnicity has often been assumed to diminish with passage of time and longer exposure to the place of destination. The factors that shape ethnic patterns are demographic processes that affect the size and distribution of populations, their reproductive patterns, and their migration. Population size, structure, and cohort succession are features that bring marriage markets, childbearing, schooling, and the socialization of the next generation into the ethnic community. The importance of ethnic differentiation compared to the importance of other characteristics such as education, region, or occupation may be more pronounced among some social-economic groups. The cultural and social class perspectives both tap important dimensions of the differences among ethnic groups in society. The nature of political regimes and political change, including colonialism and nation-building, are particularly important in historical context. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.