Ethno-National Identity in the North Caucasus: Examining Place and Homeland in the Identity Constructions of the Young Generation

Abstract

The dynamic landscape and historical legacies of the North Caucasus make it one of the world's most diverse and interesting regions. Throughout the region's history, its changing political geographies have worked to influence local constructs of identity and place. The younger generation today inhabits the North Caucasus in the context of Russian Ethno-Federalism, providing a variety of meanings regarding ethno-national groups and their territories. My aim is to explore how place factors into the construction of ethno-national identity by examining the concept of "homeland" (rodina) and the meanings associated with several place-based and traditional identity factors among young adults in Stavropol Krai and Karachay-Cherkessia. I utilized statistical analyses of survey data and a cognitive mapping exercise to identify significant differences regarding conceptions of place and ethno-national identity among groups of participants based on nationality, religion, and other factors. Using interview data and theory, I explain why these differences exist.