UNIT 4 – People and Identity
Lecturer: Tran Duy Loi, MA
Four
nations
Scottish Identity
For people living in Scotland, there are
constant reminders of their distinctiveness.
Many aspects of public life in Scotland,
such as education and legal systems, are
different from the rest of Britain.
Scots dialect (regional language) – hard for
the English & Welsh to understand –
strengthen their sense of identity.
However, cultural identity is divided
between the lowlands and highlands, and
Gaelic is a small minority language
(highlands).
Four
nations
Welsh Identity:
Not many reminders of their Welshness in
everyday life
While public life in Wales is similar to
England, the key symbol of Welsh identity
is the Welsh language (20% of the
population).
Strong efforts to preserve the language
through education, media, and bilingual
public signs have keep Welsh identity.
A national hero – symbol - Owain Glyndwr
(Owen Glendower in English) - The rise in
ethnic and national profiles (15th century)
Four
nations
Northern Irish Identity:
Complex and politically sensitive issues.
Cultural identity involves historical divisions
A divided society where most people are
born, and stay in one or the other of the two
communities for the whole of their lives.
Long story short:
descendants of settlers from lowland Scotland
and England vs. descendants of native Irish
Protestant – Northern Ireland belongs to the
UK vs. Catholic – Northern Ireland returns to
Ireland
Four
nations
English Identity vs. British Identity
Historically, English = British in many
minds.
Growing distinction through flags: Union
Jack → Cross of St. George.
Anthems: God Save the Queen → Land of
Hope and Glory (at Commonwealth
Games).
Survey (2004): 25% of pupils identify as
English (vs. 12% of teachers).
Most still identify as British.
Discussion
[Link] can you see from the UK’s
population composition?
[Link] factors contributed to these
trends in the UK’s population?
UK's population
composition
Other identities - Black Caribbean Community
1. Immigration history began in 1948 with the arrival of the
steamship Empire Windrush. The trend continued until the
mid-1970s.
2. Jobs and contributions
Many took low-paid jobs, especially in London’s transport
sector.
Contributed to British culture through Caribbean music
(reggae, ska, calypso) and the NottingHill Carnival.
3. Cultural integration
UK's population Their cultural practices are the closest to the white
composition
majority’s, with similar religious practices (Christian or non-
religious).
Distinctive language: Creole/patwa
Other identities – Asian Community
Immigration history:
First wave: post-WWII
Second wave: late 1960s to 1970s (mainly from East Africa).
Cultural preservation:
Strong family ties, language (Hindi, Urdu, Bengali, Punjabi,
Gujarati), religions, and cuisine retained.
Cultural challenges:
Tension between traditional values and mainstream British
culture for young Asians.
UK's population Specially, young generations feel less assimilated to the
composition
culture, while their parents did.
Differences within the Asian community:
Indians: Higher education and professional success.
Pakistanis/Bangladeshis: Stronger religious identity (Islam)
and lower average education levels.
The family Family identity
Generally weak; family events (weddings, births, funerals)
often involve small gatherings.
Large family gatherings are mostly limited to Christmas.
Household structure
mainly nuclear families
Not many extended families (except some ethnic
minorities, like Asians).
Lower household size and higher proportion of people
living alone compared to Europe.
Changing trends:
Fewer traditional nuclear families.
Over 40% of births are outside marriage, but 85% of
these children are born to parents living together without
marriage.
=> The term ‘partner’ is widely used, avoiding titles like
‘husband’ or ‘wife’.
Geographical
Identity
Local identity City identity Regional identity
Weak due to high Strong identity in cities A clear different North-South
mobility; few people live like Liverpool (Scousers), Northerners: proud, tough,
in the same place all their Newcastle (Geordies), honest, warm-hearted.
lives. Manchester Southerners: perceived by
Local pride is often based (Mancunians), Glasgow northerners as soft,
on living in a nice place or (Glaswegians), and hypocritical, and
preserving it, not on London unfriendly.
strong belonging. (Londoners/Cockneys)
recap
During what
historical period did
the socia/working
class emerge?
Class
• The British class system is flexible,
allowing people to move up through
wealth, marriage, or work.
• Despite changes, class awareness remains
an important part of people’s identity.
• Social interaction across classes is limited
due to different lifestyles (food, speech,
interests, values).
• Class is not solely determined by wealth,
but rather by speech and particularly
accent
Received Pronunciation (RP) =
upper/upper-middle class.
Strong regional accents = working
class.
Class
Late 20th century, there was a shift in class
identification trends.
Previously: social climbing was common.
Now: “inverted snobbery” - middle-class
people adopt working-class values.
‘posh’ – negative - pretentious to be
rich.
Class barriers have become less serious
Strong accents are now acceptable in
high-status jobs, radio, and TV.
More people from working-class origins
now have traditionally middle-class jobs.
Today, some wealthy people identify as
working class, while some poor people
consider themselves middle class.
