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How ethnic is ethnic humor? Theorizing a relationship between ethnic humor and identity

  • Aleksandar Takovski

    Aleksandar Takovski is an Associate Professor at the Faculty of English at AAB College, Kosovo, where he teaches Linguistics, Modern Literature and Research Writing. His research interest spans across several areas including political discourse analysis, sociolinguistics, and humor studies with a focus on ethnic and political humor, and cross cultural understanding and interpretation of controversial and disparagement humor. He has published his work in few internationally renowned journals including HUMOR and European Journal of Humor Research.

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Published/Copyright: March 19, 2025
HUMOR
From the journal HUMOR Volume 38 Issue 2

Abstract

Ethnic humor uses a small number of universal stereotypes such as stupidity, laziness, etc., to ridicule a large number of ethnic groups, thereby setting boundaries between them and maintaining ethnic-based hierarchies in society (Hill 1995. Junk Spanish, covert racism, and the (leaky.) boundary between public and private spheres. Pragmatics 5(2). 197–212, Hill 1998. Language, race, and white public space. American Anthropologist 100(3). 680–689; Kuipers and Ent 2016. The seriousness of ethnic jokes: Ethnic humour and social change in The Netherlands, 1995–2012. Humour 29(4). 605–633). Ethnic humor, in this sense, is ethnic inasmuch as it targets different ethnic groups, but it does not address their ethnic identity because global scripts like stupidity and laziness are in no way related to or defining of ethnic groups and their identities. Based on this observation, the key objective of this study is to theorize and empirically evidence a relationship between ethnic humor and ethnic identity. To achieve this, the study will provide an overview of ethnic humor scholarship and its lack of focus on the relationship between ethnic humor and ethnic identity. It will critically re-examine the concept of global ethnic scripts, such as stupidity and laziness, countering these notions with evidence for the existence of different types of more local, ethnically distinctive scripts, such as those based on history, language, and customs. As evidence, it will present the results of a cross-cultural qualitative empirical study that offers insights into people’s perceptions of the ethnic character of humor.

Keywords: ethnic identity; ethnic humor; joke scripts; textual analysis; audience response; cross-cultural study
Corresponding author: Aleksandar Takovski, AAB College, Pristina, Kosovo, E-mail:

About the author

Aleksandar Takovski

Aleksandar Takovski is an Associate Professor at the Faculty of English at AAB College, Kosovo, where he teaches Linguistics, Modern Literature and Research Writing. His research interest spans across several areas including political discourse analysis, sociolinguistics, and humor studies with a focus on ethnic and political humor, and cross cultural understanding and interpretation of controversial and disparagement humor. He has published his work in few internationally renowned journals including HUMOR and European Journal of Humor Research.

Appendix 1: List of interview questions

  1. What defines you as / makes you feel Albanian / Macedonian? What practices, beliefs, attitudes underpin this feeling? What are you especially proud of? Is there anything that you are ashamed of?

  2. What are some positive stereotypes about your ethnic group (such as honesty, hardworking, hospitality, kindness, etc.? Do they apply to other ethnicities? How truthful are they?

  3. What are some negative stereotypes about your ethnic group? Do you think that your ethnic group can be stereotyped as stupid, dishonest, lazy, backward/uneducated, aggressive, nationalists? Which other negative stereotypes apply to your ethnic group?? Do they apply to other ethnicities?

  4. Do you know any jokes about Albanians/Macedonians? How are Albanians/ Macedonians represented in jokes? What do you think of those stereotypes?

  5. Now I will give you a list of 7/10 jokes, each one is missing the ethnic target. Each jokes is followed by multiple choices representing one possible target. Please choose which ethnic group fits best to be the joke target.

Appendix 2: Jokes for the Albanian focus group – English translation

  1. A pig farmer offered 1.000.000 euros to ______ American and German for the one who spends most time in the pigs’ house. The German goes in first, but only comes out half an hour later complaining that he can’t take the smell any longer. Then the American walks in and comes back dizzy complaining that it is unbearable inside. The _______ goes in, an hour passes by, two, three, five hours, and there come out all the pigs saying, “We can’t stay with this guy any longer!”

    a) Albanian b)Turk c) Roma d) Macedonian e) Serb

  2. If Tarzan and Jane were __________ what would have Chita been?

    The smartest of the three.

    a) Albanians b) Turks c) Roma d) Macedonians e) Serbs

  3. What is the difference between a ________________woman and a chicken?

    The chicken sits still on the eggs.

    a) Albanian b) Turk c) Roma d) Macedonian e) Serb

  4. American, German and ________________ visited their French friend. After showing the guests all significant sites in Paris, the French host took them to the Eifel tower. After explaining the history of the tower he asked his guests if they had any questions:

    1. How much did the production cost, asked the American.

    2. How many tons of iron were used, asked the German

    3. How much dynamite it takes to pull it down, asked the _________.

    a) Albanian b) Turk c) Roma d) Serb e) Arab

  5. What are ________________?

    The Serbs with the great the speaking the problem.

    a) Macedonians b) Albanians c) Serbs g) Bosnians e) Roma

  6. ___________ American and German were competing at a swearing contest.

