Open Access“Don't tell me that I don't exist”:
Author(s) -
Karolis Dambrauskas,
Emilia Baradziej
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
the anthropology of east europe review/the anthropology of east europe review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2153-2931
pISSN - 1054-4720
DOI - 10.14434/aeer.v37i1.32023
Subject(s) - macedonian , pride , nationalism , national identity , politics , identity (music) , field (mathematics) , political science , national heritage , sociology , antique , gender studies , media studies , law , history , aesthetics , ethnology , ancient history , art , mathematics , pure mathematics
This article discusses the ways national identity is constructed and practiced in North Macedonia. Based on data collected in 2015 during fieldwork in the Macedonian city of Bitola, and, especially, in the village of Trnovo and the city of Ohrid, the article explains how various notions of Macedonianness are constructed and politicized.To do this, several analytical prisms characteristic to the field of nationalism studies are used. The Macedonians' need for having their constructed identity recognized has its roots in Macedonia's turbulent national and international political environment. Even so, the evidence collected in the interviews with local informants will highlight how Macedonianness is often practiced by marking the rejection of other national identifications. In particular, the article demonstrates how the idea of antique national roots marks an attempt to re-use available historical materials on two different levels: to boost national pride and to legitimize political claims made by some Macedonian politicians.