Diaspora Studies Glossary

The process by which immigrants adopt the cultural norms and practices of the host society, potentially losing elements of their heritage culture.

The emigration of highly trained or educated individuals from a particular country, depleting the homeland of skilled human capital.

Shared memories and narratives preserved and transmitted within a community across generations, sustaining group identity.

An orientation emphasizing belonging to a broad global community beyond national or ethnic boundaries.

The blending of diverse cultural elements to create new, syncretic cultural forms, particularly in colonial and postcolonial contexts.

The formation of new transcultural identities and practices from the mixing of different cultural traditions.

A scattered population with a common origin in a smaller geographic area, maintaining connections to the homeland across generations.

Avtar Brah's concept of the intersection where diasporic and indigenous subjects encounter each other and are mutually transformed.

The use of online platforms and digital technologies by dispersed communities to maintain connections and cultural practices.

Du Bois's concept of the internal tension experienced by marginalized groups who see themselves through their own eyes and through the eyes of a dominant society.

Appadurai's term for the global landscape of moving persons: immigrants, refugees, exiles, tourists, and guest workers.

The sustained real or imagined connection diasporic communities maintain toward their place of origin.

The country or community that receives and absorbs immigrant or diasporic populations.

Political engagement with homeland affairs by diaspora members living abroad, including lobbying, fundraising, and activism.

The forced transatlantic sea voyage endured by enslaved Africans transported from West Africa to the Americas.

A policy or social approach that supports the coexistence of diverse cultural and ethnic groups within a single society.

A literary and political movement affirming Black African cultural identity, founded by Cesaire, Senghor, and Damas in the 1930s.

Edward Said's term for the Western construction of patronizing and essentializing representations of Eastern cultures and peoples.

A movement advocating solidarity and unity among all people of African descent worldwide.

A critical framework examining the cultural, political, and economic legacies of European colonial rule on formerly colonized societies.

Money and goods transferred by migrants to their country of origin, often constituting a significant economic flow.

The movement of diaspora members back to their ancestral homeland, whether permanently or temporarily.

Paul Gilroy's framework for understanding transnational cultural exchanges among African-descended peoples across the Atlantic.

Homi Bhabha's concept of a liminal area where cultural meaning is negotiated between binary categories.

The maintenance of cross-border social, economic, and cultural connections by migrant communities linking home and host societies.