Internal Ethnicity: Armenian, Bahai, Jewish, and Muslim Iranians in Los Angeles (California)
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TextProducer: Los Angeles, CA : University of California, Los Angeles 1992Subject(s): Abstract: Case studies of immigrant groups have contributed significantly to theoretical developments in the fields of immigration and ethnic studies. The focus on the immigrant group as a whole has resulted in ignoring immigrant subgroups, reducing ethnicity to national origin. Ethnically diverse immigrant groups contain more than one type of ethnicity. Internal ethnicity refers to the presence of ethnic groups within an immigrant group. It is hypothesized that, in the destination country, immigrant subgroups which were already minorities in the country of origin maintain their ethnicity more so than does the immigrant subgroup which was part of the majority population. Survey data collected in a probability sample of Iranians in Los Angeles allow us to test this hypothesis. The sample of 671 Iranian heads of household consists og 195 Armenians, 87 Bahais, 188 Jews, and 201 Muslims. Ethnicity of the Muslim majority is compared with that of Armenian, Bahai, and Jewish ethno-religious minorities from Iran. The data analysis supports the hypothesis, and further shows that pre-migration ethnicity is an important and neglected determinanet of post-migration ethnicity.
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Case studies of immigrant groups have contributed significantly to theoretical developments in the fields of immigration and ethnic studies. The focus on the immigrant group as a whole has resulted in ignoring immigrant subgroups, reducing ethnicity to national origin. Ethnically diverse immigrant groups contain more than one type of ethnicity. Internal ethnicity refers to the presence of ethnic groups within an immigrant group. It is hypothesized that, in the destination country, immigrant subgroups which were already minorities in the country of origin maintain their ethnicity more so than does the immigrant subgroup which was part of the majority population. Survey data collected in a probability sample of Iranians in Los Angeles allow us to test this hypothesis. The sample of 671 Iranian heads of household consists og 195 Armenians, 87 Bahais, 188 Jews, and 201 Muslims. Ethnicity of the Muslim majority is compared with that of Armenian, Bahai, and Jewish ethno-religious minorities from Iran. The data analysis supports the hypothesis, and further shows that pre-migration ethnicity is an important and neglected determinanet of post-migration ethnicity.