Following recent events in Eastern Europe, questions surrounding European identity seem more pressing than ever.

This volume explores, through a series of ethnographic case studies, the construction and experience of identities in Western Europe.

All of the case studies are based on fieldwork, and in geographical scope range from Wales to the Basque country; from Corsica to the Lake District.

The peoples they look at are similarly diverse: nationalists and members of the Communist party; rural and urban populations.

The essays illustrate the ways in which detailed ethnographic case studies can illuminate how identities are lived by ordinary people.