Cultural identity can be difficult for people to determine because it is often invisible until you are introduced to a culture different from your own. It also has numerous meanings to different people around the world. Your cultural identity does not necessarily mean your heritage or where your family comes from, it can mean what you believe in, what your values are or how you treat people. Therefore, it can even mean how you view the world. Just like many other young people, I have struggled with identifying my own cultural identity.
From a young age, I was told that I was Irish, Scottish and Welsh because that is where my ancestors came from. I did not think that much about it at the time and I just went with it, but now that I am learning more about what cultural identity is and what it means to me, I feel like describing me in three words is not describing me at all. Yes, my ancestors are from Ireland, Scotland and Wales, but there is so much more to me than that. People often assume that I am Irish based on my fair skin, freckles and the slight red tint to my hair. However, not everybody knows l that I am passionate about photography, baking and anything to do with sports. I have started to feel like I am losing my sense of cultural identity by living so far away from my Irish extended family.
Although I do not have a strong sense of cultural identity, my relatives do. Many of my relatives live in Indiana and identify strongly as Irish-Catholic. My dad was the first person in the family to move across the country to California and abandon many of his parents cultural traditions and ideas. This has changed me because I feel as if my cultural identity of being a traditional Irish-Catholic has disappeared. My family does not go to church each Sunday, we are not as conservative and we do not meet up with our relatives that often since we live so far away. As I have gotten older, I have realized that I am losing part of my cultural identity by separating from these ideals and customs. I feel like many people around me have a strong sense of cultural identity, while I am struggling to have a strong sense of belonging to a specific culture.
While I feel as if I do not belong to a specific culture, I do know
Though it does not come up in everyday thought, cultural identity is an idea that all humans possess. Abridged, cultural identity can be simply explained as the sharing of a similar culture by people of various ethnicities. However, cultural identity is more complex than that, defined by an individual’s values, beliefs, and ideas of moral behavior influenced by their culture. Furthermore, cultural identity is ever changing from individual to individual. This means that although two individuals may be of the same ethnicity, differences in circumstances may cause variations between the individuals’ personal beliefs. As a result of interracial interactions, multiculturalism has grown during the twenty-first century.
My cultural identity, as I know is Mexican American because both my parents are born in Mexico and I was born here. I can also be defined as a Chicana because that is another way used to call a Mexican American. My culture can be seen in so many different ways like for example it can be seen in food, music, religion, dance, art, festivals, and even more. Most of these traditions have changed a little bit over time as they were brought to the U.S. What I mean by that is that some of those traditions were brought from Mexico, and had a little change into them because they were combined with some traditions that have already been here in the U.S.
What is my cultural identity? Personally, I don’t think I am completely assured on what my cultural identity is, but I can do my best on explaining it. However, I won’t get started on that yet, first I’ll explain the occasion of me learning about my identity. At almost the beginning of the year, it was announced in our English class that we would be doing an essay on our cultural identities. When my teacher announced this I thought to myself, “What in the world is a cultural identity, or even my cultural identity?” In these months, we have gotten to learn the definition of culture, and what it means to us, individually., I believe that culture means a group of people that share the same customs, way of life, and beliefs. Also, over these last couple of months we have been reading texts all about people knowing and understanding their cultural identities, meanwhile I still didn’t understand my own. All I know is that I was born on February 11, 2002, I like movies and music, and my mom is from Chile and my Dad is from Virginia. Now that didn’t feel like enough for me to write on, but then I started thinking about all of the cultural differences that my parents have had raising me as a person, and how those have all combined to make me. In my short 15 years of life, the culture clashes have sometimes affected me on my thoughts and opinions, which I’ll talk about later on. As well as how movies and music have affected my perspectives and opinions.
Cultural identity is the identity or feeling of belonging to a group. It is part of a person’s self-conception and self-perception and is related to nationality, ethnicity, religion, social class, generation, locality or any kind of social group that has it's own distinct culture, my culture identity is being Mexican American.
