Jump to content

Ethnic religion: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
Undid revision done by earlier
Tags: Visual edit Mobile edit Mobile web edit
Hinduism is an ethnic religion, as documented by innumerable sources.
Tags: Manual revert Mobile edit Mobile web edit
(11 intermediate revisions by 11 users not shown)
Line 4: Line 4:
[[File:伏見稲荷５.JPG|thumb|250px|Altar to [[Inari Ōkami]] at the [[Fushimi Inari-taisha|Fushimi Inari Shrine]] in [[Kyoto]]. [[Shinto]] is the ethnic religion of the [[Japanese people]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Hardacre |first=Helen |title=Shinto: A History |location=Oxford |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2017 |isbn=978-0-19-062171-1 |page=4}}</ref>]]
[[File:伏見稲荷５.JPG|thumb|250px|Altar to [[Inari Ōkami]] at the [[Fushimi Inari-taisha|Fushimi Inari Shrine]] in [[Kyoto]]. [[Shinto]] is the ethnic religion of the [[Japanese people]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Hardacre |first=Helen |title=Shinto: A History |location=Oxford |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2017 |isbn=978-0-19-062171-1 |page=4}}</ref>]]


In [[religious studies]], an '''ethnic religion''' is a [[religion]] or [[Belief#Religion|belief]] associated with a particular [[ethnic group]]. Ethnic religions are often distinguished from [[universalizing religion|universal religions]], such as [[Christianity]] or [[Islam]], in which gaining converts is a primary objective and, therefore, are not limited in ethnic, national or racial scope and which emphasize [[proselytism]].<ref name="Park">{{cite book |last1=Park |first1=Chris C. |title=Sacred Worlds: An Introduction to Geography and Religion |date=1994 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=9780415090124 |page=38 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NsIzwBRdmFoC&pg=PA38}}</ref>
In [[religious studies]], an '''ethnic religion''' is a [[religion]] or [[Belief#Religion|belief]] associated with notions of heredity and a particular [[ethnic group]]. Ethnic religions are often distinguished from [[universalizing religion|universal religions]], such as [[Christianity]] or [[Islam]], which are not limited in ethnic, national or racial scope.<ref name="Park">{{cite book |last1=Park |first1=Chris C. |title=Sacred Worlds: An Introduction to Geography and Religion |date=1994 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=9780415090124 |page=38 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NsIzwBRdmFoC&pg=PA38 |access-date=2021-12-28 |archive-date=2023-10-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231016053245/https://books.google.com/books?id=NsIzwBRdmFoC&pg=PA38#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref>


== Terminology ==
== Terminology ==
A number of alternative terms have been used instead of ''ethnic religion''. Another term that is often used is ''[[folk religion]]''. While ''ethnic religion'' and ''folk religion'' have overlapping uses, the latter term implies "the appropriation of religious beliefs and practices at a popular level."<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions|last=Bowker|first=John|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2000|isbn=978-0-191-72722-1|location=New York|chapter=Folk Religion}}</ref> The term ''folk religion'' can therefore be used to speak of certain [[Chinese folk religion|Chinese]] and [[Traditional African religion|African]] religions, but can also refer to popular expressions of more multi-national and institutionalized religions such as [[Folk Christianity]] or [[Folk Islam]].<ref>Rock, Stella (2007). ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=dNpcEtoAk4YC&pg=PA11 Popular religion in Russia].'' Routledge {{ISBN|0-415-31771-1}}, p. 11. Last accessed July 2009.</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Cook|first= Chris|title = Spirituality and Psychiatry| publisher= [[RCPsych]] Publications | year = 2009 | page = 242 | isbn = 978-1-904671-71-8}}</ref>
A number of alternative terms have been used instead of ''ethnic religion''. Another term that is often used is ''[[folk religion]]''. While ''ethnic religion'' and ''folk religion'' have overlapping uses, the latter term implies "the appropriation of religious beliefs and practices at a popular level."<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions|last=Bowker|first=John|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2000|isbn=978-0-191-72722-1|location=New York|chapter=Folk Religion}}</ref> The term ''folk religion'' can therefore be used to speak of certain [[Chinese folk religion|Chinese]] and [[Traditional African religion|African]] religions, but can also refer to popular expressions of more multi-national and institutionalized religions such as [[Folk Christianity]] or [[Folk Islam]].<ref>Rock, Stella (2007). ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=dNpcEtoAk4YC&pg=PA11 Popular religion in Russia].'' Routledge {{ISBN|0-415-31771-1}}, p. 11. Last accessed July 2009.</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Cook|first= Chris|title = Spirituality and Psychiatry| publisher= [[RCPsych]] Publications | year = 2009 | page = 242 | isbn = 978-1-904671-71-8}}</ref>


