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Post by EA Observer on Nov 18, 2008 22:11:13 GMT -5
Did any one of your ethnically different parents actively influence you more to his or her culture, or were you drawn to any one culture of your ethnic parents which was different from the culture you grew up in? How and why?
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Post by Emily on Nov 19, 2008 10:22:56 GMT -5
From as far as I can remember, my Caucasian dad has been the one trying to get me more immersed in my mom's culture. I really can't pinpoint why, but it seems he was really aware of the whole EA thing and its particularities. I remember him teaching me the word "Eurasian" when I was probably 6-7 and telling me how I was lucky to have two heritages, while I didn't think anything of it. Hah, it's almost as if he wanted to pass on some sort of EA pride. I'm really grateful he tried/tries to promote my Asian heritage. Even now, he keeps going on about how proud he is I'm doing Filipino folk dancing, while I'd say my mom is indifferent, if not slightly incredulous as to why I would spend so much time and energy for something "useless," ie not school. Not to say my mom didn't want to raise me with the Filipino culture. I think it's more a matter of her not thinking of going the extra mile to make sure I grow up in a Filipino way. I don't think she raised me any differently than if she had had to raise a full Filipino kid in North America. Whereas my father, I think he understood the richness of growing up multiracial and that he could detract from that.
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Post by dolcedolce on Nov 19, 2008 13:05:41 GMT -5
That's really interesting Emily...I don't think my (caucasian) mom went that far to try to immerse me in my (Dad's) filipino culture but she always did want him to teach me tagalog since a child(and wished he did) while he obviously didn't think it was that important for me to learn (since he never taught me). But I think its cool how your dad seems quite conscious of being mixed/part filipino.
I think my mom's british-canadian culture influenced me more growing up simply because my white family was around and I suppose the white/english culture fairly similar to "Canadian" culture I guess but I think its just more just growing up in Norht America and therefore just being immersed in this culture. However, I actively seeked out filipino culture.. I was definetly drawn to it as I got older, although I wouldn't say it influenced me alot as a child.. I felt far more white.
Now I'm not exactly sure how to answer the question "which parent influenced me more culutrally".. or "which parents culture to identify with more".. as a child probably mom's british/white culture, now I probably identify slightly more with my dad's Filipino culture (at least more so than when i was a kid).
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Post by Paddy on Nov 19, 2008 18:01:52 GMT -5
Yeah, I couldn't possibly comment on which parent has influenced me more culturally. I think I've had a similar experience to Emily in that my Irish father always seems to have encouraged me to explore my Asian roots. It's clear from things he said to me recently that he had little concept of what it is to be EA or how he, as a parent, should have approached such a notion with me or my 2 elder sisters. It's possible that he felt left out when in the company of my mother and her family/friends.
When I first started university, I had the option to choose a language. I chose German. My dad gave me a mouthful for not choosing Mandarin. My rationale was that I would never become good enough at it for it to be useful. Anyway, I took his advice, and I'm now bilingual.
My mother was always ambivalent to anything of this nature. She never encouraged me one way or another. Even now that I have an MA in Chinese Studies and that I have learned Chinese off my own back having lived in China for 10 years, she still doesn't seem that affected. But that's just her. I'm sure she's pleased I've explored my Asian heritage.
Nevertheless, this isn't to say that my father has influenced me more culturally.
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Post by straylight on Nov 20, 2008 9:56:58 GMT -5
i followed my dad in indirect ways, but he would try to get me into thai culture more in his words.. didn't really work that way though. also, i'm probably influenced by pop culture more than anything...which would be mostly western based.
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Post by Miyuki on Nov 20, 2008 21:12:01 GMT -5
Asian mom by far. I think it's because she was a single mom, but it seems like some of my half Asian friends with "functional" families were more influenced by their Asian moms too. Maybe because they were more visibly Asian and they were drawn to that side? I dunno... My mom was always eating weird Japanese food and speaking Japanese. My household was for the most part very Japanesey.
