Genealogy /
AMERICANS' DEGREE OF POLISHNESS (OR ANY OTHER ETHNICITY) [10]
America is a land of immigrants, as JFK once said, and eh degree to which one identifies with and lives one's ethnic heritage is a highly personal matter, shaped by both external factors (eg assimilationist pressures) as well as personal sensitivity and preference.
As a result, the degree to which one identifies with one's Polish roots as opposed to mainstream American culture varies greatly. The balance can be 90-10, 50-50 and many different points in between. Numerous criteria may help gauge the degree of identification including:
-- Language known and used, how often?
-- Interest in and acquaintance with traditions and history
-- Actual practice of traditions and customs
-- Cultural entertainment: music, publications subscribed, books, CDs, etc. in the home
-- Art and decorative artefacts in the home and/or place of buiseness
-- food: awareness and actual preparation and consumption of ethnic food (how often?)
-- professional pursuits (some Polonians deal in ethnic goods/services and/or have a primarily ethnic clientele, write and/or research Polish topics, create Polish art, etc.)
-- names given to children, pets, place of business, etc.
Many more categories could be set up, but even on the basis of the above, WHERE WOULD YOU RANK YORUSELF ON THE 0-100 SCALE?
