Istria

: This article is about a geographical region bordering the Adriatic Sea. For information on the asteroid, see 183 Istria.

Ethnicity

As with many other regions in the former Yugoslavia, common concepts about ethnicity and nationality fail when applied to Istria. Discussions about Istrian ethnicities often use the words "Italian," "Croatian" and "Slovenian" to describe the character of Istrian people. However, these terms are best understood as "national affiliations" that may exist in combination with or independently of linguistic, cultural and historical attributes.

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In Istrian contexts, for example, the word "Italian" can just as easily refer to a descendent of immigrants from Sicily during the Mussolini period as it can refer to autochthonous speakers of the Venetian language whose antecedents in the region extend back to the Roman Empire. It can also refer to Istrian Slavs who adopted the veneer of Italian culture as they moved from rural to urban areas, or from the farms into the bourgeoisie.

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Similarly, national powers "claim" Istrian Slavs according to local language, so that speakers of Cakavian dialects are considered by the Croatian government to be Croatians and speakers of Kajkavian dialects are considered by the Slovenian government to be Slovenians. Many Istrian Slavs consider themselves simply to be Istrians, with no additional national affiliation. Others consider themselves to be patriotic members of the larger nations.

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