The social construction of a collective Indian ethno-religious identity in a context of ethnic diversity, a case study of an Indo-Caribbean Hindu temple in Toronto

grantor: University of TorontoThe direct face-to-face encounters between Indo-Caribbeans and their estranged ancestral South Asian "cousins" have not only resulted in the gradual transformation of the traditional Indo-Caribbean ethnic identity but have also created the conditions for the development of a new "Indian" identity in the Canadian diaspora. In this study, I have examined the consequences of this "meeting-up" and the impact that it has had (or is currently having) on ethnic identification among Indo-Caribbeans. The construction of ethnic identity and culture is the result of both convention and innovation--a dialectic played out by ethnic groups for reshaping and redefining ethnic self-conceptions and culture. The Hindu mandir examined in this thesis was characterized by a synchretistic fusion of Indo-Caribbean and South Asian cultural traditions, and this has resulted in the emergence of a new and second diasporic Indo-Caribbean ethnic identity: an identity that takes the form of an imaginary South Asian Indian identity. For Indo-Caribbeans, the melding together of elements from both the past and present is crucial for redefining who and what they are and wish to be. This new "Indian" identity is tantamount to the creation of "new ethnicity" or ethnic rediscovery. The idea of trying to reconnect with one's ethnic "roots" is not just simply an aspect of ethnic renewal or ethnic rediscovery, but one that represents a significant instance of constructed ethnicity. As such, this study contributes significantly to our understanding of ethnicity as a socially constructed phenomenon. This sociological ethnographic case study was located within the Social Constructionist approach to ethnicity--a theoretical model that emphasizes the dynamic and fluid nature of ethnic relations. In keeping with the qualitative nature of the case study methodology, this study necessitated the utilization of field research. The rich body of ethnographic data derived from participant observation and in-depth semi-structured interviews contributed to our understanding of inductive theoretical reformulation made possible through the grounded theory approach.Ph.D