    The German came first and cursed and swore for 30 min.

    The American went second, cursed for an hour and then stopped.

    While getting on the stage, the _________________ tripped on the stairs and started swearing the lumberjack who cut the tree, the carpenter who made the planks, the one who constructed the wooden stage and all involved in the stage making. After two hours he stops for a while and asks:

    “Where should I stand and start to swear?

    а) Albanian b) Turk c) Roma d) Macedonian e) Serb

  7. ____________ worked as a pilot. One day he receives a call from the control tower asking him:

    Please tell us your height (altitude) and position.

    I am 180 cm and I am in the pilot’s seat.

    a) Macedonian b) Albanian c) Roma d) Serb e) Bosnian

Appendix 3: Jokes for the Albanian focus group – original language version

  1. Kan qene _______Shqiptari__, amerikani dhe gjermani dhe ka qene nje pronar dhe i ka pytur se kush do te rrije ma shume me derrat do ju jap xxx leke. Hyn gjermani rrin gjys ore dhe del dhe thote ku rrihet me derra. Hyn amerikani rrin 1 ore dhe del dhe thote ku rrihet me derrat. Hyn shqiptari dhe rri rrin dhe dalin derrat ku rrihet thote me __________.

    a) Shqiptar b) Turk c) Rom d) Maqedonas e) Sërb

  2. Me pas kanë Tarzani dhe Gjejn shkie, qka kishke me kan Qitah (majmuni).

  3. Ma i menqmi prej te treve

    a) Shqiptar b) Turk c) Rom d) Maqedonas e) Sërb

  4. Cka asht dallimi mes _______ dhe pulës?

  5. Pula rrin rahat përmbi vezë.

    а) Shqiptares b) Turkes c) Romes d) Maqedonases e) Sërbes

  6. Amerikani, Gjermani dje ____________ shkojnë misafir tek françezi i cili i shëtit nëpër Pariz për t’ua pezentuar qytetin. Pika e fundit për ta vizituar ka qenë Kulla e Ajfelit. Nikoqiri ua ka spjeguar historinë e kullës dhe i ka pyetur se a kanë ndonjë pyetje:

  7. Sa ka kushtuar kulla?, ka pyetur amerikani.

  8. Sa ton hekur është përdorur për tu ndërtuar?, pyet gjermani

  9. Sa ton dinamit është e nevojshme për ta shkatëruar?, ka pyetur _____________.

    а) Shqiptar b) Turk c) Rom d) Maqedonas e) Sërb f) Arab

  10. Cilat janë ________________?

  11. Serbët me të madhe të folurin problemin.

    a) Maqedonas b) Shqiptar c) Serb d) Boshnjak e) Rom

  12. Ishin pase si zakonisht _____________, amerikani, gjermani judh po shan mas shumti, Aty kan gene me publik e me juri.

  13. Po hin gjermani po shan 30 min edhe spo din ma cka me thane.

  14. Po hin amerikani 1 ore po tani ma spo din as ky çka me thane.

  15. Tu hi ____________ ne prag te deres pengohet edhe ja nise tu e sha pragun e deres, ata qe e ka maru e ata qe e ka pre drunin ne mal, ata qe e ka pru e qeshtu ren njo 1 ore e 30 minuta, tani del aty para publikut edhe thot ku asht veni per mu ule me sha.

    а) Shqiptar b) Turk c) Rom d) Maqedonas e) Sërb

  16. ________ ka punuar si pilot dhe e thirrin nga kontrolli për trafik ajror dhe e pyesin:

  17. Ju lutemi na tregoni lartësinë dhe pozicionin?

  18. 1 metër e 80, i ulur jam.

    а) Shqiptar b) Turk c) Rom d) Maqedonas e) Sërb f) Boshnjak

Appendix 4: Jokes for the Macedonian focus group – English Tranlsation

  1. American, German and ________________ visited their French friend. After showing them all significant sites in Paris, the host took them to the Eifel tower. After explaining the history of the tower he asked his guests if they had any questions:

    1. How much did the production cost, asked the American.

    2. How many tons of iron were used, asked the German

    3. How much dynamite it takes to pull it down, asked the _________.

    a) Albanian b) Macedonian c) Roma d) Serb e) Arab

  2. ___________ American and German were competing at a swearing contest.

