You are here: Home Moving to Getting Started National identity and tomorrow's expats
Enlarge font Decrease font Text size


21/07/2003National identity and tomorrow's expats

A country's culture and language have a habit of seeping in through an expat's pores. But becoming a parent, brings home the need to remember your national identity.

 

National identity creates bonds and gives a sense of belonging.

It takes up no room in a suitcase; an expat can take their national identity around the world and unpack it in any new destination.

Passports symbolise that identity; an identity that also divides us. A national identity cannot be replicated because an American is not Canadian; a New Zealander is not Australian; a Taiwanese national is not Chinese, nor is an Irish national British.

The expat community is a mixed breed with individual national identities, but expats are also subjected to the identity of their land of residence. Its culture and language have a habit — whether consciously or subconsciously — of seeping in through their pores.

Integration by osmosis, if an expat is open to the possibility.

But when significant national days of honour or celebration occur, national identity cannot and should not be denied.

Anzac Day — when Australia and New Zealand honour those who fell at Gallipoli against the Turkish defenders during the First World War and the wars that followed — is such a day. The Anzac tradition is part of the nation's psyche and a nation remembers the people and events that shaped the nation that bred them.

Expats — those who temporarily reside in a foreign land for work or family ties — are unofficial ambassadors for their nation, with a unique opportunity to express their national identity in a foreign land.

British newspaper the Telegraph correctly said identity is a complex issue for expats. Nevertheless expats have a right to freely express that identity.

Integration has become the main component of immigration policy in the Netherlands, with an increasing emphasis on compulsory assimilation courses. The main political parties want to use these classes to instil Dutch culture into its newcomers. Expats who come here to work are currently exempt from these courses, but people coming for family reunification purposes are not and they are obliged to learn Dutch.




0 reactions to this article

Inside Expatica
Introducing Renting a home in France

Introducing Renting a home in France

Here's a short introduction to our Renting a house or an apartment section for France.

Introducing Buying a house in France

Introducing Buying a house in France

Here's a short introduction to our Buying a house or apartment section for France.

Clubs, groups and associations in France

Clubs, groups and associations in France

From Gaelic clubs to Canadian Alumni organisations, there is bound to be an English-speaking club for you in France.

Fitness tips for 2010

Fitness tips for 2010

It’s time to get active! Research shows exercise can improve your health, confidence and quality of life.