Armenian Migration, Settlement and Adjustment in Australia with Special Reference · to the Armenians in Sydney
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ARMENIAN MIGRATION, SETTLEMENT AND ADJUSTMENT IN AUSTRALIA WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE · TO THE ARMENIANS IN SYDNEY by James Ray Kirkland A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Research School of Social Sciences of the· Australian National University March 1980 -244- CHAPTER VI MAINTENANCE OF ARMENIAN IDENTITY AND ETHNICITY IN AUSTRALIA - INTRODUCTION AND DEFINITIONS Most research on ethnic identity and ethnicity has been concerned not with its maintenance but with the patterns of its demise (Fishman, 1966d: 21). This is directly attributable to the attitude of earlier years that ethnic groups would always eventually die out. Thus, the emphasis was on how they disappeared rather than on how they managed to persist (Glazer and Moynihan, 1975b: 5). In Australia, st:udies qf ethnic identity have been made largely by social-psychologists, with the main emphasis being on how immigrants shed their ethnic identity anq .come to identify with Australian society· (Johnston, 1963; Phillips, 1968; Richardson, 1957; 1974; Taft, 1965). The underlying ·premise of most of these studies was that, over time, immigrants would eventually cease identifying with their ethnic groups and commence to identify with the greater Australian society at which stage they were con sidered to be "psychologi!:!ally ass:f.milated". More recent research, especially in the United States (Glazer and. Moynihan, 1975), has drawn attention to the persistence, or even resurgence, of ethnic group identity and to the means by which this is accomplished. It is now common to speak of "plural ·societies" where different ethnic groups maintain their separate ethnicities, while at the same time they are "integrated" into the larger society. With this idea of plural societies has also come the recogn~tion that individuals may identify simultaneously, and·without conflict, with their ethnic group and with the larger society. In Australia, the Jews are a good example of one such group which exhibits this "dual loyalty" (Encel et at.~ 1972; Medding, 1973a: 256-257; 1973b: 10). -245- For first generation immigrants, who are considered one variety of ethnic group (Price, 19·63: 222), maintenance of individual ethnic identity and .of the group's ethnicity can be very important aspects of their adjust ment· process in the host country. Often such maintenance is necessary in order for them to receive the social and psychological support from fellow immigrants which is so vital to their initial adjustment. Moreover, the continuity with the past wh.ich their ethnic identity provides also furnishes them with the confidence they need to meet the challenges of their new environment. Ethnic identity maintenance has another commonly recognized side to it. It is often felt to inhibit or slow down the immigrants' assimilation into the host society since it serves to maintain ethnic differences. Although, in general, this is probably so ...... especially for second and sub sequent generations - it does not necessarily pPevent the successful adjust- ment or integration of immigrants into the host society. In fact, as mentioned above, it may actually serve as. a positive force in the adjustment process.1 The aimof this chapter is to examine the means by which the Armenian immigrants have striven to keep their ethnic identity since arrival in Australia and the provisions which they are making to ensure its continu- ation in their children. Before entering into this discussion, however, it - is first necessary to define as precisely as possible the concepts of "ethnic identity" and "ethnicity" as they are used here. The term ethnic has been applied to a range of population aggregates,2 1 A good example is provided by Smolicz and Harris (1977: 89) for the Polish immigrants in Australia. They found that "the preservation (and even development) of ethnicity, and assimilation to the ways of Anglo-Australian society, need not be mutually exclusive.. The two processes are not intrin sically incompatible and can proceed alongside each other". 2 Martin (19i2a:l0) used ethnic to refer to overseas-born in Australia. Price (1963: 3), although dealing primarily with immigrants, used it in ·a muc:h broader sense to mean "a collection of persons who, for physical, geographical, political, religious, linguistic or other reasons, feel themselves, or are felt by others to constitute a separate people". This usage is mucl;l more common in the literature. For example, Gordon (1964: 24) saw "ethnic" as referring to "shared feelings of peoplehood", while Parsons (1975: 56) equated itwith a "distinct identity which is rooted in some kind of .distinctive sense of history". -246- generally in reference to identifiable sub-populations within the overall population. In some cases the members of these sub-populations have no more than the distinguishing criterion or criteria in connnon and do not regularly interact with each other on the basis of these criteria. These are often ter:med ethnic "categories" or "groupings" and are not considered to be distinctly bounded entities. In other cases, where the distinguishing criteria form the basis for social interaction among members of ethnic cate- gories, ethnic "groups" are formed. These are generally considered "bounded" entities. The distinction between ethnic categories and ethnic groups is analogous to that between ''ethnic identity" and "ethnicity". The former refers to an individual's recognition that he possesses certain distinguish- ing criteria which place him in a particular sub-population. 