Nationality vs Ethnicity
The distinction between nationality and ethnicity is closely linked to a person’s ancestral lineage. Ethnicity has been a subject of intense debate for a long time, primarily due to the treatment of certain population groups in various countries. Ethnicity refers to one’s racial ancestry, while nationality pertains to a person’s place of origin. For example, if you were born in the UK, your nationality would be British, but your religion (if different from the majority community) would define your ethnicity or racial origin. There are several key differences between ethnicity and nationality that will be discussed in this article.
Key Takeaways
- Ethnicity is a broader term than race, referring to a group of people who are geographically and culturally together.
- Nationality is a concept that describes a person’s membership to a country or a nation, irrespective of their ethnic origins.
- Ethnicity reveals one’s racial affiliations, whereas nationality refers to the country of one’s origin or current residence.
What is Ethnicity?
Ethnicity is a broader term than race and refers to a group of people who are geographically and culturally together. The term ethnicity is relatively new, as it was first mentioned in the Oxford dictionary in 1972. However, it was used when referring to minority populations in various countries. In Nazi Germany, the word ethnic was a euphemism for Jews, and in Great Britain, it gradually became a word that replaced the term racial. In everyday language, the word ethnicity has connotations of minority groups and racial origins, although the word never received any recognition from anthropologists. Anthropologists have used the term ethnicity to describe groups of people in a particular society with distinct cultural identities. However, race and racial affiliations have always been closely associated with the term ethnicity, which is why the word has gained a negative reputation. Nonetheless, ethnicity is broader than race, which only refers to a group of people who come from a common geographical area.
Ethnicity has been the basis for discrimination against populations in various parts of the world, and it is known as racism or communalism for convenience or justification purposes. Regardless of a group’s nationality, their ethnic affiliations become important. People tend to make stereotypes about others when they learn of their ethnicity, despite their nationality. For example, the nationality of an Indian born in South Africa may be South African, but they are often referred to as an Indian. This demonstrates how deeply rooted and strong the concept of racism or ethnicity is in people’s minds.
What is Nationality?
Nationality is a concept that describes a person’s membership to a country or a nation. If you are born in a particular country or have become a citizen through naturalization, you have the nationality of that country, regardless of your ethnic origins. Nationality grants a person certain rights, including citizenship. The United Nations states that every individual in the world has the right to nationality and cannot be deprived of their nationality unless they express their desire to change their nationality. Although the terms citizenship and nationality are often confused, nationality is a broader term that includes both citizens and non-citizens.
What is the difference between Nationality and Ethnicity?
- Ethnicity reveals your racial affiliations, while nationality refers to your country of origin or current residence.
- A nation’s population may consist of numerous ethnic groups, although they all share the same nationality. For example, American is the nationality of all those who have American citizenship. However, America is a mixture of Jews, Hispanics, Caucasians, and Asians.
- Ethnicity is a group of people with the same geographical and cultural heritage. They share the same cultural traditions, such as Jews, who originally come from the same area and share the same traditions.
- Nationality is the country where you have obtained your citizenship. You may be born in that country or immigrated to that country and earned citizenship by following the rules of that particular country.
- At any given point in time, more wars and conflicts occur in the world over the issue of ethnicity than nationality.
In conclusion, ethnicity recognizes a smaller group of people, while nationality encompasses a larger number of people as it is a broader term.
