Abstraction
This piece of ethnographic work seeks to convey out migration and cultural individuality amongst Cameroonians in the Diaspora, why Cameroonians immigrants move from their state to Belgium and the factors that motivates them to travel within Belgium. The interesting portion of this is that while migration possibly separately and jointly good, it however poses serious socio-cultural and psychological challenges to Cameroonians who do everything possible to keep their cultural values.
All worlds are sensitive to what other may state about them. This sensitiveness is even more serious when it touches on cultural issues. Culture gives a individual an individuality and this individuality can either do a individual proud or experience inferior in the face of others. This is the instance of Cameroonian immigrants in Belgium, since they would wish to be favourably considered around them. Hence there is a high inclination of people to drop those facets of civilization that seems advice in the eyes of others instantly they travel to the western universe. But this is non the instance of Cameroonian immigrants in Belgium who separately would continue believes and imposts, nutrient, apparels, music and dancing which will finally hold a positive consequence on the corporate individuality.
To efficaciously rectify out and pass on this research work, different beginnings and techniques will be applied to rectify and analyse the informations severally ; secondary informations will be used excessively. As respects primary beginnings, interviews, direct and participant observation, questionnaires and other methods used to carryout ethnographic research will be exploited excessively. Both quantitative and qualitative techniques will be applied. Data will be efficaciously analyzed with the usage of per centums charts and graphs.
Introduction
Many societal scientists have advanced assorted definitions of migration and Cultural individuality. It can nevertheless be defined as the motion of an single or group Of individuals from one vicinity to another, sometimes over long distances.
While migrators possibly separately and jointly good. It is nevertheless Poses serious socio-cultural and psychological challenges to Cameroonians in Belgium, Who have put so many so many activities in order to continue their cultural values which To a greater extend portray their individuality to the western universe. This designation of Cultural values can be seen through their visual aspects such as dressing, hair manner, Language, groups, nutrient, etc. Most Cameroonians in Belgium have migrated to peculiar Cities like Antwerp because of the strong cultural ties that exist there.Antwerp is said to Have a greater population of Cameroonians ( both legal and illegal ) .
Important to hear that this migration of Cameroonians in Belgium to Antwerp is as a consequence of cultural designation. Cultural individuality is seen as hoarded wealth because in the yesteryear, Cultures were regarded as local and independent, typical, or chiseled connexion Between geographical infinites and cultural experiences. Migration by so was really low Scale but with the coming of globalisation in the mid 1980s, led to lost of cultural individuality Since there was an export of standardised version of western/ American civilizations which Led to the variegation of cultural values in developing states. Migration excessively began to increase as a consequence of globalisation.
Cameroonians in Antwerp claim that even though in the foreign land their cultural Identity is non threatened by the presence of “ planetary ” goods, in fact cultural individuality to them is portion of globalisation. There is a high grade of earnestness, commonalty and similarity amongst these Cameroonians.
PROBLEM STATEMENT
Migration is viewed as a really of import facet in societal life.It is normally practiced by all members of a society. Migration can be either within or outside of a society. Actors transporting out this pattern advanced different grounds which range from societal, economic and cultural.
The influence of new civilizations and heights inhaled by the migrators may do a personality alteration taking to a personal or partial loss of the migrators ‘ original cultural individuality. These alterations may set them to loggerheads with their society of beginning and may take to tragic socio-cultural effects if the migration becomes big graduated table. Cameroonians in Antwerp have an cultural individuality which is the result of migration. Particular modern manner of forming and modulating cultural experience and individuality is specifically portion of the modern cultural imaginativeness.
The chief job in this research is to measure Cameroonians in Antwerp do everything possible to keep their cultural individuality in a society where there are so many immigrants with different civilizations. What are those troubles they face as a consequence of globalisation and if there are any troubles how do they pull off it in order to keep their individuality. This research is besides traveling to depopularize the myth that migration leads to lost of cultural individuality.