In Western contexts, a variety of terms are also employed. In the United States and Canada a popular alternative term has been ''[[nature religion]]''.<ref>{{cite book|last=Strmiska|first=Michael F.|title=Modern Paganism in World Cultures: Comparative Perspectives|year=2005|publisher=[[ABC-CLIO]]|isbn=9781851096084|pages=15–16, 276}}</ref> Some neopagan movements, especially in Europe, have adopted ''ethnic religion'' as their preferred term, aligning themselves with [[ethnology]]. This notably includes the [[European Congress of Ethnic Religions]],{{sfn|Strmiska|2005|p=14}} which chose its name after a day-long discussion in 1998, where the majority of the participants expressed that ''Pagan'' contained too many negative connotations and ''ethnic'' better described the root of their traditions in particular nations. In the English-language popular and scholarly discourse ''[[Paganism]]'', with a capital P, has become an accepted term.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Ivakhiv |first=Adrian |title=In Search of Deeper Identities: Neopaganism and "Native Faith" in Contemporary Ukraine |journal=[[Nova Religio|Nova Religio: The Journal of Alternative and Emergent Religions]] |volume=8 |number=3 |year=2005 |pages=30 |doi=10.1525/nr.2005.8.3.7 |url=http://www.uvm.edu/~aivakhiv/Insearch.pdf |jstor=10.1525/nr.2005.8.3.7}}</ref>
In Western contexts, a variety of terms are also employed. In the United States and Canada, a popular alternative term has been ''[[nature religion]]''.<ref>{{cite book|last=Strmiska|first=Michael F.|title=Modern Paganism in World Cultures: Comparative Perspectives|year=2005|publisher=[[ABC-CLIO]]|isbn=9781851096084|pages=15–16, 276}}</ref> Some neopagan movements, especially in Europe, have adopted ''ethnic religion'' as their preferred term, aligning themselves with [[ethnology]]. This notably includes the [[European Congress of Ethnic Religions]],{{sfn|Strmiska|2005|p=14}} which chose its name after a day-long discussion in 1998, where the majority of the participants expressed that ''Pagan'' contained too many negative connotations and ''ethnic'' better described the root of their traditions in particular nations. In the English-language popular and scholarly discourse ''[[Paganism]]'', with a capital P, has become an accepted term.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Ivakhiv |first=Adrian |title=In Search of Deeper Identities: Neopaganism and "Native Faith" in Contemporary Ukraine |journal=[[Nova Religio|Nova Religio: The Journal of Alternative and Emergent Religions]] |volume=8 |number=3 |year=2005 |pages=30 |doi=10.1525/nr.2005.8.3.7 |url=http://www.uvm.edu/~aivakhiv/Insearch.pdf |jstor=10.1525/nr.2005.8.3.7 |access-date=2019-06-29 |archive-date=2021-08-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210814193521/http://www.uvm.edu/~aivakhiv/Insearch.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>