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Post by mrxcloudyxloc on Nov 23, 2008 9:42:53 GMT -5
I definitely picked up on Korean culture from my mom than any thing from my dad. My mom's always been very active in Korean churches, and my sister and I always went to Korean church, always celebrated Korean holidays, we did the whole 100 day things when we were babies, got the gold rings etc. All my mom's friends are Korean, a lot of my friends are Korean, we basically just grew up within the Korean community. As far as my white side goes, there's really no culture to that. I guess you can say I have some "American" culture being that I watch football, and celebrate thanksgiving by eating hella food and drinking some beers with my pops and his friends, but even at thanksgiving my mom and her friends (a lot of my dad's friends have Korean wives) will make Korean food for us to eat along with turkey ham and so on. It's about the same with all of our family friends that are white male and korean female, all of us kids identify as Korean American and were influenced by Korean culture. I'd say our cultural views are about the same as those of other Korean American kids. Except for one, but he grew up with his white dad.
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Post by joha87 on Dec 1, 2008 3:11:07 GMT -5
I definitely picked up on Korean culture from my mom than any thing from my dad. My mom's always been very active in Korean churches, and my sister and I always went to Korean church, always celebrated Korean holidays, we did the whole 100 day things when we were babies, got the gold rings etc. All my mom's friends are Korean, a lot of my friends are Korean, we basically just grew up within the Korean community. As far as my white side goes, there's really no culture to that. I guess you can say I have some "American" culture being that I watch football, and celebrate thanksgiving by eating hella food and drinking some beers with my pops and his friends, but even at thanksgiving my mom and her friends (a lot of my dad's friends have Korean wives) will make Korean food for us to eat along with turkey ham and so on. It's about the same with all of our family friends that are white male and korean female, all of us kids identify as Korean American and were influenced by Korean culture. I'd say our cultural views are about the same as those of other Korean American kids. Except for one, but he grew up with his white dad. Are you me?
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Post by cinnamoroll on Dec 4, 2008 10:48:09 GMT -5
My Euro Dad's culture.
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Post by Subuatai on Dec 4, 2008 15:23:38 GMT -5
Heh all of em, just not my mother's Tsahar/Manchu culture however.
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Post by Paddy on Dec 4, 2008 15:51:38 GMT -5
From what I understand, Manchu culture has almost vanished - assimilated by the majority Han in PRC? Within a hundred years, since the end of the Qing dynasty, their language is no longer spoken anywhere...
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Post by Subuatai on Dec 4, 2008 16:06:49 GMT -5
Yup, Manchu nomadic culture is gone. They are Hans now, not by blood in some cases, but by mind and heart. Tsahar Mongols also suffer from the same threat of assimilation at the moment. Already they are starting to refuse to call themselves Mongols publicly, but Chinese. The PRC government has sinofied Manchu descendants in their parliament who justify their claim over Mongolia due to the fact that the first Manchu emperors did marry daughters of the Golden family (Chingghis Khaan's descendants). As a result Altaic/Sino mixes are very much frowned upon nowadays. I guess I'm very influenced on my father's side, and though if you look at it in a racial way - as my grandmother was "white slavic", she was completely Tatar in the mind and at heart. As a result, my father and I are very much full Mongol Heart is more important then blood to us.
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Post by catgirl on Dec 4, 2008 19:16:25 GMT -5
I must say my mum (english-norwegian) influenced me most with her english side (not norwegian side, though we were raised IN Norway).
But my parents divorced when I was 5-6 and then I lived with my dad (viet), but he didnt teach me the language. So I think he influenced me more indirectly, like with some values etc.
Its kind of strange to be tricultural. I dont know how to explain it to people, takes too long! And I dont think I have a deeper insight into either of the cultures.
Cultureless? I lived in France and Poland, and have a couple of Russian friends....It speaks for itself?
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Post by Subuatai on Dec 4, 2008 19:25:21 GMT -5
Aye, I guess my father and I had it much easier compared to many Eurasians - our identity sided with only one - Altaic. Compassion for the rest, loyalty to one.
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Post by toyomansi on Dec 6, 2008 14:51:16 GMT -5
Definitely Asian mom ;D But she never did it "directly" by trying to teach me about her culture, language and so on. But I was always there with her when she was hanging out with her Asian friends who also had EA kids. So I had tons of EA friends to play with at Filipino gatherings where they were serving Filipino food, playing mah jong, laughing out loud and doing all kinds of things that made us completely forget that we were still in Norway, lol! Later I gained more interest in the culture, but even when I started studying the language, getting involved with the pop culture, martial arts and so on, my mom wasn't that enthusiastic about it either But when her friends are impressed by me, she takes all the glory! ("Wow, she is so good at singing karaoke in Tagalog!" "Yes, I was the one who thought her to be Filipino!")
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