Regional migration and ethnic Russian population change in the USSR (1959-79)

"The related topics of regional net migration and ethnic Russian population redistribution and change in the USSR are investigated for the intercensal period 1970-79 in comparison to 1959-70 by economic regions and subdivisions. The results reveal that the main migration and Russian shifts continued to be from internal to peripheral regions. However, compared with the 1959-70 period, regional rates for 1970-79 were more equalized, and a south-to-north shift seemed to be occurring in both cases." The author notes that "aggregate measures...suggest that the traditional eastward movement of Russians is slowing. Correlation analysis indicates that migration and ethnic Russian change patterns are associated with selected indices of modernization. The south-to-north shift, in particular, has been fairly strong in relation to changes in capital investment. Prospects of a northward migration of Turkic Moslems from Central Asia are also discussed."     

A DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE OF THE TAWAHKA AMERINDIANS OF HONDURAS*

ABSTRACT. Latin America's lowland indigenous groups have been characterized in contradictory ways. Are populations shrinking or growing? Do groups face cultural extinction, or are they increasingly asserting their ethnic identities? This article uses a case study of the Tawahka Amerindians of Honduras to show how basic demographic techniques can shed light on these issues. A multimethod approach resolves conflicting reports of population growth and ethnic admixture within the 1,000‐strong population. Household surveys indicate a contemporary growth rate in excess of 4 percent; a review of historical sources suggests that this rapid growth has been building for more than fifty years. Although genealogical evidence shows high levels of interethnic mixing since 1900, the Tawahka retain their language and identity. The potentially negative effects of rapid population growth on local resources are likely to be mitigated as the Tawahka translate their renewed ethnic identity into political gains, which in turn have increased educational and economic opportunities. Closer attention to microdemographic processes is recommended for those involved in the long‐term management of Latin America's indigenous homelands.     

‘Like touching with your roots’: migrants’ children visiting the ancestral homeland

Many migrants and their descendants make journeys to their homelands, and these visits form an important part of their ethnic identities, kinship relations and transnational connections. While such journeys have attracted increased attention recently, there has been relatively little exploration of the experiences that migrants’ children have when visiting their parents’ homeland, especially in an exile context when there has been little contact with the homeland for an extended period. This paper examines why the children and grandchildren of Estonian migrants to Australia journey to Estonia, and the experiences they have there. Motivations for visiting are complex and varied, and typically interweaved with parents’ stories, ethnic identities, kinship and curiosity. While visiting was a positive but emotional experience for some, it involved awkward encounters for others. This paper explores how these journeys led to respondents reconceptualising their senses of identity, belonging and home, and how many came to align their identities to both Estonia and Australia simultaneously.     

American Homelands: Classroom Approaches Towards a Complex Concept

Abstract

Geographers, along with anthropologists and sociologists, have been debating the homeland concept as it applies in North America for decades. In recent years, the political ideology of the war on terror has added another dimension to this discussion. If the attention given to the concept by introductory textbooks is any indication, homelands are rarely discussed in our geography classrooms despite their critical relationship to our understanding of world and regional culture. This article calls for increasing our attention to homelands in the classroom as the concept serves as a readily available discussion topic with fruitful conclusions and student comprehension.     

Retail Enterprise on the U.S. Urban Periphery: The Role of Immigrant Ethnic Groups in the Late-19th Century

This research adds to knowledge about ethnic entrepreneurship in U.S. cities by testing the hypothesis that, in the late-19th century, levels of retail enterprise of entrepreneurial ethnic groups (e.g., Russian and Polish Jews) were highest in the most remote locations of the nation's urban-regional hierarchy. This hypothesis is based on the proposition that (1) "gateway cities" in the hinterlands of a society are bustling centers of commerce that offer unusually good prospects for retail enterprise, and (2) ethnic groups that are richly endowed with entrepreneurial resources can most fully exploit the advantages of such locations. An analysis of census data, guided by the "interactionist approach" to the study of entrepreneurship, supports this hypothesis and advances the literature on the ethnic economy by suggesting that a city's position in an urban-regional hierarchy (i.e., core vs. peripheral location) is a key element of the opportunity structure for ethnic entrepreneurship in that city.     

