The Dynamics of Changing Ethnic Boundaries: A Case Study of Karachi

Abstract

Contrary to expectation, and the generally accepted belief that ethnicity defines one's primordial indentity and is, therefore, relevant and functiooal only in a pre-modem context, the phenomenon of ethnicity has surfaced in the modem world as a fOICe more vital than class contIi::t and a source more pertinent to resolving peICeived inequalities and thereby affecting desired social change. This paper examines the ethnic garb assumed by the uprisings and armed conflicts currently ravaging Karachi. The examination is undertaken within the framework of Hannan's model of the dynamics of interactions between the centre and the periphery (as based on Barth's niche theory). The paper, thus, seeks to understand the conditions which caused the definition, reinfoICement, and functional relevance of ethni:: boundaries, as well as the consequent salience of the phenomenon in the modem urban context.