Scottishness and Irishness in New Zealand since 1840 / Angela McCarthy.

Includes bibliographical references (p.213-231) and index.

Machine generated contents note: 1. Irishness and Scottishness in the diaspora -- 2. Categories of identity -- 3. Language and accent -- 4. Material tokens of ethnicity -- 5. Religion, politics, and history -- 6. National characteristics -- 7. Impressions of New Zealand and Maori.

"This book examines the distinctive aspects, mixed and complex, that insiders and outsiders perceived as characteristic of Irish and Scottish ethnic identities in New Zealand. When, how, and why did Irish and Scots identify themselves and others in ethnic terms? What characteristics did the Irish and the Scots attribute to themselves and what traits did others assign to them? Did these traits change over time and if so how? Why did they arise at specific times? Contemporary interest surrounding issues of ethnic identities is vibrant. In countries such as New Zealand, descendants of European settlers are seeking their ethnic origins, spurred on in part by factors such as an ongoing interest in indigenous genealogies, the burgeoning appeal of family history societies, and the booming financial benefits of marketing ethnicities abroad as exemplified by music and theme pubs. The Irish and the Scots are two of the most seductive and energetic ethnic groups in this regard. To address these questions, a range of written, verbal, and visual sources are deployed. Among the evidence consulted are personal testimonies (incorporating hundreds of letters, shipboard journals, memoirs, and interviews), official immigration files, parliamentary debates, nominated immigration records, maritime ephemera, ethnic presses, society records, lunatic asylum casebooks, family histories, poetry and novels, and film and documentary. This fascinating book will appeal to scholars and students of the history of empire and the construction of identity in settler communities, as well as those interested in the history of New Zealand"--Publisher description.