Quero abstract - Nikkei Studies/Nikkei研究

“'To be Nikkeijin or... not to be': Identity formation dilemmas among Brazilians of Japanese ancestry migrating to Japan”

Hugo Cordova Quero

Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Interdisciplinary Studies of the Graduate Theological Union at Berkeley, California;

Visiting Researcher at the Center for Loso-Brazilian Studies of Sophia University

---

ABSTRACT
Since the so-called “bubble-economy”, Japan have received the influx of many migrant workers. Among them, around 300,000 Brazilians of Japanese ancestry have migrated to Japan. Defined as “Nikkeijin” by the Japanese Government official documents, these Brazilians of Japanese ancestry have dedicated several decades to differentiate themselves in Brazilian society because of their Japanese ancestry. In Japan they have to learn how to re-defined themselves in terms of their identity as they are not longer perceived as “Japonês” (Japanese) as it is the case in Brazil. This paper seeks to address the issues surrounding the process of identity formation among Brazilians of Japanese ancestry migrating to Japan. The challenge for these migrants, beyond a mere linguistic issue, entitles concrete re-valorizations and re-negotiations of both their Japanese ancestry and their Brazilian socialization. The result varies according to context and particular experiences, but in every case implies a process of power relationalities of self-definition vis-a-vis external categorizations.

Quero profile