==Usage ==
==Usage ==
Ethnic religion are defined as religions which are related to a particular ethnic group, and often seen as a defining part of that ethnicity's culture, language, and customs. [[Diaspora|Diasporic]] groups often maintain ethnic religions as a means of maintaining a distinct ethnic identity such as the role of [[Traditional African religion|African traditional religion]] and [[African diaspora religions]] among the [[African diaspora in the Americas]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://thegrio.com/2011/10/19/african-religions-gain-following-among-black-christians/|title=Are blacks abandoning Christianity for African faiths?|last=Oduah|first=Chika|date=19 October 2011|website=theGrio|access-date=27 May 2016}}</ref>
Ethnic religions are defined as religions which are related to a particular ethnic group, and often seen as a defining part of that ethnicity's culture, language, and customs. [[Diaspora|Diasporic]] groups often maintain ethnic religions as a means of maintaining a distinct ethnic identity such as the role of [[Traditional African religion|African traditional religion]] and [[African diaspora religions]] among the [[African diaspora in the Americas]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://thegrio.com/2011/10/19/african-religions-gain-following-among-black-christians/|title=Are blacks abandoning Christianity for African faiths?|last=Oduah|first=Chika|date=19 October 2011|website=theGrio|access-date=27 May 2016|archive-date=9 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211109043244/https://thegrio.com/2011/10/19/african-religions-gain-following-among-black-christians/|url-status=live}}</ref>


Some ancient ethnic religions, such as those historically found in pre-modern Europe, have found new vitality in [[Modern Paganism|neopaganism]].<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Oxford Handbook of New Religious Movements|last=Lewis|first=James R.|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2004|isbn=978-0-195-36964-9|location=New York}}</ref> Moreover, non-ethnic religions, such as [[Christianity]], have been known to assume ethnic traits to an extent that they serve a role as an important ethnic identity marker,<ref name="Chong">{{cite journal |doi=10.2307/3711911 |last=Chong |first=Kelly H. |year=1997 |title=What It Means to Be Christian: The Role of Religion in the Construction of Ethnic Identity and Boundary Among Second- Generation Korean Americans |journal=Sociology of Religion |volume=59 |issue=3 |pages=259–286|jstor=3711911 }}</ref> a notable example of this is the Serbian "Saint-Savianism" of the [[Serbian Orthodox Church]],<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UxDRgBAOKLAC&q=serbian+nationalism+st+sava&pg=PA158|title=Fundamentalism in the Modern World Vol 1: Fundamentalism, Politics and History: The State, Globalisation and Political Ideologies|first1=Ulrika|last1=Martensson|first2=Jennifer|last2=Bailey|first3=Priscilla|last3=Ringrose|first4=Asbjorn|last4=Dyrendal|date=15 August 2011|publisher=I.B.Tauris|via=Google Books|isbn=9781848853300}}</ref> and the religious and cultural heritage of [[Syriac Christianity]] branch of the [[Assyrian people]].<ref>{{cite book|title=Assyrians in Yonkers: Reminiscences of a Community: Harvard College Library Assyrian collection|first=John |last= Pierre Ameer|year= 2008| isbn=9781593337452| page =125|publisher=University of Michigan Press|quote=}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Encyclopedia of the Stateless Nations: A-C|first=James|last= Minahan|year= 2002| isbn=9780313321092| page =206|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|quote=}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Native Peoples of the World: An Encyclopedia of Groups, Cultures and Contemporary Issues|first=Steven|last= L. Danver |year= 2002| isbn=9781317464006| page =517|publisher=Routledge|quote=}}</ref>
Some ancient ethnic religions, such as those historically found in pre-modern Europe, have found new vitality in [[Modern Paganism|neopaganism]].<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Oxford Handbook of New Religious Movements|last=Lewis|first=James R.|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2004|isbn=978-0-195-36964-9|location=New York}}</ref> Moreover, non-ethnic religions, such as [[Christianity]], have been known to assume ethnic traits to an extent that they serve a role as an important ethnic identity marker,<ref name="Chong">{{cite journal |doi=10.2307/3711911 |last=Chong |first=Kelly H. |year=1997 |title=What It Means to Be Christian: The Role of Religion in the Construction of Ethnic Identity and Boundary Among Second- Generation Korean Americans |journal=Sociology of Religion |volume=59 |issue=3 |pages=259–286|jstor=3711911 }}</ref> a notable example of this is the Serbian "Saint-Savianism" of the [[Serbian Orthodox Church]],<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UxDRgBAOKLAC&q=serbian+nationalism+st+sava&pg=PA158|title=Fundamentalism in the Modern World Vol 1: Fundamentalism, Politics and History: The State, Globalisation and Political Ideologies|first1=Ulrika|last1=Martensson|first2=Jennifer|last2=Bailey|first3=Priscilla|last3=Ringrose|first4=Asbjorn|last4=Dyrendal|date=15 August 2011|publisher=I.B.Tauris|via=Google Books|isbn=9781848853300|access-date=17 October 2020|archive-date=16 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231016053238/https://books.google.com/books?id=UxDRgBAOKLAC&q=serbian+nationalism+st+sava&pg=PA158|url-status=live}}</ref> and the religious and cultural heritage of [[Syriac Christianity]] branch of the [[Assyrian people]].<ref>{{cite book|title=Assyrians in Yonkers: Reminiscences of a Community: Harvard College Library Assyrian collection|first=John |last= Pierre Ameer|year= 2008| isbn=9781593337452| page =125|publisher=University of Michigan Press|quote=}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Encyclopedia of the Stateless Nations: A-C|first=James|last= Minahan|year= 2002| isbn=9780313321092| page =206|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|quote=}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Native Peoples of the World: An Encyclopedia of Groups, Cultures and Contemporary Issues|first=Steven|last= L. Danver |year= 2002| isbn=9781317464006| page =517|publisher=Routledge|quote=}}</ref>


