essay

Ethnic group, category, and identity: Karen in northern Thailand

Ethnic adaptation and identity : the Karen on the Thai frontier with BurmaPhiladelphiaPublished In 1979 • Pages: 119-163

By: Kunstadter, Peter.

AbstractBrief abstract written by HRAF anthropologists who have done the subject indexing for the document
This document proposes to examine aspects of Karen ethnic identity in northern Thailand by differentiating among the concepts of ethnic group, ethnic identity, and ethnic category. The author argues that this distinction is useful to better explain the Karen peoples unique experience as an ethnically homogeneous, and yet cultural diverse, group. The author supports this argument with ethnographic accounts of the varied experiences of Karen men and women from different geographical communities.
SubjectsDocument-level OCM identifiers given by the anthropology subject indexers at HRAF
Cultural identity and pride
Community structure
Speech
Linguistic identification
Community structure
Inter-ethnic relations
Inter-community relations
Ethnic stratification
Settlement patterns
Real property
Missions
Regulation of marriage
Prayers and sacrifices
Labor supply and employment
Community heads
Local officials
Territorial hierarchy
Acculturation and culture contact
cultureCulture name from the Outline of World Cultures (OWC)
Karen
HRAF PubDateThe date HRAF published the document
2012
RegionThe area the document pertains to
Asia
Sub RegionThe more specific area the document pertains to, which is located within the Region
Southeast Asia
Document TypeMay include journal articles, essays, collections of essays, monographs, or chapters/parts of monographs
essay
Evaluation
Creator TypeThe type of person writing the document, e.g. Ethnographer, Missionary, Archaeologist, Folklorist, Linguist, Indigenous Person, and so on.
Anthropologist
Document Rating A ranking done by HRAF anthropologists based on the strength of the source material on a scale of 1 to 5, as follows: 1 - poor; 2 - fair; 3 - good, useful data, but not uniformly excellent; 4 - excellent secondary data; 5 - excellent primary data.
5: Excellent Primary Data
AnalystThe HRAF anthropologist who subject indexed the document and prepared other materials for the eHRAF culture/tradition collection
Teferi Abate Adem; 2011
Field DateThe date the researcher conducted the fieldwork or archival research that produced the document
1965-1968
Coverage DateThe date or dates that the information in the document pertains to
1830-1979
Coverage PlaceLocation of the research culture or tradition (often a smaller unit such as a band, community, or archaeological site)
Karen people, Thailand
NotesAdditional notes
Peter Kunstadter
for bibliographical references see document 37: Keyes
LCCNLibrary of Congress Control Number
79012448
LCSHLibrary of Congress Subject Headings
Karen (Southeast Asian people)--Ethnic identity
Thailand--Social life and customs