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Negotiating Ethnic and Transnational Identities in the African Diaspora

Second-Generation Igbo Americans

Negotiating Ethnic and Transnational Identities in the African Diaspora cover

Negotiating Ethnic and Transnational Identities in the African Diaspora

Second-Generation Igbo Americans

Description

Examines how young adult second-generation Igbo Americans construct their ethnic and transnational identities in a multicultural society.

Drawing on interviews, cultural narratives, and thematic analysis, this book foregrounds the voices of SGI individuals as they navigate intergenerational tensions, cultural expectations, code-switching, gender roles, and identity formation. It explores identity clashes between Nigerian-born (Igbo) parents and their U.S.-raised children, revealing generational divergences and emergent commonalities.

Uchenna Onuzulike develops an Ethnic Communication Theory (ECT) to show how ethnic identity shapes communication styles within diasporic contexts. He unpacks theories of ethnicity, transnationalism, and emotional belonging and discusses the future of the Igbo language and cultural continuity.

This book contributes to anthropological understandings of African diasporic identity, cultural transmission, and the dynamic interplay between tradition and modernity in immigrant communities.

Table of Contents

List of Tables
Foreword by Ada Uzoamaka Azodo
Acknowledgments
Introduction: Transnational Mindset
1. Ethnic and Transnational Identity Negotiation: Lived Experiences of the Children of Immigrants
2. Identity Clashes between the Parents and Their Children
3. Schooling Experiences, Cultural Functions, and the Impact of the COVID-19
4. Heritage Language: Challenges, Pressures, and Shame for not Speaking Igbo
5. Ethnic Communication Theory and Group Dynamics of Pan-African, Pan-Igbo, Intra-Igbo, and Young Igbo
6. Negotiating Igboness: Social Media Impact and Cultural Sustenance
7. The Reception of Nollywood: Americanization, Quality, and Uncertainty of Igbo-Language Films
Conclusion: Overview, Suggestions, and Practical Considerations
Glossary
References
Index
About the Author

Product details

Bloomsbury Academic Test
Published 03 Sep 2026
Format Ebook (PDF)
Edition 1st
Extent 176
ISBN 9781666958553
Imprint Bloomsbury Academic
Illustrations 1 table
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing

About the contributors

Author

Uchenna Onuzulike

Uchenna Onuzulike is Associate Professor of Commun…

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