Learning From the Hyphen: Cultural identity navigation in Coptic individuals living in the diaspora

Abstract

The term “Coptic” is a transnational ethnic marker for Egyptian people, allowing Coptic individuals to identify with their Egyptian ethnicity and religious identity which results in the largest Christian group in North Africa who follow the Coptic Orthodox Church and their connection to the early pharaonic civilization (Brinkerhoff, 2015; Botros, 2006; Lozano, 2015). My research investigated the ways Coptic individuals living in the diaspora navigate and understand their cultural identity. By analyzing data from one focus group and additional follow- up interviews, this research uncovered the sociocultural factors that affect the identity formation and navigation process in members of the Coptic diaspora living in Canada. Using Bourdieu’s (1986) theory of social and cultural capital and habitus, findings demonstrate that Coptic individuals living in the diaspora navigate their cultural identity by immersing themselves in the Coptic community through their Coptic church. They invest their time in spaces filled with cultural capital and their social capital grows through the deep-rooted sense of community the Coptic church offers its members. The sociocultural factors that affect the process of their identity formation and navigation included: (1) family life, (2) religious community and cultural practices, (3) language, (4) peers and social networks, and (5) challenges of displacement. More importantly, this study highlights the need for further in-depth exploration on the experiences of members of the Coptic diaspora, and other diasporas, in the context of their cultural identity.