Research Questions
To what extent has single and corporate migration by Cameroonians in Antwerp led to the preservation of cultural individuality.
With regard to this chief inquiry, the following specific inquiries can be asked.
- Reasons for migration to Belgium.
- Reasons for migrating to Antwerp
- Troubles encountered at the degree of civilizations
- Individual attempts to continue cultural values
- Corporate attempts to continue cultural individuality
- How do persons in Belgium identify themselves?
- What are some of the clangs between civilizations?
- How can cultural individuality be seen as hoarded wealth and cultural power?
- Find out if this cultural individuality has been a menace to nation-state.
Aim
Main Aims
To measure migration and cultural designation amongst Cameroonians in Antwerp.
Specific aims
- To happen out why most Cameroonians in Belgium migrate to Antwerp
- To indicate out the raison d’etre of the drawing factors of migration
- To measure the Cameroonian cultural individuality as hoarded wealth ( “ sameness ” , community and similarity ) .
- To portray cultural individuality as power ( defying globalisation ) .
- Finally to measure the effects of migration on cultural individuality ( globalisation and modernness ) .
Methodology
This survey will be carried out in Belgium in the metropolis of Antwerp. The methodological analysis will be divided into two, i.e. informations aggregation and information analysis.
Data and information aggregation
The information for this survey will be collected from primary and secondary beginnings.
Acquisition of secondary informations
Data will be collected from both published and unpublished secondary beginnings. They will include paperss and relevant web sites on the cyberspace. These paperss will include text editions, diaries, periodicals and magazines. These paperss and statistics will be gotten from libraries and metropolis halls in Antwerp.
ACQUISTION OF PRIMARY DATA
Since field work constitute a major beginning of informations aggregation in anthropological research, it will be extremely utilised. There will be face to confront contact with the usage of interview usher. Data utilizing random trying techniques will be used. The sample will dwell of 150 people selected indiscriminately from 5 different cultural groups in Antwerp and it will be selected from among work forces and adult females of 25 old ages and supra. This ethnographic work will be carried out on a house to house and group to group footing.
Participant observation will besides be utile in this research. As a consequence of this field work, the research worker will be bound to register in some cultural associations so as to break transport out participant observation.
In add-on to primary informations aggregation, secondary informations will be obtained from documental and archival beginnings including the Cameroon embassy in Brussels, in-migration office in Zaventem airdrome, and Antwerp metropolis halls in order to acquire migration statistics of Cameroonians.
Datas Analysis
After roll uping these informations, they are traveling to be sorted, classified, analyses and interpreted. Both the quantitative and qualitative techniques will be applied. In order for the information analysis to be complete, it will be publish to the society for ingestion.
DELINEATION OF RESEARCH DOMAIN
Thematic Delineation of Research Domain.
The term migration in this content is used to depict the motion of Cameroonians to Belgium and most of import while in Belgium the move to Antwerp. Cultural individuality can be seen as an individuality of a group of civilizations or of an person every bit far as one is influenced by one belonging to a group or civilization ( beginning: wikipedia cyberspace ) .
Geographic and socio-cultural word picture of survey country. This survey is traveling to Concentrate on Cameroonians in Antwerp. Cameroon is said to be the universe ‘s 53rd largest state and has a land mass of 181, 252sq with 6.000km2 of H2O. It is a state located in cardinal and West Africa, get oning the bight of Biafra, between Equatorial Guinea and Nigeria. This state is really rich in natural resources and is most frequently described as “ Africa in illumination ” because it exhibits all the major climes and flora of the continent. With all these, it enjoys an economic system roar till the mid 1980s. Before this, it was really hard to happen a Cameroonian migrating overseas. But because of the long decennary economic system recession, many Cameroonians are forced to travel out of their states like Belgium and the metropolis of Antwerp in peculiar. Cameroon is said to hold two official linguistic communications but at the same clip is made of 58 different cultural groups with different idioms. What is intriguing is that one time these Cameroonians abroad, they forget about these cultural differences and go one.
