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The Legitimation of Ethnicity: The Case of the C ornish
Author(s) -
Husk Kerryn,
Williams Malcolm
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
studies in ethnicity and nationalism
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.204
H-Index - 8
eISSN - 1754-9469
pISSN - 1473-8481
DOI - 10.1111/j.1754-9469.2012.01176.x
Subject(s) - legitimation , ethnic group , assertion , inclusion (mineral) , identity (music) , power (physics) , scale (ratio) , sociology , gender studies , collective identity , political science , political economy , anthropology , law , geography , aesthetics , politics , philosophy , cartography , computer science , programming language , physics , quantum mechanics
In this article we examine the complex processes involved in small‐scale ethnicity emergence and legitimation, and highlight the multi‐dimensional elements present in moving from a strong regional identity to an externally legitimate ethnic group. We use C ornwall as a case study: administered as an E nglish county, there has been a historic ethno‐cultural movement for recognition alongside recent inclusion in national statistics; however, legitimation by external elites has been problematic. The first sections outline the C ornish as a group; we argue that however one conceptualises ‘ethnicity’, the people of C ornwall must constitute such a group. We examine the dichotomous effects of the interplay between strong regional assertion and a C ornish ethnicity more formally. In the latter sections we apply these arguments to broader sociological discussions around the legitimation of particular groups, and show that the C ornish are indicative of the wider theoretical literature. In conclusion, we assert that the C ornish are representative of the push/pull mechanisms felt acutely in any core/periphery power relations, and should be seen as central to emerging small‐scale ethnic groups more generally.