Publisher's Synopsis
The book is an attempt to understand the interface between ethnicity and cultural assimilation. The Pakhtoons or Pashtuns are the world's largest (patriarchal) segmentary lineage ethnic group. According to Ethnologue, the total population of the group is estimated to be around 50 million. The [I] chapter on "ETHNICITY: A CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK" debates about the conceptual analysis, theory, perspectives and discussions about ethnicity in sociology and Social anthropology. The [II] chapter entitled "CULTURAL ASSIMILATION" provides a thorough understanding and analysis of this grand narrative of social anthropology. Besides it looks into the cultural assimilation of Kashmiri Pakhtoons with main implications for their society. Chapter [III] "PAKHTOONS: SOCIETY, TRADITIONS AND ASSIMILATION" deals with those cultural aspects of Pakhtoon society which are linked with their tradition and have met assimilation. The main focus of this chapter has been to bring into limelight the nature and degree of assimilation of the cultural elements of the Pakhtoon society and the overall impacts of the process on the ethnicity of Kashmiri Pakhtoons. The scope of this chapter is confined mainly to the micro structures and institutions of Pakhtoon culture and society. Chapter [IV] "ASSIMILATION OF MACRO-SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS AMONG PAKHTOONS" discusses the impacts of assimilation on the macro social institutions like political and economic systems of the Pakhtoon society through a comparative analysis with the Pathans of India and Pakistan. It also deals with the changes and new cultural adoptions in crafts and sports among the Kashmiri Pakhtoons. Assimilation has been analyzed in relation to the education and economic institutions like the occupational structure of the Pakhtoon society in Kashmir.
