Nineteen Years Later. A Glance at the Change of Ethnic and Civic Identity of Lithuanian Youth in Poland

Abstract

The article is based on the data of the questionnaire and fieldwork conducted in the vicinity of Punsk in 2005 and 2024. By comparing the data obtained from the graduates of Punsk Lyceum using the same methodology, the aim was to compare the change in the interaction of ethnic and civic identities of young Polish Lithuanians, answering the question of whether this process was influenced by the rapidly changing possibilities of digital communication tools. To achieve this goal, the following tasks were set: (1) to reveal the change in the interaction between the ethnic origin of the young people and the language used, (2) to analyse the change in respondents’ attitude towards the calendar holidays celebrated, (3) to reveal the change in the interactions between sports and civic identity, (4) to review the change in respondents’ physical connection with Lithuania (time spent in this country), and (5) to reveal the change in respondents’ expected connections with Lithuania. For the purposes of the research, a special questionnaire was used, which was filled out mostly by the graduates of Punsk Lyceum (43 respondents in 2005 and 28 respondents in 2024). Since the survey sample is not representative (it included only part of young people), the aim of both instances of fieldwork was to combine qualitative and quantitative methods – questionnaires, semi-structured interviews, and observation, using both online and written sources, as well as research by other authors.
The presented comparative analysis shows that despite the nineteen years of cultural and political changes and the radical impact of rapidly changing digital communication tools, the ethnic identity of young Lithuanians in Poland changed little. The study suggests that the weakening position of the Lithuanian language is compensated by the intensity of Lithuanian cultural activities, sports, festivals and holidays, and physical connections with Lithuania, which have no analogues in Lithuania. These processes form a specific local identity based on extremely strong Lithuanian self-consciousness; on the other hand, emphasising the Lithuanian ethnic identity, young people remain loyal citizens of the Republic of Poland.