Mutable Identities
Moving beyond Ethnicity in Botswana
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 4604189 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Edwin Ν Wilmsen (corresponding author), Edwin N Wilmsen |
| Year | 2002 |
| Volume | 28 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 825-841 |
| Publication date | 2002-12-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of Southern African Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0305-7070 • E-ISSN: 1465-3893 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/0305707022000043539 |
| OpenAlex | W2134715478 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 15 |
| References cited | 12 |
The adoption of a focus on minorities suggests a move away from a discourse revolving around notions of ethnicity to one emphasising personal participation in the political arena and leading to a devaluation of divisions among peoples demarcated by language, parentage, class or so-called 'race' in favour of a concept of citizenship. I argue that its frequent invocation notwithstanding, ethnic allegiance is a form of cultural capital that is increasingly marginal to social functions of the present. Not only do such constructions not stand up to historical scrutiny, but they can also be incorporated as an ingredient in a variety of potentially dangerous claims to cultural authenticity and the uniqueness of particular cultural visions. Understanding these constructions and their consequences requires detailed analyses of local ethno-histories, of colonial rule and policy, and of the connection between expansionary capitalism and the processes of social formation constitution. I turn first to the backgrounds of ethnicity in Botswana and then to languages of labour in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries before examining present-day languages of political contention among minority and elite fractions of the country. I conclude that an effective minority discourse would dissolve the surface appearance of ethnic disconnectedness and fragmentation and re-establish historic connections upon which an equitably served citizenship could be based
Allegiance · Citizenship · Commodification · Elite · Ethnic group · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Sociology · African history and culture studies · Anthropological Studies and Insights · Anthropology · Archaeology and Rock Art Studies · Gender Studies · Law
Ethnicity, hunter gatherers, and the ‘other’
Further Lessons in Kalahari Ethnography and History
What has nation building got to do with immigration
An Archaeological Contribution to the Kalahari Debate from the Middle Limpopo Valley, Southern Africa
A Kalahari Family Named Marshall
Finding Bosutswe
To see ourselves as we need to see us
Who are judicial decisions meant for? The ‘global community of law’ in Southern Africa
The Benefits of Frame Resonance Disputes for Transnational Movements
Pottery decoration in contemporary southeastern Botswana
Foragers during a period of social upheaval at Little Muck Shelter, southern Africa
The Contributions of Richard B. Lee to Anthropology, Ethnoarchaeology, and Indigenous Peoples' Studies
Foragers and fictions in the Kalahari
Essentialism and the Indigenous Politics of Recognition in Southern Africa
Strength, mobility, and variety
Advent and Course of Pastoralism in the Kalahari
The Ethnic Composition of Tswana Tribes
What Do We Do with Irregular Correspondences? The Case of the Khoe Languages
The politics of difference
Primitive politics in sanctified landscapes
Beyond the Nation? Or within
Report to the Government of Bechuanaland on the Bushman Survey
Competition between foragers and food-producers on the Botletli River, Botswana
Labour, Language and Power in the Construction of Ethnicity in Botswana
Knowledge as the source of progress
Primal Anxiety, Sanctified Landscapes
A short history of the Bangwaketse
| Unique citing works | 15 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,65 |
| Citation span | 2003 - 2023 (21) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 13 |