Chapter 4. Diaspora Festivals as a Way for Development of Cultural Identity in the Regional City: the Case of Daugavpils (Latvia) Alīna Romanovska ABSTRACT: Diasporas’ festivals are mechanisms for the reflection, determination, and development of a cultural identity. The aim of the research is to examine how diasporas’ festivals influence cultural environment and identities of people of various ethnic origins (Latvian, Russian, Polish, and Belarusian) in the Latvian regional cross-border city of Daugavpils. The quantitative dominance of the Slavic (Russian, Polish, Belarusian) diasporas over the Latvian population is a specific feature of Daugavpils. The analysis is based on the findings of the semi-structured interviews with youth groups from various ethnic groups (Latvian, Russian, Polish, and Belarusian) in the area of diasporas’ culture as well as the content analysis of the city’s official mass media and the semiotic analysis of the festivals’ events. In addition, the research provides an insight into Latvia’s historic development and the process of formation of the national identity. Although the aim of any diaspora is to preserve its own cultural traditions and features, the research presents interaction and creolization of different cultural traditions, which is determined by the multicultural cross-border environment, the creativity in organizing public festivals, and the consumer society’s interests. KEYWORDS: creolization, diaspora, festival, identity, regional city Introduction Festivals as an integral part of everyday culture are one of the ways in which a person’s cultural identity may be determined. Even when celebrating world-famous festivals that are similar in a lot of countries, there might be differences in rituals and traditions depending on what cultures are represented in the celebration. Academicians believe that identity is not something given, but a feature that is constantly in the process of development
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