Nation-Building and Contested Identities - MEK

IRINA CULICTABLE 8. The definition of Romanian identity by Hungarians in Romania, andof Hungarian identity by Romanians. The figures represent the cumulatedanswers for the question: “In your opinion, what are the most important threethings for someone to be considered (Romanian/Hungarian)?”Romanians Hungariansabout Hungarians about Romanians(% of cases) (% of cases)1. to be born in (Romania/Hungary) 48.5% 11.5%2. to hold (Romanian/Hungarian) citizenship 37.4% 17.0%3. mother tongue is (Romanian/Hungarian) 52.2% 75.5%4. to be baptized by a (Romanian/Hungarian) church 23.8% 20.6%5. to live in (Romania/Hungary) 16.3% 9.0%6. to honor the (Romanian/Hungarian) flag 9.9% 12.4%7. to belong to (Romanian/Hungarian) culture 25.3% 37.9%8. to consider himself (Romanian/Hungarian) 41.7% 61.1%9. to respect the traditions of (Romanians/ Hungarians). 24.1% 27.9%10. to speak the (Romanian/Hungarian)language within the family 19.9% 22.2%Source: Culic, Horváth, and Lazãr, Ethnobarometer: Interethnic Relations in Romania.According to Table 8, both Romanians and Hungarians are consistentwith their self-definition of identity, though some percentages are ina reversed order. Romanians tend to stress the importance of languageand to decrease the importance of birthplace when identifying a person asHungarian. Conversely, Hungarians stress more the importance of birthplace,citizenship and residence. These slight differences are based on therespective acknowledgment of the features that characterize the relationsof “the other” with the state (territory and institutions), the fellow citizens(region and ethnic distribution of locality), and fellow nationals (cultureand ethnicity).State, Identity and LoyaltyOne of the themes structuring the relationship between Romanians andHungarians, which is often constitutive to the process of self-identificationand identification of the other for the Hungarians, is that of their loyaltytowards the Romanian state. In many situations, the Romanians feel entitledto doubt the Hungarians’ loyalty towards the Romanian state. Themost trivial situation is that of a football match between the nationalteams of Romania and Hungary, when their loyalty can be manifested bysupporting the Romanian team. But how should one react when the Hungarianssupport the Hungarian team? What is more, in the case of a foot-238