==List of ethnic religions==
==List of ethnic religions==
{{See|List of ethnic religions|List of modern Pagan movements}}
{{Further|List of ethnic religions|List of modern Pagan movements}}


==See also==
==See also==
Line 27: Line 27:
* [[Ethnoreligious group]]
* [[Ethnoreligious group]]
* [[Gavari]]
* [[Gavari]]
⚫
* [[Judaism]]
* [[National god]]
* [[National god]]
* [[Shamanism]]
* [[Shamanism]]
* [[Slava (tradition)]]
* [[Slava (tradition)]]
* [[Totemism]]
* [[Totemism]]
⚫
* [[Judaism]]


==References==
==References==
{{reflist|30em}}
{{Reflist|30em}}


{{Ethnicity}}
{{Ethnicity}}
{{Religion topics}}
{{Religion topics}}
{{Authority control}}


[[Category:Ethnic religion| ]]
[[Category:Ethnic religions| ]]
[[Category:Ethnology]]
[[Category:Ethnology]]

Revision as of 02:24, 24 June 2024

For religions sometimes described as "folk religions or people faiths", see Folk religion.
Altar to Inari Ōkami at the Fushimi Inari Shrine in Kyoto. Shinto is the ethnic religion of the Japanese people.[1]

In religious studies, an ethnic religion is a religion or belief associated with notions of heredity and a particular ethnic group. Ethnic religions are often distinguished from universal religions, such as Christianity or Islam, which are not limited in ethnic, national or racial scope.[2]

Terminology

A number of alternative terms have been used instead of ethnic religion. Another term that is often used is folk religion. While ethnic religion and folk religion have overlapping uses, the latter term implies "the appropriation of religious beliefs and practices at a popular level."[3] The term folk religion can therefore be used to speak of certain Chinese and African religions, but can also refer to popular expressions of more multi-national and institutionalized religions such as Folk Christianity or Folk Islam.[4][5]

In Western contexts, a variety of terms are also employed. In the United States and Canada, a popular alternative term has been nature religion.[6] Some neopagan movements, especially in Europe, have adopted ethnic religion as their preferred term, aligning themselves with ethnology. This notably includes the European Congress of Ethnic Religions,[7] which chose its name after a day-long discussion in 1998, where the majority of the participants expressed that Pagan contained too many negative connotations and ethnic better described the root of their traditions in particular nations. In the English-language popular and scholarly discourse Paganism, with a capital P, has become an accepted term.[8]

