What is the difference between race ethnicity and nationality

Usually an ethnic group or ethnicity is a group of human beings whose members identify with each other on the basis of a presumed common genealogy or ancestry. Ethnic identity is also marked by the recognition from others of a group's distinctiveness and by common cultural, linguistic, religious, behavioural or biological traits.

Ethnicity and race are related concepts. Because serious errors of this kind are habitually committed when the term "race" is used in popular parlance, it would be better when speaking of human races to drop the term "race" altogether and speak of 'ethnic groups'. Nationality refers to the country of citizenship. Nationality is sometimes used to mean ethnicity, although the two are technically different. People can share the same nationality but be of different ethnic groups and people who share an ethnic identity can be of different nationalities.

From a legal perspective international and European documents refer to these concepts in diverse ways. Many problems arise because only a few documents provide a definition of racial, ethnic and national minorities, of discrimination based on race or ethnic origin, leaving the definitions open to interpretation by the Courts.

For example: article 1 of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, adopted on 21 December , states that " In this Convention, the term "racial discrimination" shall mean any distinction, exclusion, restriction or preference based on race, colour, descent, or national or ethnic origin which has the purpose or effect of nullifying or impairing the recognition, enjoyment or exercise, on an equal footing, of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural or any other field of public life.

There are, then, no absolute "right" or "wrong" definitions of race and ethnicity, but there are different conceptualisations , which reflect different views. Some of these definitions are more accepted than others. However, as they are relative concepts , it is important to shape a common understanding and not assume that every person shares the same view. Therefore, for the purpose of this publication we accept the broader concept, the indivisibility, or interconnectivity, of race, ethnicity and nationality.

To recognise the myriad influences on the self is a central tenet of the empowerment process. We accept that these, and other concepts, are what shape or make our identity: are what make us who we are.

The ego-psychologist Erik Erikson' s epigenetic principle asserts that we develop through a predetermined unfolding of our personalities or identities in 8 stages. Our progress through each stage is in part determined by our success , or lack of success , in all the previous stages: a kind of human metamorphosis similar to the transformational changes of a butterfly.

Just as the butterfly must struggle to release itself from the cocoon then so must we struggle or be industrious as Erikson describes to reach our potential, to know ourselves and find our position or role within society. The task is to develop trust without completely eliminating the capacity for mistrust.

If the proper balance is achieved, the child will develop the virtue hope , the strong belief that, even when things are not going well, they will work out well in the end. The task is to achieve a degree of autonomy while minimising shame and doubt. If parents permit the child, now a toddler, to explore and manipulate his or her environment, the child will develop a sense of autonomy or independence.

Initiative means a positive response to the world's challenges, taking on responsibilities, learning new skills, feeling purposeful. A good balance leads to the psychosocial strength of purpose. Children must "tame the imagination" and dedicate themselves to education and to learning the social skills their society requires of them.

There is a much broader social sphere at work now: the parents and other family members are joined by teachers and peers and other members of the community at large. Children must learn that there is pleasure not only in conceiving a plan, but in carrying it out.

The task during adolescence is to achieve ego identity and avoid role confusion. Ego identity means knowing who you are and how you fit in to the rest of society. It requires that you take all you've learned about life and yourself and mould it into a unified self-image , one that your community finds meaningful.

The ages in the adult stages are much fuzzier than in the childhood stages, and people may differ dramatically. The task is to achieve some degree of intimacy , as opposed to remaining in isolation. Intimacy is the ability to be close to others, as a partner, a friend, and as a participant in society.

It is hard to pin a time to it, but it would include the period during which we are actively involved in raising children. The word nationality can have different meanings.

To say, for example, that someone is an American national would indicate that the person is a U. So in other words, nationality can be another way of saying citizenship. There are other contexts, however, in which nationality overlaps with ethnicity.

In Israel, for example, the term nationality that appears on national ID cards implies what in the U. Israeli is not considered a nationality, and therefore, will not be found on the ID cards of Israeli citizens. Many people around the world struggle to be recognized as a nationality. In other words, they want an independent nation-state for themselves.

The Kurdish people of the Middle East, for instance, are an ethnic group that make up the majority of the population in parts of present-day Turkey , Syria , Iraq , and Iran. But many of them see themselves, not simply as an ethnic group, but as a nation deserving the status of nationality in the form of an independent nation-state. Other groups of people seeking to become nationalities include the Palestinians, who are also located in the Middle East, as well as the Basques of France and Spain , the Quebec sovereigntist movement in Canada, the Baluchis of Pakistan and Iran, and the Tibetans and Uighurs of China.

Each of these groups argue for independent nation-states on the basis that they comprise a majority in the lands in which they live and want to protect their cultures, languages, and traditions that they believe are under threat from the countries that currently rule them.

Hence, a key difference between ethnicity and nationality is whether or not a group of people with a common heritage in the form of shared traditions, language, or religion reside in a specific territory to which they have a legitimate claim.

Demonstrators in Philadelphia participate in a rally against white nationalism and other forms of racism and hate organized by the interfaith advocacy organization. Ethnicity can include several characteristics, such as race, language, and religion. Ethnic enters Middle English via Late Latin ethnicus and ultimately derives from Greek ethnikos , meaning "national" or "gentile," and is related to ethnos , "nation" or "people.

In sum: the term race is understood today as primarily a sociological designation that identifies a group sharing some outward physical characteristics and some commonalities of culture and history, while ethnicity is a word for something you acquire based on where your family is from and the group which you share cultural, traditional, and familial bonds and experiences with.

The end result: people may have racial similarity but ethnic dissimilarity. Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Log in Sign Up. What to Know Today, race refers to a group sharing outward physical characteristics and some commonalities of culture and history.

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