Culture, traditions and ethnicity seem to be topics I can’t escape from this week. Frank has been exploring the connection between culture and traditions over at DMB and a few members of an Instructional Technology forum I belong to have been discussing the differences between culture and ethnicity.

As a first generation child of immigrants I don’t think it’s as easy for me to separate the three concepts. Unlike many who are decades removed from their ethnic roots I am the first and only Canadian born member of my immediate family. The language, music, dances, and foodstuffs I was raised on aren’t things of long gone memories, but things brought from the home country when my parents immigrated. Rather than paying homage to a genetic memory it seemed we were carrying forward old traditions in a new land.

As a child, I acted as a translator for my parents on occassion. Some people seemed to have difficulty understanding the accent that I most often wasn’t able to hear. Like most first generation immigrant children I don’t share the accent of my parents. My sister, born in the old country, also speaks as any other Canadians might. The only differences in our speech is the occassional use of a word or turn of phrase we were raised with.

Growing up, we returned to the home country every few years for weeks (and sometimes months) on end. We met and renewed aquaintance with our cousins and grandparents. As an adult, I’ve continued forward following the traditions my parents taught me as a child. While I’m no longer graceful or energetic enough to continue dancing, I listen to folk music, attend ceilidh’s and am learning to play the pipes – on my father’s chanter, using his music books, and when ready, it will be his pipes I play.

Despite this, I was raised in Canadian culture. I watched CTV and CBC growing up. I played in the snow and have climbed mountains. I went camping and fishing. I attended Canadian public schools as a french immersion student and married a Canadian. I watch hockey, not football (soccer) and sing O Canada, not God Save the Queen.

Do the traditions I carry on as a part of my heritage reflect my culture, or are they just a reflection of ethnicity? Is it possible for first generation children of immigrants to separate culture, tradition and ethnicity when you are raised with all elements in the home?

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