Immigration and ethnic identity in Canada after the Second World War : a comparative study of German newcomers to Northern and Southern Ontario

Abstract

This project specifically compares the German newcomer experience in northern and southern Ontario and utilizes oral interviews from oral history projects carried out in the Sault Ste. Marie, Sudbury, Timmins, Greater Toronto Area (GTA), and Kitchener-Waterloo regions. This project reveals how German newcomers to Ontario developed new ethnic identities as integrated, hyphenated-Canadians. This study also identifies the most influential factors in ethnic identity creation, such as cultural retention and inter-ethnic relations. Although this project is a comparative piece, the results display a similar acculturation experience among southern and northern Ontario German newcomers. Moreover, despite Nazi atrocities during and lingering stereotypes after the Second World War, German newcomers in both northern and southern Ontario were widely accepted by their communities and were able to thrive just as the Canadian government expected them to.