Your First Identity.

[Shafin]

When you are asked the question,who are you,which will be the first basis upon which you would define yourself?is it your Nationality,or Adopted Nation(In case of immigrants),or rigionality(your ancestral home village),or Religion or ethnicity.What about your Language?

So,on those,which one is the most prominent in identifying you?

[Rabz]

Im A Bangladeshi Muslim.

[gatekeeper]

Most Bangladeshis I think will call themselves Bangladeshis first before anything else.

[ialbd]

Bangladeshi is my indentity, Islam is my life. I think its irrational to compare between Bangladeshi & Muslim identity...

[Navarene]

I love my country...but that doesnt necessarily mean I gotta be a hypered chauvinist nationalist. I am a Bengali by ethnicity, and then comes my nationality...as a proud Bangladeshi. Religion? Hey where is my recycle bin?

[Miraz]

Originally Posted by ialbd
Bangladeshi is my indentity, Islam is my life. I think its irrational to compare between Bangladeshi & Muslim identity...

Exactly. Not possible to choose between the two.

Like Sydney said,
I am a Bangladeshi Muslim.

[gatekeeper]

Originally Posted by Navarene
I love my country...but that doesnt necessarily mean I gotta be a hypered chauvinist nationalist. I am a Bengali by ethnicity, and then comes my nationality...as a proud Bangladeshi. Religion? Hey where is my recycle bin?

You can be nationalist without being chauvanistic. Its the differesnce between pride and arrogance.

[ammark]

Separate Identities in separate contexts:

- In Canada and the west, I'm Bangladeshi. If people ask on whether I'm a Canadian citizen, at the airport immigration desk, or the Ministry of Health, or anywhere else... then I say yes. However, my Canadian citizenship is not an identity I view with much regard personally. I lived in Bangladesh for most of my life, and I relate to Bangladesh's national history, movement, and evolution much more than I do with Canada's. It would require of me to spend more time in Canada and interacting in Canada before I can empathise equally as a Canadian.

- In Bangladesh, I'm Bangali (someone asked me if I'm Japanese at paltan, and a man in New Market tried to speak to me in Urdu assuming I'm from Uttar Pradesh)

- When people ask me of my desher bari - then I make sure I mention Dada'r bari Ctg, Nana'r bari Sylhet... and that I have grown up in Dhaka

- If someone asks of my faith, then I identify myself as Muslim

There is no order of preference, the identity I give to people all depends on the context they ask.

[damalChele]

Most of them apply to me. How can I choose more than one radio buttons?

Here is my true identity. I am a:
Bangladeshi - Birth place
Muslim (Follower of Islam) - Religion
Bengali - Language/Ethnicity
British - Nationality

[sandpiper]

my primary identification is MY NAME

[ialbd]

Originally Posted by damalChele
Most of them apply to me. How can I choose more than one radio buttons?

Here is my true identity. I am a:
Bangladeshi - Birth place
Muslim (Follower of Islam) - Religion
Bengali - Language/Ethnicity
British - Nationality

thats why the original poster mentioned 'primary', but yea... its never easy to pick that. the poll result should be interesting......

[damalChele]

Well that is my primary identity. I am a "british bengali bangladeshi muslim".

[Tigers_eye]

Depending on who is asking, "where are you from?"

White American gets an answer as: Little Rock.
Black American gets an answer as: Down Town.
Indians get an answer as: Bangladesh.
Arabs, Pakistanis gets an answer as: Why ask brother? Muslim don't work for you?
Bangladeshis gets an answer as: Khulna.
Chicks gets an answer as: Where you want me to be from? Italy?? Naa, actually chicks don't ask me that. They ask me something else, can't say that here (sir mix alot).

[Zunaid]

Originally Posted by Tigers_eye
Depending on who is asking, "where are you from?"

White American gets an answer as: Little Rock.
Black American gets an answer as: Down Town.
Indians get an answer as: Bangladesh.
Arabs, Pakistanis gets an answer as: Why ask brother? Muslim don't work for you?
Bangladeshis gets an answer as: Khulna.
Chicks gets an answer as: Where you want me to be from? Italy?? Naa, actually chicks don't ask me that. They ask me something else, can't say that here (sir mix alot).

Excellent. Similar to how I respond.

San Diegans get: University Heights
All other Americans get: San Diego
On "no, where are you really from": Gets Delaware
Indians get: Bangladesh
Arabs, Pakistanis get: Haven't met one in the US yet. Probably will get the same as Indians.
Other foreigners get: US
Bangladeshis get: Dhaka
Chicks get a look at my wedding ring.

[Fazal]

I guess my answer is "a human being in this earth."

I always feel uncomfortable when people show too much excitement about nationality or religion and kind of block other valid points of view and therfore tends to be nartrow minded in different issues.

About reigion, I feel its more persoanl choice. I feel more comforatble talking religious matter within friends and families that I know them well and who have more tolerant view about other religion; whop teaches unity not division amoung human beings.

[israr]

Nationalty: Bangladeshi
Religion: Islam

[Electrequiem]

I am a combination of two of the choices above ... Bangladesh and Muslim

[Bancan]

I am a Human Being

[Omio]

No identity..

[pagol-chagol]

I am just an animal engulfed in [.....], trying to be a part of nature and reluctantly playing this game called "survival of the fittest".

[Mahir]

Bangladeshi Muslim.

But again, as it has been elaborated already : these are two identities in different contexts.

[Ganguly da]

HUMAN BEING above all...... rest are just labels, when I work with dead bodies in the morgue, I have hard time figuring out who'se a muslim and who'se a jew....both look pale, lifeless and full of memories spent with loved ones.

Nationality --- Indian American
Religion ---- Hindu
Language --- Bangla(mother tongue), Punjabi, Hindi, lil bit farsi
Ethnicity --- 1/2 bengali 1/2 punjabi
Regional Ancestral home --- Kolkata (mom's side: chittagong)
Adopted nation: Usa

Something else: chicks don't ask, I don't ans, they do their job, I do mine, then we mutually depart for betterment of society.

[rah]

forst i look at ma self as a muslim. im a british bengali. ethnicity is bengali, ma nation england

[selina]

My primary identity is my nationality. Because that's how I choose to identify myself. Doesn't mean that my religion, islam is any less important to me though.

Whenever Americans ask me where I'm from and I say Bangladesh, they have one of two responses.


Response #1: Where the heck is Bang-la-desh ? Sorry never heard of it.
"It's right next to India."
Ohhhhhhhhhh now I remember.

Response#2 : Omg you're from Bang-la-desh ??? That's so cool.
Were you born there? When did you move? What is it like? and etc...

[damalChele]

Originally Posted by selina
My primary identity is my nationality. Because that's how I choose to identify myself. Doesn't mean that my religion, islam is any less important to me though.

Whenever Americans ask me where I'm from and I say Bangladesh, they have one of two responses.


Response #1: Where the heck is Bang-la-desh ? Sorry never heard of it.
"It's right next to India."
Ohhhhhhhhhh now I remember.

Response#2 : Omg you're from Bang-la-desh ??? That's so cool.
Were you born there? When did you move? What is it like? and etc...

response 1 : pretty much all bengalis have experienced it in the past. soon as we say next to india we are no longer aliens.