Usage

Ethnic religions are defined as religions which are related to a particular ethnic group, and often seen as a defining part of that ethnicity's culture, language, and customs. Diasporic groups often maintain ethnic religions as a means of maintaining a distinct ethnic identity such as the role of African traditional religion and African diaspora religions among the African diaspora in the Americas.[9]

Some ancient ethnic religions, such as those historically found in pre-modern Europe, have found new vitality in neopaganism.[10] Moreover, non-ethnic religions, such as Christianity, have been known to assume ethnic traits to an extent that they serve a role as an important ethnic identity marker,[11] a notable example of this is the Serbian "Saint-Savianism" of the Serbian Orthodox Church,[12] and the religious and cultural heritage of Syriac Christianity branch of the Assyrian people.[13][14][15]

List of ethnic religions

Further information: List of ethnic religions and List of modern Pagan movements

See also

References

  1. ^ Hardacre, Helen (2017). Shinto: A History. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 4. ISBN 978-0-19-062171-1.
  2. ^ Park, Chris C. (1994). Sacred Worlds: An Introduction to Geography and Religion. Routledge. p. 38. ISBN 9780415090124. Archived from the original on 2023-10-16. Retrieved 2021-12-28.
  3. ^ Bowker, John (2000). "Folk Religion". The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-191-72722-1.
  4. ^ Rock, Stella (2007). Popular religion in Russia. Routledge ISBN 0-415-31771-1, p. 11. Last accessed July 2009.
  5. ^ Cook, Chris (2009). Spirituality and Psychiatry. RCPsych Publications. p. 242. ISBN 978-1-904671-71-8.
  6. ^ Strmiska, Michael F. (2005). Modern Paganism in World Cultures: Comparative Perspectives. ABC-CLIO. pp. 15–16, 276. ISBN 9781851096084.
  7. ^ Strmiska 2005, p. 14.
  8. ^ Ivakhiv, Adrian (2005). "In Search of Deeper Identities: Neopaganism and "Native Faith" in Contemporary Ukraine" (PDF). Nova Religio: The Journal of Alternative and Emergent Religions. 8 (3): 30. doi:10.1525/nr.2005.8.3.7. JSTOR 10.1525/nr.2005.8.3.7. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-08-14. Retrieved 2019-06-29.
  9. ^ Oduah, Chika (19 October 2011). "Are blacks abandoning Christianity for African faiths?". theGrio. Archived from the original on 9 November 2021. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  10. ^ Lewis, James R. (2004). The Oxford Handbook of New Religious Movements. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-195-36964-9.
  11. ^ Chong, Kelly H. (1997). "What It Means to Be Christian: The Role of Religion in the Construction of Ethnic Identity and Boundary Among Second- Generation Korean Americans". Sociology of Religion. 59 (3): 259–286. doi:10.2307/3711911. JSTOR 3711911.
  12. ^ Martensson, Ulrika; Bailey, Jennifer; Ringrose, Priscilla; Dyrendal, Asbjorn (15 August 2011). Fundamentalism in the Modern World Vol 1: Fundamentalism, Politics and History: The State, Globalisation and Political Ideologies. I.B.Tauris. ISBN 9781848853300. Archived from the original on 16 October 2023. Retrieved 17 October 2020 – via Google Books.
  13. ^ Pierre Ameer, John (2008). Assyrians in Yonkers: Reminiscences of a Community: Harvard College Library Assyrian collection. University of Michigan Press. p. 125. ISBN 9781593337452.
  14. ^ Minahan, James (2002). Encyclopedia of the Stateless Nations: A-C. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 206. ISBN 9780313321092.
  15. ^ L. Danver, Steven (2002). Native Peoples of the World: An Encyclopedia of Groups, Cultures and Contemporary Issues. Routledge. p. 517. ISBN 9781317464006.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ethnic_religion&oldid=1230677926"