NODAL HETEROLOCALISM AND TRANSNATIONALISM AT THE UNITED STATES‐CANADIAN BORDER*

ABSTRACT. Since the late 1990s Wilbur Zelinsky's theory of “heterolocalism’ has provided human geographers and other social scientists with a new approach to analyzing the spatial patterns and ethnic identities of recent immigrants in the United States. Zelinsky's heterolocal model suggests that, to a degree unknown in the past, new migrants in North American cities may choose to settle in widely dispersed places, rather than in more concentrated ethnic enclaves, while maintaining their ethnic identities. This article expands on and critiques prior work on heterolocalism in Oregon by examining the spatial patterns, ethnic and religious identities, and transnational relationships of two recent refugee groups in three urban areas in the Pacific Northwest. Using data from U.S. and Canadian census records, refugee resettlement agency files, survey questionnaires, structured and unstructured interviews, and participant observation with post‐Soviet Russians and Ukrainians in the Vancouver, British Columbia, Seattle, Washington, and Portland, Oregon metropolitan areas, I analyze the spatial patterns and related social networks that define the identities and residential and religious spaces of these groups to test the efficacy of relating heterolocalism and transnationalism across an international boundary.     

Continuity and change: (re)constructing environmental geographies in late Soviet and post-Soviet Russia

Environmental studies conducted worldwide often overlook the knowledge traditions of the locales where they are conducted. Addressing this issue, I investigated the geographic journal literature of late Soviet (1980–1989) and post-Soviet (1990–2003) Russia. Notable trends are increasing criticism of environmental and resource management in Russia and a (re)turn to pre-socialist Russian theorizations of society–nature interactions. Specifically, the noösphere, ethnogenesis and geosystems are trends in the literature that signify how Russian geographers (re)construct environmental knowledge. For non-Russian geographers working in Russia, awareness of these trends situates place-based knowledge relative to multiple cultures (ethnic, scientific) and time periods, promoting cross-cultural understanding of different traditions of geographic inquiry.     

Ethnic migration between area groups in England and Wales

Minority ethnic populations in England and Wales have been increasing steadily as a share of the total population since the 1991 Census. In this paper, we are interested in how internal migration has changed as a possible consequence. Our analysis focuses on the movements between 12 area groups, as defined by the Office for National Statistics, and addresses the following three research questions: (1) how has internal migration in England and Wales evolved from 1991 to 2004; (2) what are the main differences in the movements between the White (majority) population and the ethnic minority population; and (3) how do migration patterns differ when ethnicity, education and employment statuses are considered together? The data come from the 1991 to 2004 National Health Service Central Registers, the 1999–2004 patient registers and the 2001 Census. We find strong stability in the migration patterns of the total population over time. However, large differences appear when the flows are disaggregated by ethnicity and further by education and employment. Education level is an important factor influencing the migration patterns for the White population, whereas employment status is a much more important factor for the ethnic minority population.     

Ethnic and gender divisions in the work force of Russia

Like the former Soviet Union, Russia is home to many ethnic groups. The Russian Federal Treaty of March 1992 was signed by 18 ethnically-based republics and 17 non-Russian ethnic districts. Ethnic groups within Russia vary considerably in levels of socioeconomic achievement, with groups having had unequal access to political resources and differing in their ability to take advantage of economic opportunities. The author analyzed newly available occupational data from the 1989 census in his study of ethnic and gender differences in the work force of Russia. Measurements are presented showing differences between the occupations of Russians and the next largest 11 ethnic groups, producing a clear hierarchy of groups. The extent of occupational gender differences within each ethnic group is measured and contrasted with the level of differences between ethnic groups. These data are important for showing potential sources of group conflict and for providing a baseline to measure changing forms of inequality which have been promoted by post-Soviet developments. Preliminary findings point to the existence of highly significant differences between Russia's ethnic groups, with the level of the differences closely paralleling measures of socioeconomic achievement. To determine more precisely the significance of group differences in employment, detailed occupational categories must be examined more closely. Currently available data, however, do not permit more rigorous measurements of discrimination. It is nonetheless clear that ethnicity in contemporary Russia is strongly related to occupational differences. The aggregate segregation of men from women was found to be very stable despite the substantial socioeconomic and cultural differences between ethnic groups. As a group, Jews were found to have extremely high levels of educational and occupational achievement and a comparatively far older age structure.     

PLACING KANGWANE IN THE NEW SOUTH AFRICA*

ABSTRACT. The South African homelands were central to the apartheid ideology of racial segregation and separate development and as a result became the location for large segments of the African population. Apartheid‐era theorizations of the homelands tended to emphasize their importance to the state, with less attention directed to the divergent and unique social formations that often existed within them. Recent geographical research has been intent on evaluating the spatial imprint of these geographies for resident populations, as well as the varied class, gendered, and institutional formations that accompanied the democratic transition. Using a case study from the former KaNgwane homeland, this article examines the diverse ways in which rural households access environmental and economic resources to produce livelihoods. It is argued that a focus on community variation is needed to interrogate the differential encounters of these places with the local politics and development processes that are emerging in the new South Africa.     