  3. The German came first and cursed and swore for 30 min.

  4. The American went second, cursed for an hour and then stopped.

  5. While getting on the stage, the _________________ tripped on the stairs and started swearing at the lumberjack who cut the tree, the carpenter who made the planks, the one who constructed the wooden stage and all involved in the stage making. After two hours he stops for a while and asks:

  6. “Where should I stand and start to swear?

    а) Albanian b) Bosnian c) Roma d) Macedonian e) Serb

  7. ____________ worked as a pilot. One day he receives a call from the control tower asking him:

  8. Please tell us your height (altitude) and position.

  9. I am 180 cm and I am in the pilot’s seat.

    a) Macedonian b) Albanian c) Roma d) Serb e) Bosnian

  10. A pig farmer offered 1.000.000 euros to ______ American and German for the one who spends most time in the pigs’ house. The German goes in first, but only comes out half an hour later complaining that he can’t take the smell any longer. Then the American walks in and comes back dizzy complaining that it is unbearable inside. The _______ goes in, an hour passes by, two, three, five hours, and there come out all the pigs saying “We can’t stay with this guy any longer!”

    a) Albanian b) Turk c) Roma d) Macedonian e

  11. The police has lined several crime suspects asking them to say “shovel” (in Macedonian “lopata”)

  12. _______________ asks, “why do we have to say “shovel”?

  13. Well, ___________________ would say “chovel” (ljopata) so we would know who did it.

  14. “My my, you are “chmart” (smart).

    a) Macedonian b) Albanian c) Roma d) Serb e) Bosnian

  15. ____________________ shouts to a Serbian police officer.

    1. In your father’s cunt!

    2. You mean my mother’s?

    3. His too.

    a) Macedonian b) Albanian c) Roma d) Serb e) Bosnian

  16. What is one ___________? – A commander

  17. What are two_____? A commander with his platoon.

  18. What are thre ________? A Commander, his platoon and a traitor.

    a) Albaninan(s) b) Bosnian(s) c) Roma d) Macedonian(s) e) Serb(s)

  19. Why the Bulgarian tsar king Simeon and _______________ president can understand each other well?

    1. They both speak broken Bulgarian

    a) Macedonian b) Serbian c) Albanian d) Bosnian e) Roma

  20. What are ________________?

  21. The Serbs with the great the speaking the problem.

    a) Macedonians b) Albanians c) Serbs g) Bosnians e) Roma

  22. In 1969 when the Americans landed on the Moon thousand _________ komitaji (end of XX revolutionaries) threw a glance at the Moon and sighed:

  23. “O Moon, you ________ land, one day we will set you free.” [2]

    a) Macedonian b) Albanian c) Serbian g) Bosnian e) Roma

Appendix 5: Jokes for the Macedonian focus group – original langauge version

  1. Амерканец, Германец и ____________ одат на гости кај Французинот кој ги носи на прошетка низ Париз за да им ги претстави знаменитостите. Последно место за посета била Ајфеловата кула. Домаќинот им ја објаснил историјата на кулата и ги прашал дали тие имаат некое прашање:

    1. Колку пари чинела кулата?, прашува Американецот.

    2. Коклку тони железо се употребени да се направи?, прашува Германецот.

    3. Колку тони динамит се потребни да се сруши?, прашал _____________.

    a) Македонецот б) Албанецот в) Ромот г) Србинот б) Босанецот / Арапот

  2. ___________, Aмериканец, и Германец јавно пред публика се натпреварувале кој најдолго може да пцуе.

  3. Излегол Германецот на бина, пцуел 30 минути и занемел.

  4. Излегол Американецот пцуел еден саат и заќутал.

  5. Качувајќи се на бината, __________________ се сопнал на скалите и почнал да го пцуе дрварот кој ги сечел дрвата, столарот што ги правел штиците, мајсторот кој ја правел бината, и така се по ред. После два саати пцуење, прашал и „А кај треба ја да седнам и почнам да пцујам?“

    a) Македонец б) Албанец в) Ром г) Србин б) Босанец

  6. ________ работел како пилот. Му се јавиле од контролната кула и го прашале:

    1. Ве молиме кажете ни која е вашата висина и позиција?

