title: Contextualizing the immigrant experience: the role of food and foodways in identity maintenance and formation for first- and second-generation Latinos in Ithaca, New York.
abstract: This study examines the role of food and foodways in identity maintenance and formation for Latino individuals in Ithaca, New York. Preliminary results indicate that food provides a physical link that connects individuals to their heritage culture and local communities. Despite variability in the importance that immigrants attribute to food, it remains one of the most resilient tools that informants identified as central to identity formation and maintenance. Food can therefore be a useful tool for examining the degree to which immigrants are maintaining their cultural identity and connectedness with their community.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Food Science , Cornell University , Ithaca , New York , USA.
authors.forename: Daniel L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Weller
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Turkon
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003469:Culture; D004032:Diet; D054242:Emigrants and Immigrants; D004641:Emigration and Immigration; D005191:Family Characteristics; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D006630:Hispanic or Latino; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009518:New York; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D012933:Social Identification; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Latino; food; identity formation; identity maintenance; immigrant