The Resurgence of Religious and Ethnic Identities among Eritrean Refugees: A Response to the Government's Nationalist Ideology. Issue 1 (April 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Mohammad, Abdulkader Saleh
• Other Names: Müller Tanja R. guest-editor.; Belloni Milena guest-editor.
• Is Part Of: Afrika Spectrum. Volume 56:Issue 1(2021)
• Page Start: 39
• Page End: 58
• Publication Date: 2021-04
• Subjects: Eritrea -- ethnicity -- diaspora -- identity -- nationalism; Eritrea -- Ethnizität -- Diaspora -- Identität -- Nationalismus; Africa -- Periodicals; Afrique; Africa; Afrique; Periodicals; 960.05
• DOI: 10.1177/0002039720963287
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0002-0397

Abstract

This article explores processes of identity formation in Eritrean diaspora communities that have reverted to subnational patterns of identification grounded in the historical-political crises of their homeland. Refugees from Eritrea's open-ended national service have ambivalent feelings towards their national identity: on the surface, they stress the cohesiveness of the Eritrean people, but in their daily lives they embrace ethnic or religious communities. I elaborate the dilemmas of identity formation in the transnational space between religious and ethnic affiliations and Eritrean nationalism. I analyse the expansion of ethnolinguistic and regional associations among diaspora communities and discuss their impact on identity formation. I link cleavages along ethnic and religious lines to collective memories and the government's attempts to eradicate subnational identities. The study is based on long-term participant observation and semi-structured interviews with Eritreans in exile, and engages with relevant bodies of literature discussing identity formation in African and diaspora contexts.