Current Manifestations of the Ethnic Identity of Transylvanian Saxons

The study ‘Current Manifestations of the Ethnic Identity of Transylvanian Saxons’ presents this ethnic minority in Romania. Based on the theoretical concepts of T. H. Eriksen, it deals with the issues of the ethnic identity and its contemporary manifestations in the culture of Transylvanian Saxons. Information gathered during the qualitative field research make it possible to capture changes in the manifestations of the ethnic identity and the relationship between the minority and the majority culture. As a result of modernization processes and large-scale emigration, there has been a change of the group’s mentality, with traditional behaviour patterns and models of social coexistence disintegrating. The need has arisen to revise the ethnic identity of the community. The observed aspects of the ethnic identity include ethnicity and Saxon self-concept, Saxon dialect, Saxon Evangelical Church, festivities, minority education and interethnic relations. Attention is also paid to the opinions of Saxon politicians and intellectuals of the current situation of the society and its future direction.