Don't tell me that I don't exist

The construction and practice of Macedonian national identity

Bibliographic Data

ID6136192
AuthorsKarolis Dambrauskas (0000-0001-9730-2803, Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Sociology), Emilia Baradziej
Year2021
Volume37
Issue1
Publication date2021-11-16
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueThe Anthropology of East Europe Review (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1054-4720 • E-ISSN: 2153-2931
PublisherIUScholarWorks (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.14434/aeer.v37i1.32023
OpenAlexW3214557913
LanguageEN
References cited3

This article discusses the ways national identity is constructed and practiced in North Macedonia. Based on data collected in 2015 during fieldwork in the Macedonian city of Bitola, and, especially, in the village of Trnovo and the city of Ohrid, the article explains how various notions of Macedonianness are constructed and politicized.To do this, several analytical prisms characteristic to the field of nationalism studies are used. The Macedonians' need for having their constructed identity recognized has its roots in Macedonia's turbulent national and international political environment. Even so, the evidence collected in the interviews with local informants will highlight how Macedonianness is often practiced by marking the rejection of other national identifications. In particular, the article demonstrates how the idea of antique national roots marks an attempt to re-use available historical materials on two different levels: to boost national pride and to legitimize political claims made by some Macedonian politicians

Aesthetics · Ancient history · Antique · Art · Ethnology · Field (mathematics · Identity (music · Macedonian · Media studies · National heritage · National identity · Nationalism · Political science · Politics · Pride · Sociology · Balkans: History, Politics, Society · Gender Studies · History · Law

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Open DOIOpen Access