The word ethnic comes from the Greek ethnos, meaning "nation." An ethnic group is socially distinguished or set apart, by others and/or by itself, primarily on the basis of cultural or national characteristics. Ethnicity, then, is often thought of as an alternative to race and to the idea of inherent biological differences. At the same time, ethnocentrism refers to a hierarchical classification of ethnic groups into "superior" and "inferior" positions. Because this concept is so similar to racism, there is a great deal of slippage or confusion between the two, both in academic writing and in everyday, popular or colloquial usage.

In Beyond Borders: See Stuart Hall's "Ethnicity: Identity and Difference" and Tara Masih's "Exotic, or What Beach do You Hang Out On?"

In Beyond Borders Online: See Web Research Activities, "Identity in Cyberspace" and "Virtual Tourism."

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