Confronting the social debate: A study of the distribution of Russian recreational properties in Eastern Finland

Transborder property ownership is a growing trend in different parts of the world. In Finland, Russians make up the biggest group of foreign buyers. The article examines Russian recreational property purchases in Eastern Finland, where South Savo Region is subject to the heaviest flow of Russian purchasers. Russian purchases of second homes have been the subject of a broad social debate dominated by negative attitudes towards the phenomenon. Fears of place change and displacement have been among the main concerns. The authors reveal how arguments presented in the social debate on Russian ownership correspond to the distribution of Russian properties in South Savo. Statistics for the period 2003–2012 and GIS methods were used to analyse the distribution and density of Russian recreational properties in the region. Statistical modelling uncovered some factors that affected the location of the properties. The findings indicate that the arguments presented within the social debate have only partially derived from the distribution patterns of Russian properties. The authors conclude that a combination of factors, including distances from the border and services as well as preferences for waterside locations, have influenced the choice of location of Russian properties and led to concentrations in certain areas.     

Mapping the multiple geographies of mixed-ethnicity couples in Australia

Mixed-ethnicity partnerships are becoming increasingly common in Australia and other countries of high immigration. Formal and de facto marriages involving partners from different ethnic backgrounds are key indicators of decreasing social distance between groups. Yet mixed-ethnicity couples have received scant attention from Australian geographers. We use customised data from the 2011 Australian census to analyse the nation-wide distribution of several types of mixed-ethnicity couples. We focus on couples comprised of an Anglo-European (ethnic majority) partner, and a partner from a ‘visible’ ethnic minority group. Our analyses explore the residential geographies of mixed-ethnicity couples vis-à-vis ‘co-ethnic couples’ (where partners share the same ethnicity). We find that mixed-ethnicity couples are more widely dispersed across Australian cities and regions than comparative co-ethnic couples. However, each type of mixed-ethnicity couple has its own unique residential pattern: there are multiple geographies of mixed-ethnicity couples in Australia. These distinctive patterns reflect the migration and settlement histories of the couples’ constituent ethnic groups, but also hold great potential to shift seemingly entrenched ethnic residential geographies in the present and future.     

Spatial assimilation and its discontents: Asian ethnic neighborhood change in California

This study investigates the geographic and compositional dynamics of ethnic neighborhoods over time among the fastest growing racial group in California, Asian Americans. I conduct spatial analysis of Census data from 2000 and 2010 to represent changes in ethnic neighborhood boundaries and their associated structural and demographic characteristics. First, I document changing ethnic neighborhood patterns among four Asian national origin groups—Chinese, Filipino, Korean, and Vietnamese Americans. Second, I synthesize this information, assessing the theoretical implications of these changes by describing indications of spatial assimilation, ethnic stratification, and resurgent ethnicity among ethnic neighborhoods and the potential repercussions for the successful incorporation of both immigrant and native-born Asian Americans. Overall, this paper demonstrates that Asian ethnic neighborhood dynamics are far from monolithic and that different spatial incorporation processes manifest both within and between groups.     

Mapping Polka and Its Ethnic Heritage in the United States

Abstract

Ethnic music is a strong indicator of cultural identity. Central and Eastern European ethnic groups have historically been associated with folk music traditions, such as polka, and radio broadcasting patterns in the United States reflect continued demand for and support of this music. Data from the 2000 Census was used to generate maps of the county-level ancestral patterns from European regions traditionally associated with polka music and was compared with the locations of radio stations that play polka. This article demonstrates straightforward quantitative approaches to evaluating these patterns of musical preferences. This study serves as an example for ways in which mapping and GIS can be used as tools for teaching and learning topics related to cultural geography.     

Koreatown and Korean Small Firms in Los Angeles: Locating in the Ethnic Neighborhoods*

The locations of Korean firms in Los Angeles reflect spatial segmentation in markets and the provision of labor, in that the ethnic neighborhoods facilitate positive business environments for ethnic small firms. While Korean small businesses serve both community needs and broader local markets, firm locations are closely associated with the residential patterns of some ethnic populations. To address the specificity of firm locations, this paper examines Koreatown using historical sources and recent property development, identifies changes in the locational patterns of Korean firms between 1975 and 1986, and analyzes relationships between business density and density of ethnic populations for zip code areas. The findings of this study indicate that both the development of Koreatown and the presence of ethnic neighborhoods are important influences on the location of Korean businesses.     

