Israeli and Japanese Immigrants to Canada: Home, Belonging, and the Territorialization of Identity

Abstract

The article explores the meaning of the terms home, identity, and belonging for Israeli and Japanese immigrants to Canada. It also investigates identity formation, management, and change, and the interrelationship of the personal, the cultural, and the national. Israel and Japan are both countries with a strong sense of uniqueness, where the notions of "a chosen people" and "the promised land" are present in the national discourse. The findings of this study indicate that the ability to create an adult home, after immigration, is related to the nature of the self (individualistic versus self‐sacrificing, and I‐self versus we‐self) and the ability to commit to the new place. The findings also indicate that Israelis and Japanese tend to think of Home differently, and identify it in different terms. While Israelis in general tend to equate Home with personal and national identity—and ultimately in terms of belonging and loyalty, most Japanese are able to center themselves in the small home, the basis for their daily activities. The findings are anchored in the historical predicament and the distinct cultures of the two groups.