    2. Метар осумдесет, седам во пилотско седиште.

    a) Македонец б) Албанец в) Ром г) Србин б) Босанец

  7. Се натпреврувале ________, Американец и Германец кој најдолго ќе издржи да седи во свињарник. Влегува Германецот седи пола саат, излегува и се жали дека не може веќе да ја поднесе миризбата. Влегува Американецот седи саат време и си заминува поради истата причина. Влегува ________ и седи, седи, седи, седи….После пет саати излегуваат свињите и викаат „Кај се седи со овој!“

    a) Македонец б) Албанец в) Ром г) Србин б) Босанец

  8. Српска полиција врши инспекција барајќи осомничени. На секој од поредните му вели да каже „лопата“

  9. _____________ прашува „а зашто ме тераш да кажам лопата?“

  10. „Па _____________________ би рекол љопата, така ќе знаеме кој е кој.

  11. „Аааа што си ти љисиц.“

    a) Македонецот б) Албанецот в) Ромот г) Србинот д) Босанецот

  12. __________________ му довикува на српски полицаец:

    1. –Јебем ти отац у пичка

    2. –Мислиш мајку?

    3. –И њега.

    а) Македонец б) Албанец в) Ром г) Србин д) Босанец

  13. Што е еден ________ ? – Војвода.

  14. А двајца ___________? - Војводата со четата.

  15. А тројца? – Војвода, чета и предавник.

    а) Македонец б) Албанец в) Ром г) Србин д) Босанец

  16. Зошто бугарскиот цар Симеон и _______________председател можат така добро да се разберат?

  17. Зошто и двајцата зборат лош Бугарски.

    а) македонскиот б) албанскиот в) српскиот г) босанскиот

  18. Што се ________________?

  19. Србите со големата говорната маната.

    а) Македонците б) Албанците в) Србите г) Босанците

  20. Во 1969 година кога Американците стапнале на Месечината, илјада македонски војводи погледнале кон неа и рекле:

  21. „Ех месечино, земјо македонска, еден ден и тебе ќе те ослободиме.

    а) македонски/македонска б) албански / албанска в) српски / српска
    г) босански / босанска

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Received: 2023-09-22
Accepted: 2025-01-26
Published Online: 2025-03-19
Published in Print: 2025-05-26

© 2025 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Frontmatter
  2. Full Length Articles
  3. She’s everything: reactions to and perceptions of the Barbie (2023) movie as subversive and disparagement humor
  4. Humor as a bourgeois shibboleth? Humor and social boundaries in Schlaraffia associations, 1859–1939
  5. It’s all fun and games until…: unintentional (?) direct fire amid the playful humor of Miguel Mihura’s Codorniz
  6. Stylistic techniques to generate humor: an analysis of humorous instructive examples cited in the Gardens of Magic
  7. Disaffiliative humor in improvised musical interactions: an experimental study
  8. How ethnic is ethnic humor? Theorizing a relationship between ethnic humor and identity
  9. Book Reviews
  10. Nick Butler: The Trouble with Jokes: Humour and Offensiveness in Contemporary Culture and Politics
  11. Mary Beard: Laughter in Ancient Rome: on Joking, Tickling and Cracking Up
  12. Krista Bonello Rutter Giappone, Tomasz Z. Majkowski, and Jaroslav Švelch: Video Games and Comedy
  13. David Humphrey: The Time of Laughter: Comedy and the Media Cultures of Japan
https://doi.org/10.1515/humor-2024-0113
Keywords for this article
ethnic identity; ethnic humor; joke scripts; textual analysis; audience response; cross-cultural study

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Frontmatter
  2. Full Length Articles
  3. She’s everything: reactions to and perceptions of the Barbie (2023) movie as subversive and disparagement humor
  4. Humor as a bourgeois shibboleth? Humor and social boundaries in Schlaraffia associations, 1859–1939
  5. It’s all fun and games until…: unintentional (?) direct fire amid the playful humor of Miguel Mihura’s Codorniz
  6. Stylistic techniques to generate humor: an analysis of humorous instructive examples cited in the Gardens of Magic
  7. Disaffiliative humor in improvised musical interactions: an experimental study
  8. How ethnic is ethnic humor? Theorizing a relationship between ethnic humor and identity
  9. Book Reviews
  10. Nick Butler: The Trouble with Jokes: Humour and Offensiveness in Contemporary Culture and Politics
  11. Mary Beard: Laughter in Ancient Rome: on Joking, Tickling and Cracking Up
  12. Krista Bonello Rutter Giappone, Tomasz Z. Majkowski, and Jaroslav Švelch: Video Games and Comedy
  13. David Humphrey: The Time of Laughter: Comedy and the Media Cultures of Japan
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