Antwerp is one of the metropoliss in Belgium which is partially occupied by Cameroonians. It is found in the Flemish part of Belgium and is the Flanders capital. It is the most thickly settled state with 1.7 million in dwellers, Cameroonians doing portion of it. This metropolis is said to hold a batch of historical sites which is one of the that have attracted Cameroonians to settle at that place ; more so, the port of Antwerp has strongly contributed to Cameroonian migration.
Map demoing the location of survey country ( Antwerp
Literature reappraisal.
Most surveies to day of the month hold focused on migration continuum. While early societal scientists were more interested in migrators themselves and with the establishment they taught or created for get bying with their new environment ( Helen 1. Safa 1975:114 ) . This is what Helen I observed during in entitled “ Migration and Development ” . But today anthropologists are more interested in the cultural significances those migrators attached behind their socio-economical activities. Helen farther confirms this when she says ” more late, surveies have been cast in a macro-sociological model which calls attending to the ways social economic and political constructions define and incorporate immigrant groups ( Schermerhorn 1970 ; Zubaida 1970 ; Katznelson 1973 ; Blanur 1972 ) ” . This is the instance of Cameroonians in Antwerp whose cultural associations is being recognized by assorted metropolis halls.
Lola Romanuai-Ross in her book entitled “ Cultural individuality ” : Creation, struggle and adjustment 1996: 366 provinces the importance of the fact that migrators should place themselves amongst their cultural groups, when she says “ … cultural individualities should affect some internally socialized consistence with regard to behavioural norms so that the person and with those with whom one is in contact know what to anticipate in interpersonal relationship ” . This is the principle function played by those assorted Cameroonian associations in Belgium. They try to stay Cameroonian immigrants of their civilization and how they should act in their receiving state.
Jeremy Eades in his work “ Migrants, workers and societal order ” 1987:39 confirms one of the advantages of immigrants placing themselves in a common group when he says “ … Migrants overseas normally get down by forming themselves in cultural signifiers, for their common beginnings provide an effectual and convenient foundation for toolh common aid and corporate actions ” . Therefore in such fortunes, solidarity among Cameroonian migrators are really easy to accomplish.
Federick Bath ( 1969 ) definitions of ethnicity which I have decided to in cooperate in this work as portion of cultural individuality. Bath says “ the boundaries of the Pathan group varied harmonizing to state of affairs in which persons were engaged and the involvements which is generated ” Bath, 1969.
John Rex ( 1994:4 ) further proposes some standards from which members from a peculiar cultural individuality differentiate themselves from
- They may merely hold a consciousness of…
- They may hold specifically assigned functions…
- They may be united with others on footing of shared civilization ; moral, aesthetic, technological and other behaviour as capable to functions regulating the life of all
- Last, they may be united with others in signifiers of spiritual belief
Erich Kdog 2009: 89 provinces “ individuality serve to foreground the cardinal characteristics of individuality, perceptual experience and association ” . New reachings experience alterations in individuality, edifice in the procedure of migration. This is true fact ; there exists some little alterations in the cultural patterns as a consequence of variegation, new migrators might happen it hard at the beginning.
Decision
This research will be concluded pending on the consequences of the findings, accurate decisions will be made after the analysis of the determination. But of import to observe the migration and cultural individuality amongst Cameroonians in Antwerp is on its continuum.
Mentions
- Migration and Development: Deductions for cultural individuality and political struggle by Helen I. Safa and Brian M. Du Toit 1975.
- Cultural individuality: Creation, struggle, and adjustment by Lola Romanucci-Ross and George De Vos 1996.
- Migrants, workers and societal order by Jeremy Eades 1987.
- Cultural mobilisation in a multi-cultural Europe by John Rex, Beatrice Driny 1994
- Ethnicity, patriotism and Globalization in Asia 2009 by Erich Kolig, Vivienne SM Angeles and Sam Wong.
- Populating in two civilizations: the socio-cultural state of affairs of migratory workers and their households.
