Comparative Study on the Identity Types of ‘Successful’ Gypsies/Travellers in Hungary and in England
Comparative Study on the Identity Types of ‘Successful’ Gypsies/Travellers in Hungary and in England

Summary/Abstract: The aim of this qualitative study is to explore the pattern of ethnic identity of those Gypsies/Travellers in Hungary and in England, who achieved more than other people from this ethnic group in their education or career. We would like to show whether there is some evidence of double-binding identity in their life. In order to investigate the topic of the research, we conducted 47 qualitative interviews altogether. The pre-assumption of the research is the following. As these people are in daily contact with the members of the mainstream society, they can be regarded as members of the minority elite. They might have a doubl-binding identity: arising from their level of education or their career they are bound to the mainstream society as well as to their community. Based on the interview material it was found that the assumption of double-binding identity was sound, especially among Hungarian Gypsy/Travellers. This identity strategy was the most typical in the Hungarian sample. The typical identity strategy for English Gypsies was the dissociative one which could be described as having close links with the ethnic group, but the rejection of mainstream values and norms. It seems that in the multicultural British society, successful gypsies/Travellers preserve their ethnicity completely but this goes together with the rejection of the values of the society they live in.

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