The Identity Dilemma of Arab Descendants in Indonesia

Abstract

This study discusses the identity dilemma and internal dynamics experienced by the Arab ethnic group in Indonesia. As part of the migrant community, they were often faced with identity duality, as the inheritors of Arab genes and cultures and as multicultural Indonesian citizens. Applying qualitative methods and historical approaches, the current study analyses academic sources paying attention to the turmoil of identity that caused identity dilemmas and internal dynamics. The results show that Arab descendants in Indonesia experienced identity dilemmas from the pre-independence era until the post-reform era. This dilemma impacted internal dynamics among them, which include nationalism, socio-culture and religion. The identity dilemma of Arab descendants in Indonesia will probably continue, and this calls for the right formula to balance the Arab identity and the Indonesian identity. Integration and assimilation are key for Arab descendants in Indonesia to overcome the identity dilemma and gain important positions in the socio-religious order of Indonesia.