ethnicity

[ eth-nis-i-tee ]

noun

, plural eth·nic·i·ties.

1. an ethnic group; a social group that shares a common and distinctive culture, religion, language, or the like:

   Representatives of several ethnicities were present.

2. ethnic traits, background, allegiance, or association:

   The graph shows class enrollment by gender and ethnicity.

ethnicity

1. Identity with or membership in a particular racial, national, or cultural group and observance of that group's customs, beliefs, and language.

Usage Note

race ²

Notes

Many minority groups in the United States maintain strong ethnic identity; especially in cities, immigrants are often attracted to ethnic communities established by people from their own country, communities in which many traditional cultural features are maintained. ( See melting pot .)

Word History and Origins

Origin of ethnicity¹

First recorded in 1765–75, for earlier sense; ethnic + -ity

Example Sentences

Racial disparities also increased or decreased depending on how dark it was outside, which the report suggested could be because some people were stopped more often when officers could more easily perceive their race or ethnicity.

From Voice of San Diego

The other issue is the lack of a uniform way to count race and ethnicity.

From Voice of San Diego

Teachers had already made predictions of their students’ exam scores, but previous studies had shown that these could be biased on the basis of age, gender, and ethnicity.

From MIT Technology Review

This data is largely incomplete, though, because the majority of occupants – 736 – did not report their ethnicity.

From Voice of San Diego

The panel should not base its decisions on ethnicity or race—but it also cannot ignore the influence those factors will have on demand.

From Fortune

Muslim refers to religion while Arab is an ethnicity and in fact more than 60 percent of Arab Americans are Christians.

From The Daily Beast

The Southerners had history, ethnicity, culture, slavery, religion, and a quasi-aristocratic honor society to hold them together.

From The Daily Beast

Everyone is a target at any moment despite his ethnicity or belief.

From The Daily Beast

Working as a busboy in Miami during the 1980s, Rameau often faced racism due to his ethnicity.

From The Daily Beast

When will the FBI finally stop using religion and ethnicity as a reason to investigate Americans?

From The Daily Beast