History/Political Science paper by Kovács, Eszter
Diasporization and Integration Patterns of New Hungarian Emigrants in the UK and Austria (Accepted)
Type of Abstract (select):Abstract (max. 250 words):
The focus of scholarly approaches to post-1990 emigration from Hungary has dominantly been on the quantitative aspects: multiple research projects have aimed to quantify the scale of emigration, and to analyse the geographical location and basic socio-demographic indicators of the newly emerging Hungarian diaspora (Blaskó-Gödri 2015, Hárs-Simon 2015, Sík-Szeitl 2016). However, there is limited qualitative data available about the new emigrants. To fill this research gap, a small research team at the Institute for Minority Studies of the Centre for Social Sciences has been working on a project since 2018 that aims at the qualitative exploration of the largest new Hungarian diaspora groups. The research team conducted 60 semi-structured interviews in two main destination countries for emigrants, Austria and Germany, with Hungarians who moved to these countries since 1990. The main focus of our research was to capture if and how new emigrants are forming into a diaspora community. In this paper I attempt to unfold how Hungarian emigrants negotiate belonging and identity (and identity change) in the context of their emigration. By analyzing the interviews carried out with Hungarian individuals living in the UK and Austria, I point out patterns of diasporization and patterns of integration, and highlight some significant socio-economic factors that considerably affect these processes. I also address the question of whether dense transnational networks affect the chances of integration or rather the chances of diasporization of emigrants.
Brief Professional Bio (max. 100 words):
Eszter Kovács completed her PhD at Pázmány Péter Catholic University’s Doctoral School of Political Theory (Budapest) in 2018. She holds master’s degrees in International Studies (from Corvinus University of Budapest) and in Nationalism Studies (from Central European University, Budapest). Currently she is a research fellow at the Institute for Minority Studies of the Centre for Social Sciences. Her research interests include migration, diaspora communities and diaspora and kin-state policies.