Internal variations in Sikh hostland national identity: dimensions of Sikh Britishness

Jandu, Gurbachan Singh (2022) Internal variations in Sikh hostland national identity: dimensions of Sikh Britishness. PhD thesis, Birkbeck, University of London.

Abstract

In this study, I show that Sikhs in England are increasingly identifying as English over British. Even though British remains the choice of the majority, younger Sikhs are now more likely to identify as English. Whilst true of other minority ethnic groups, this is especially characteristic of Sikhs, suggesting that decentralised nationalism is gaining over centralised nationalism. British national identity research must account for newer developments. For example, British identity no longer depends solely on the state but also on personal and localised experiences. Thus, peer-to-peer influence helps explain complexity in British national identity today –the very existence of which challenges classical theories of nationalism. Furthermore, an important backdrop is created by Britain’s fast-changing ethnic profile, caused by mass migration and the legacy or mild persistence of higher natural growth among Britain’s ethnic minorities. Whilst much research exists on majority group national identity, minority ethnic groups remain under-researched. I address this omission for one group, Sikhs in England and Wales. Using Kaufmann’s (2017) notion of complex nationalism, I present research on the Britishness of three Sikh generations. Data is obtained through a mix of methods, using a custom survey of100 Sikhs and 100 white Britons. To augment this, I use existing national surveys and the 2001 and 2011 censuses. I also interview 25 Sikhs. I show that age is the key variable shaping Sikhs’ British identities. Older Sikhs’ Britishness is associated with state nationalism whilst younger Sikhs are more influenced by localised and personalised ‘everyday’ forms of Britishness. Hence their greater sense of English and other regional national identities. Whilst not unique to Sikhs, this trend to youthful Englishness is highly developed among them. his confirms Kaufmann’s (2017) theory that national identity can emerge from sub-state associational processes that are capable of reconfiguring national identity in liberal consumer societies following long periods of peacetime.

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