When someone asks me what is my cultural identity, there are a lot of things that come to my mind. For example, one of the first things that come to my mind is the how people see me which is by being hispanic. In the same way, I also think about the fact that in addition to being hispanic I am also Salvadorean which sets me apart from the idea that every hispanic is mexican and they are all the same. In the first few seconds after I am asked about my cultural identity, I think about who I am and what makes me me. I think about how I was raised and how different I might be compared to everyone around me. I am a straight male who does not have any disabilities. I do not have a high socioeconomic status, but I have sufficient. Being catholic, I have no problem exercising my religion as I please and that really sets me apart from many because not everyone identifies with the same cultural identity as I do. Some people encounter many obstacles due to their cultural identity, obstacles that I might not face which is why I feel like my cultural identity has affected different aspects of my life such as my social development, family, education among others.
Cultural identity are the things that make up who you are. My cultural identity is Cajun. Being Cajun is very unique. We eat different types of food, listen to certain types of music, and have certain traditions. I come from a very special family where everyone has each other’s back. They are very protective of each other and loving. There are a lot of distinct selections that show who I am but there are only a few major ones.
When I think about the culture I come from, I immediately think about my Japanese and Filipino lineage. I also think about Hawaii, and how growing up there has shaped me today. This are only parts of the equation to my cultural identity. No matter what nationality or country you grow up in, each person is exposed to different ideals that mix in with their background culture. I would like to look at my cultural identity by looking at some traditions in Hawaii, the organizations I’ve been a part of, and my own unique personal identity. Each of these has played a role in shaping my own cultural identity.
The first, and arguably one of the most important characteristics of my cultural identity is my ethnicity. I come from a traditional Indian household, where both my parents grew up in India. My ancestors are from Tamil Nadu which is in the southeast
What is my cultural identity? Cultural identity to me is something that you were inherited to do something or enjoy and believe specific things in your life. Things like sports or traditional foods or anything you were raised to like or do is what cultural identity means to me.
“the identity or feeling of belonging to, as part of the self-conception and self-perception to nationality, ethnicity, religion, social class, generation, locality and any kind of social group that have its own distinct culture,”. (1)
Cultural identity is the natural feeling you have from belonging to a group. Cultural identity is a lot of things but what is most influential to me are holidays, and family activities because these concepts stick out to me the most. Cultural identity is something that everybody has whether they realize it or not, they just need to understand it, and find themselves within their culture.
In my life, culture identity is very important because it tells who I am. It has shaped me into the person I am now. I am coming from culture that has had an impact on my norms, values , and beliefs. I was born and raised in Sudan, a country with a multi-ethnic group, with a mixture of African, Arabic and Islamic traditions and values. Back in my home country, I belong to the dominant social groups as being Middle Age, Male, Arabic, Muslim, and Middle Class. Although there is huge diversity among different groups and tribes live
Cultural identity refers to the feeling belonging to a certain culture that is attributed to the upbringing of an individual in the given culture. Cultural identity gives a person the sense of belonging and belonging towards their culture. Modern cultural studies show that cultural identification has taken a new face. Various cultural identifiers can be used to identify the culture of an individual. These identifiers include nationality, language, location, gender, religious beliefs, history, and ethnicity. Culture is important in shaping the identity of an individual. The efforts of people trying to preserve their cultural identities can bring about hatred and division in the society. This is likely to happen especially in large cities
Cultural identity is defined as the sense or feeling of belonging to a group. I connect my cultural identity to my immediate family. My immediate family consists of my parents, two younger sisters, and myself. Each one of us has significant values that have been instilled in one another. I believe that they play a large role in making me who I am today. Coming from a large, Sicilian family, the importance of love, loyalty, and support has always been prominent.
Cultural identity is the basis in which identification is used to express different aspects pertaining to identity and heritage. A person's cultural identity may be created by social organization, as well as traditions and customs within their lives. The two aspects that construct my cultural identity are the frequent chores I must complete every day in order to fulfill my behavioral expectations, and the youth group I attend weekly. These aspects are important to my family and me. Therefore, my identity has an immeasurable effect on my upbringing into this multi-cultural world I live in.