1 When he interacts with other members of his ethnic category in an ethnic group there develops a collective group identity, or ethnicity.2 Not all ethnic categories develop into ethnic groups, although the potential is always there. This is well illustrated by cases in the United States where interest groups have recently developed from dormant ethnic categories. Moreover, when ethnic groups do develop, they do not necessar- ily include all members of the ethnic category. For individuals, there is a "continuum of ethriicity" from those who take no part in their ethnic ~roup, and are more or less fully integrated into the larger society, to thos~ who participate fully in their ethnic group. For the latter individuals, their participation.has important socio-psychological concomitants and consequences, since not only does it constitute part of their sense of ethnic identity but it also serves to engage an important segment of their loyalties and social connnitments. When compared with the former, these innnigrants are considered to have "high ethnicity". 1 . As defined by Glazer (1958: 31), ethnic identification refers to a person's use of social, national or religious terms to "identify himself, and .thereby, to relate himself to others". · 2 Parsons (1975: 53) describes "ethnicity" as an extraordinary elusive concept and very difficult to define in any precise way, He does state, however, that "what we call ethnicity is a primary focus of group identity". Other discussions of ethnicity as a concept are found in Cohen (1974a), Watson (1977b: 8-11) and Glaz~r and Moynihan (1975b: 1-26). · -247- Ethnic categories may survive almost indefinitely, depending upon i the particular distinguishing criteria. Ethnic groups, however, only survive : I as long as interaction takes place among their members and their ethnicity is strong enough to bound the groups and ensure that they remain separate entities. I The boundaries of·ethnic groups may be only social or they may be both social and biological~ In most cases the continued survival of the group as a 'distinct entity is more dependent upon the. former than the latter.! For example, some of the ethnic groups which have survived for millenia have been those whose biological elements have changed considerably but whose culture has largely continued intact• The best example here are the Jewish. people. Nevertheless, the combination of social and biological boundaries, as provided by endogamous marriages, must be considered to contribute greatly to the distinctiveness of the ethnic group and to enhance its survival. THE BASIS FOR A UNIQUE ·ARMENIAN IDENTITY AND ITS PRESERVATION The historical development of Armenian identity has already been described in detail in Chapter Two. To reiterate the main points, basic Armenian identity consists of three components: an historical memory which stretches back three thousand years; a "national" religion (Armenian Apostolic); a distinctive language. Very early in the history of the Armenian people this combination provided the unique cultural basis for a distinct ethnic identity. A fourth factor must also be considered crucial t.o the perpetuation of. Armenian identity throughout the centuries - the fact that the Armenians have existed primarily as a subject people or as minority · groups in larger societies. Like the Jews (Liffman, 1973: 129), such a situation has served to enhance their ethnicity by making them perceive the ways in which they differed from the dominant, or host cultures. In Ottoman times these differences were legitimated in the form of the Millet Sys.tem. Also, the periodic manifestations of anti-Armenianism by rulers or surrounding 1 Parsons (1975: 57) states that the most important general core of an ethnic group is a common auZture which has some feature of tempor.aZ continuity, often reaching into an indefinite past. In other words, it · is a "transgenerational type of group·". -248- peoples further served to strengthen the institutions of the Armenians and helped to ensure the adherence of the individual Armenians to them. Throughout most of the history of the Armenians and up to the nine teenth century their primary ethnic loyalty was centred on their village group, their city community or their locality. Nevertheless, the religious and linguisticdifferences between the Armenians and the surrounding peoples effectively served to keep them apart culturally and ensured that the group was perpetuated biologically through endogamy. The events which followed the Armenian "Awakening" and which led to the resurgence of Armenian "national" identity also provided forces which.