Spatial Patterns of Larceny and Aggravated Assault in Miami–Dade County, 2007–2015

The combination of crime mapping and geospatial analysis methods has enabled law enforcement agencies to develop more proactive methods of targeting crime-prone neighborhoods based on spatial patterns, such as hot spots and spatial proximity to specific points of interest. In this article, we investigate the spatial and temporal patterns of the neighborhood crimes of aggravated assault and larceny in 297 census tracts in Miami–Dade County from 2007 to 2015. We use emerging hot spot analysis (EHSA) to identify the spatial patterns of emerging, persistent, continuous, and sporadic hot spots. In addition, we use geographically weighted regression to analyze the spatial clustering effects of sociodemographic variables, poverty rate, median age, and ethnic diversity. The hot spots for larceny are much more diffused than those for aggravated assaults, which exhibit clustering in the north over Liberty City and Miami Gardens and in the south near Homestead, and the ethnic heterogeneity index has a moderate and positive effect on the incidence of both larceny and aggravated assaults. The findings suggest that law enforcement can better target prevention programs for violent versus property crime using geospatial analyses. Additionally, the ethnic concentration of neighborhoods influences crime differently in neighborhoods of different socioeconomic status, and future studies should account for spatial patterns when estimating conventional regression models.     

Understanding Ethnic Residential Cluster Formation: new perspectives from South Australia’s migrant hostels

ABSTRACT

Throughout Australia’s history, successive governments have lamented the clustering of non-English-speaking migrants in ‘ethnic enclaves’ or ‘ghettos’. From the early Chinatowns of the 1800s till today, urban concentrations of ethnic groups have raised concerns and fears in local populations and authorities alike, despite decades of international research which suggests that ethnic residential clusters actually aid long-term assimilation and adjustment. Many of the ethnic residential clusters in contemporary Australia have been claimed to be a direct consequence of the migrant hostels and reception centres which operated between 1948 and the 1990s. This paper traces migrant settlement patterns in South Australia in rich detail, revealing the complexities of lived experiences that shape migrant settlement decisions. Against the background of public and scholarly debates over ‘ethnic enclaves’, and drawing on quantitative and qualitative historical research on the lived experiences of former hostel migrants, it analyses how migrant hostels and reception centres contributed to the settlement experiences of diverse migrants. We conclude that migrant hostels were just one among various factors that led to the growth and maintenance of ethnic residential clusters.     

THE ROLE OF ETHNIC REAL ESTATE AGENTS IN THE RESIDENTIAL RELOCATION PROCESS: A CASE STUDY OF PORTUGUESE HOMEBUYERS IN SUBURBAN TORONTO

This paper examines the search behavior of a sample of Portuguese and Canadian-born homebuyers in suburban Toronto, Canada. Attention is focused on the extent to which Portuguese homebuyers rely upon real estate agents from the same ethnic background and how this source can influence the homebuyer's housing search and ultimate choice of a residence. Data were obtained from a questionnaire survey that was administered to a sample of 110 Portuguese and 90 Canadian-born recent homebuyers in the city of Mississauga, a western suburb of Toronto. All were nonresidents of Mississauga at the time of purchasing the house. The evidence indicates that Portuguese homebuyers differ significantly from the Canadian-born in their housing search by relying more extensively on ethnic sources of information, particularly real estate agents from the same ethnic background. However, almost equal numbers of Portuguese purchased houses in Portuguese and non-Portuguese neighborhoods in Mississauga. In this respect, the evidence suggests that Portuguese realtors play a more limited role in reinforcing existing spatial patterns of Portuguese settlement in Mississauga.     

中国海外移民类型及移民族群特征探讨

中国人移民海外历史悠久,近百余年来规模最大,至今已超过3000万人。中国海外移民对许多国家和地区的社会经济发展产生了重要影响。文章概要回顾了近代中国各类型海外移民的历史,分析了海外移民的世界分布格局及其形成原因。在揭示海外移民为当地资源开发、经济发展、社会进步、民族独立作出重要贡献基础上,对华人族群民族意识、文化属性、传统华人社会结构、双重认同、不同地域华人族群特色以及海外移民不同程度融入所在国主流社会的类型等进行了研究。文章强调,当前对不同地域华人族群所居地位和作用,应加深理解,在振兴中华进程中,国家应高度重视这一族群能力的发挥。     

MARITAL ASSIMILATION OF POLISH-CATHOLIC AMERICANS: A CASE STUDY IN SYRACUSE,N.Y., 1940–1970

The spatial pattern of marriages in conjunction with ethnic identity is used to study one case of assimilation in America. Changing marriage patterns for Polish-American Catholics in Syracuse, New York between 1940 and 1970 reveal a considerable increase in exogamy based upon national origin. Exogamy is associated with residential outmovement of Polish-Americans from the ethnic core, and to a lesser extent it has occurred among those Polish-Americans in the core. A pan-Catholic group is emerging because Polish-Catholics are marrying other Catholics.