CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2016
| Author | Lőrincz, Borbála |
|---|---|
| Title | "If no one consumes us, we will consume ourselves" - Nationalist politics and everyday ethnicity in a Szekler village |
| Summary | The present thesis is concerned with aspects of the everyday life of ethnic Hungarian and Roma people living in rural Szeklerland (Transylvania, Romania). An ethnographic research was conducted in a village of about 200 people. Results of observations and 17 interviews show that the way ethnicity emerges in the village mirrors the complex position of local Hungarians who are a majority in the village and the region but a minority in Romania. It was found that on the local level the Roma are the most significant outgroup, and villagers also use Romanians as an outgroup. When presenting themselves and the village, participants focus on three main problems (depopulation, subsistence hardships and estrangement) and do not paint an idealized picture. Contributing to research about the effects of nationalist politics on the micro level, the research found that although they vote, people are disillusioned with politics and are concerned only with local problems. Furthermore, it was found that strict symbolic boundaries are maintained between Roma and Hungarian villagers, and Roma are not reached by local or Hungary-based political actors either. The thesis argues that nationalist politics does not play a significant part in the everyday life of Hungarians in Szeklerland because people primarily focus on local issues and identities, and because nationalist politics does not give an answer to problems that truly matter for them. |
| Supervisor | Váradi, Luca |
| Department | Nationalism Studies MA |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2016/lorincz_borbala.pdf |
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