Ancesstred: The Transmission of Inherited Indirect Enmity as a Cultural Code Across Generations

S. H. Askari

Abstract


In Pakistani collectivistic cultures like Saraiki, Pashtoon, Punjabi and Sindi etc. longstanding enmities take the shape of silent enmity without open confrontation among people who are not part of the conflict. This inherited and indirect form of enmity that underlies silence among people is termed as “Ancestred”. A form of hatred which transmits expressed through silence among people without direct acknowledgment of conflict. In order to describe this unique form of inherited indirect hostility which is expressed through silence and avoidance, the term “Ancestred” is coined by blending ‘Ancestral’ and ‘hatred’. Ancestred arises when hostility is transmitted across family and community lines; individuals avoid friends or kin of an adversary in order to demonstrate loyalty and uphold family honor, even without personal involvement. Drawing on Social Identity Theory (Tajfel & Turner, 1979) and Sociocultural theory (Vygotsky 1978) as a framework this qualitative study uses five case studies selected and autoethnographic Insight through purposive sampling from diverse Pakistani cultural groups to explore how silence, absence, and withdrawal become expressions of collective loyalty and the transmission of Ancestred. Five detailed cases and the sixth autoethnographic case include elopement, guilt by association murder disputes, broken friendships and marriage conflicts, illustrates how collective norms of honor and shame compel individuals and friends to enact emotional distance even without the part of conflict. The findings show that silence and avoidance are learned as social scripts that reinforce group boundaries in collectivistic honor-based cultures. This inherited indirect transmission of enmity extends the Social Identity theory which highlights that group identity can be preserved not only through open bias or conflict but also through subtle inherited behaviors in the form of silent estrangement among people. The study’s insights enrich our understanding of how identity and conflict are maintained through culture-specific practices of silence and exclusion through digital platforms.

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References


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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.31312/978-5-6053157-5-9-5-11

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