Leapfrogging cultural identities over generations (eg. Japanese-Peruvian to Canada becomes Peruvian-Canadian etc.)? (fit in)

[markovian process]

I'm curious as to how often this happen (surely it must, as more and more immigration/globalization happens)?

Could it even happen in long chains of immigration and assimilation? Does anyone know any examples?

Let's say a white South African immigrates to America and calls themselves African-American. But then, this African-American decides to move to Singapore and they (or their kid) calls themselves American-Singaporean. etc.

Or an Algerian-descended Frenchman immigrates to Jamaica and becomes French-Jamaican etc.

Do you know of any cases where someone's or someone's family cultural identity changed consecutively within 2 generations. Do you know any cases where cultural identities were leapfrogged this way? How far do you think people carry their identities? Do people simply identify with the most recent generation they grew up with (which makes sense)?

[415_s2k]

I knew a woman who referred to herself as Japanese-American, though her parents were Japanese-Brazilian immigrants... part of my family emigrated from Sweden to England for a couple generations before then immigrating to the US and marrying FOB Swedes... a friend of mine is a Chicana born and raised in LA; both her parents are Mexican, but her mom's family is originally from Lebanon. So yeah, it definitely happens.

In the case of the Japanese-Brazilian-American friend, again she didn't think of herself as Brazilian, but she grew up speaking Brazilian Portugese at home. I think that in her case, it was easier to embrace her Japanese heritage because of her entirely Asian appearance meaning that she experienced life being treated as an Asian woman rather than a Brazilian woman, and having grown up in the US, she was indeed an American.

[The Postman]

On my mother's side, her grandparents were born in China while her parents were born in Singapore. She was born in Singapore, as was I, although I came to Australia when I was a year old. So I guess they went from Chinese, to Chinese Singaporean or Singaporean Chinese. The funny thing is, many Singaporeans even here are referred to as Chinese Australians or even just Chinese (often by other Singaporeans), less commonly Chinese Singaporean. I guess since they kept the Chinese language.etc while remaining in Singapore that is so, but I more identify as Singaporean after Australian, and then Chinese.

[Acajack]

Not sure if this is what is meant by the question but if you take the example of Canadian ice hockey player Dion Phaneuf the evolution is quite interesting.

Unless he or one of his ancestors was adopted, Phaneuf is a descendant of a fellow named Farnworth or Farnsworth, who was one of the original Pilgrims who founded the original Massachusetts colony.

At one point during the conflict between France and Britain, this Farn(s)worth fellow was captured by aboriginals allied with the French and brought up to New France (now Quebec).

He lived the rest of his life there and his name was changed to Phaneuf because it was easier to pronounce.

This is an original Canadian name that only exists here and because of this transformation.

The Phaneufs have existed in Quebec as a francophone family for over 200 years, and sometime in the 20th century probably some of them migrated to an English-speaking part of Canada and eventually lost their French.

Dion Phaneuf, who plays for the Toronto Maple Leafs, speaks no French and is a descendant of these people who migrated.

So basically his family went to English to French to back to English, although now they still bear the French name as opposed to their original English one.

[MelismaticEchoes]

Technically speaking everyone's identity is leapfrogging especially as many people are mixed with so many different things or depending on where they travel or who they marry.

John McCain could claim a leapfrog identity since he was born in Panama.

Juan Williams from FOX News was born in Panama, but his parents or grandparents came from the Caribbean islands.

It's kind of like with many Trinidadians and Guyanese. Huge populations of people from India came to Trinidad and Guyana and when they go to the USA or Canada or UK or wherever, they claim more than one thing. They will fit in with people who are directly from India and then they will be able to mesh with other Caribbean islanders and then they are whatever nation they are born and raised in.

Another interesting thing is that identities can overlap or intersect.

Paula Abdul was born and raised to two Jewish parents. Her father is Syrian/Lebanese descent, born in Syria but raised in Brazil then came to the USA. Paula Abdul's mother is Canadian of Russian, Swiss descent etc.

Ppl have been migrating and re migrating back and forth between different places since forever. It all depends how you identify, and shows how such matters are complex.

[jtur88]

My maternal grandmother's maiden name was of Polish origin, respelled into a Lithuanian form, which was part of Russia at the time they emigrated to the USA, so Russia is on their landing card. Which made me Polish-Lithuanian-Russian-American-Canadian when I immigrated into Canada. Completely aside from the fact that my paternal grandmother came from Ireland.


But I understand the OP's point. The family was, in earlier times, a conspicuous ethnic minority of Japanese Peruvians, and then in Canada, were ethnically classified according to their Peruvian cultural origin, since they probably spoke Spanish, not Japanese. There are quite a few Mexican-Americans who look Japanese. In fact, a friend of mine, whom I had always thought was Mexican, is in fact of full Japanese ancestry. But seeing a Mexican who looks Japanese is not surprising.