Population Dispersion and Ethnic Mobilization: The Case of the Roma.

Ethnic consciousness depends upon the establishment of an ethnic identity, the development of socio- political organizations and the political mobilization of ethnic groups in local, national and/or international arenas. How ethnic consciousness is fully realized, however,continues to be a matter of scholarly concern. Our study asks whether heightened population density or concentration of an ethnic group in a geo-political area positively impacts ethnic consciousness. We posit that a group whose population is concentrated will have a level of ethnic consciousness that is higher than those in regions where the population of the same ethnic group is dispersed because geographical concentration enables ethnic groups to establish political and social organizations. Moreover, group members that are living close to each other develop a sense of community by practicing their traditions and experiencing a territorial dimension to their ethnic identity. Counter arguments suggest that scattered ethnic groups can better protect their identity since the dominant population has less opportunity to institutionally control dispersed ethnic groups than compact communities of settled populations Barany 2002). We test our argument by applying it to the Gypsies of Eastern Europe. The Gypsies comprise a most unusual ethnic group in that they are a transnational people who have no home state to provide a haven or protection to them. Gypsies are also a heterogeneous group with multiple languages and few fiscal resources, and have shown little success at mobilizing in a way that could provide the means to preserve group identity. Despite the absence of these factors, Gypsies have preserved their ethnic identity for centuries, which constitutes a puzzle both for political scientists and policy makers. Thus, the experiences of the Gypsies provide an interesting case study for those who seek to understand the factors that influence ethnic consciousness. Although geographical concentration and dispersion is far from providing the key to understand the whole picture, it may explain an important component. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]