Ethnic Identity, Nationalism and Culture

This book discusses various dimensions of the philosophical problems posed by the conception of identity. It looks at philosophical debates centred on ethnic identity, nationalism, and culture, where phenomenological grounding for otherness in Northeast India is extensively studied. It hermeneutically analyses tribal culture, religion, tradition of different ethnic groups that inhabit in Northeast India. The book highlights important issues the tribals here are facing today that are linked to their cultural religion and traditional life. It also examines how humans develop an understanding of themselves vis-à-vis their relationships with others. The philosophical discussion on the concept of tribal as a category of ontology is attempted to offer certain manifested realities on the problems entailed by the question «Who is the Other»? It also discusses nationalism and the search for the other’s otherness as a value signifier of identity, and how each of the different identities has a relative significance in different contexts.

Reena Thakur Patra obtained her Ph.D from Dresden University of Technology, Germany. She has been an accomplished philosopher with expertise in the areas of philosophy of technology, Heidegger, ethics, Indian philosophy and culture, and has considerable research and teaching experience.

She has published several books and research papers in both national and international journals , and participated in several conferences, workshops and seminars presenting papers and lecturing on philosophy, technology and Indian knowledge systems. She has over 20 years of research experience and has worked on multiple research projects funded by both German and Indian government agencies, including the Graduiertenkolleg – Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG-German Research Foundation).