Najdovski, Ico (1997) Contested identity : Macedonians in contemporary Australia. Research Master thesis, Victoria University of Technology.

Abstract

As argued in this thesis, a Macedonian-Australian identity is an elusive and evolving category. Nonetheless, the various Macedonian-Australian institutions and organisations, as well as the activities that they perform, described in this thesis, give definition and shape to a distinctive Macedonian identity. The thesis argues that Macedonian identity is not fixed, but is the product of lived experience and engagement with the issues that confront them in the modern context. This identity is not a static fusion of discrete 'traditional' and 'modern' identities, which come together to constitute another (composite) self-contained identity. Rather, the Macedonian-Australian identity is viewed as representing dynamic processes of 'negotiation' between various cross-cutting trajectories, that are constructed in response to changing social and cultural circumstances. The thesis describes these processes as they are enacted in the Australian context, including the contestation Macedonian identity that was part of what has come to be known as 'the Greek- Macedonian debate'. The thesis argues that Macedonians draw on their historic heritage and culture, as well as on elements that are part of their lives in Australia, in order to construct an evolving identity unlike any other. The thesis also poses some important questions about the future development of a tolerant and democratic multicultural policy for Australia.

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