Ethnicity of Second-generation Japanese Indonesians in North Sumatra

Abstract

The author has examined the ethnicity¹ formation process of Japanese Indonesians in North Sumatra from various perspectives to determine their type of individuals. The diverse points of view are as follows: their common historical perspective as Japanese Indonesians, friendships between Japanese Indonesians from the time of the Issei² to the present, the influence of Japanese culture in each family, their involvement with the Medan branch of the Yayasan Warga Persahabatan³, and the impact of working and living in Japan, among others. In the study of ethnicity among Japanese Indonesians, three factors are especially significant: blood ties, a sense of being the descendants of residual Japanese soldiers, and the Japanese influence from the Issei within the family. This paper is a compilation of the author’s research findings to date, with the addition of Nisei narratives to illustrate aspects of the Japanese Indonesians’ personality type.