Diaspora as translation and decolonisation

This book proposes a new way of conceptualising diaspora by examining how diasporas do translation and decolonisation. It provides conceptual tools for investigating diasporas and their interventions and considers diaspora as ‘the global south in the global north’, as well as providing a case study of the Kurdish diaspora in Europe.

Demir Ipek :

Ipek Demir is Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of LeicesterIpek Demir is Professor of Diaspora Studies and the Director of the Centre for Ethnicity and Racism Studies (CERS), School of Sociology and Social Policy, University of Leeds

‘With a focus on the distinct but related concepts of translation and decolonisation, this book provides a novel approach to the study of diaspora. Here diaspora is understood as a transnational intervention producing spatial and temporal connections that critique nation-centric discourses and practices. Theoretically embedded, it is a rich empirical analysis of the Kurdish diaspora in Europe. An original contribution to the field of diaspora studies.’
Avtar Brah, Professor Emerita, Birkbeck College, University of London

'This book decisively shifts the focus from what diasporas are to what they do. While primarily focusing on the intriguing case of the Kurds, the author powerfully demonstrates how diasporas create new identities and shape the processes of decolonisation. In so doing, they transform a group’s consciousness and trajectory.'
Robin Cohen, Professor Emeritus of Development Studies, University of Oxford

'Ipek Demir's meticulously crafted Diaspora as translation and decolonisation reminds us that conceptualizations of diasporas should serve a corrective role to colonization, instead of producing intellectual spaces that benefit existing privilege in the Global North and Global South. [...] should be classified as essential reading for every graduate student and researcher with an interest in race and ethnicity, diaspora studies, and decolonization.'
Vera Eccarius-Kelly, Politics, Religion & Ideology (August 2022)