Doctor of Philosophy / This work draws on the insights of an anthropology of transnationalism to explore an emergent field of translocal connections, practices and identifications between reformed Vietnam and the post-1975 Vietnamese diaspora in the West. In the post Cold War period, it is argued, we have witnessed a collapse of the geopolitics of exile that once divided diaspora and homeland. In this context, it is not appropriate for Vietnamese migration studies to speak of "two" discrete national and diasporic Vietnamese communities. Rather, the discipline is required to come to terms (theoretically and empirically) with a complex and contradictory field of transnational social relationships through which diaspora and homeland are co-constituted. The thesis charts this field via the study of phenomena such as: the explosion of mobility between Vietnam and diaspora· the emergence of a transnational Vietnamese language commercial music culture; the constitution of translocal Vietnamese urban spaces in the host nations; the enabling of symbolic and market citizenship in a Vietnamese "transnation"; and the flow of overseas Vietnamese "grey" and "green" matter (cultural and material capital) back into Vietnam. Exile and fleturn shows how the state in Vietnam, and elites in the diaspora, have responded to the advent of transnational flows between homeland and diasporic sites by authoring both traditional, border-enforcing and novel, borderexpanding strategies of imagining and governing the "national" community. It argues that overseas Vietnamese have made sense of their own transits to and engagements with Vietnam through a logic of' transnational exilic space" that variously resists and accommodates the claims of capital, the state and diasporic belonging.

Doctor of Philosophy / This work draws on the insights of an anthropology of transnationalism to explore an emergent field of translocal connections, practices and identifications between reformed Vietnam and the post-1975 Vietnamese diaspora in the West. In the post Cold War period, it is argued, we have witnessed a collapse of the geopolitics of exile that once divided diaspora and homeland. In this context, it is not appropriate for Vietnamese migration studies to speak of "two" discrete national and diasporic Vietnamese communities. Rather, the discipline is required to come to terms (theoretically and empirically) with a complex and contradictory field of transnational social relationships through which diaspora and homeland are co-constituted. The thesis charts this field via the study of phenomena such as: the explosion of mobility between Vietnam and diaspora· the emergence of a transnational Vietnamese language commercial music culture; the constitution of translocal Vietnamese urban spaces in the host nations; the enabling of symbolic and market citizenship in a Vietnamese "transnation"; and the flow of overseas Vietnamese "grey" and "green" matter (cultural and material capital) back into Vietnam. Exile and fleturn shows how the state in Vietnam, and elites in the diaspora, have responded to the advent of transnational flows between homeland and diasporic sites by authoring both traditional, border-enforcing and novel, borderexpanding strategies of imagining and governing the "national" community. It argues that overseas Vietnamese have made sense of their own transits to and engagements with Vietnam through a logic of' transnational exilic space" that variously resists and accommodates the claims of capital, the state and diasporic belonging.

This thesis explores swedes and the Swedish community in Paris as a diaspora and not simply as forming a temporary, touristic and fragmented stance. The case is set within the specific locality of Paris and considers the historic relationship between the two countries. This, alongside Frances’ policies towards immigration constitutes the context of the Swedish diaspora in Paris. Furthermore, the studied diaspora is viewed partly in relation to other diasporas in France, such as the African, the Kurdish, the Chinese and the Scottish – all facing different conditions as a diasporic group.  The material for this study was assembled through qualitative interviews and analysed with a qualitative content analysis approach. Furthermore, it was analysed in the light of diasporic and transnationalism theories. Through the analyses we see how swedes in Paris fulfil many of the criteria of a diasporic group which is featured in the theoretic literature. They have a dispersion, voluntary and touristic in its form with a focus on the new locality, a homeland orientation where the homeland serves as a present source for values and identity, and boundary-maintenance through a wide range of institutions and social connections. The members of the Swedish diaspora live transnational lives: present in, affected as well as being affected by, both Sweden and France simultaneously. Hence obtaining a form of transborder citizenship, although lacking a political focus. The analysis and discussion paint a picture of a privileged state bound diaspora without a political struggle. They enjoy a high rate of mobility and their ethnic heritage is viewed as an asset – hence no discrimination in the new homeland. The privilege entails the freedom characteristic of that of a nomadic diaspora. However, this nomadic state result in a certain degree of ambivalence and a sense of up rootedness, alongside the positive effects of being at home in two places at the same time. With its extensive mobility and flexibility, which sets it apart from other diasporas, the Swedish population in Paris form a different kind of nomadic and privileged diasporic unit.

Minorité ethno-religieuse originaire du Nord-Ouest de l’Inde, les sikhs ont une longue histoire migratoire qui prend naissance pendant la colonisation britannique. Cette thèse s’intéresse à la manière dont les sikhs de la diaspora, et particulièrement ceux de Grande-Bretagne, ont contribué de manière décisive à définir les contours de l’identité sikhe contemporaine.Pour ce faire, nous nous intéressons à la genèse coloniale du discours identitaire dominant, développé par l’élite sikhe réformiste dans la deuxième moitié du 19e siècle, qui repose sur l’élaboration de frontières socio-culturelles rigides séparant les sikhs des non-sikhs et sur la création d’une communauté unie et distincte, dotée d’un univers symbolique autonome, de rites propres et d’une histoire particulière. Cette notion normative d’une communauté sikhe monolithique s'est trouvée consolidée en Grande-Bretagne sous l'effet des politiques publiques et de décennies de mobilisations communautaires pour le turban. La politique sikhe de reconnaissance repose sur l’idée d'exceptionnalisme des sikhs, de leur contribution importante à la société britannique et d’une relation historique privilégiée avec les anciens colonisateurs. Cependant, l’étude de la pluralité des appartenances socio-religieuses – en particulier sectaires et de caste - révèle la diversité des manières d’être sikh en diaspora et bat en brèche les prétentions du leadership à parler au nom de « la » communauté sikhe. / As an ethno-religious minority originating from the North-West of India, the Sikhs have a long migration history, starting during the colonial period. This dissertation focuses on how the Sikh diaspora, particularly British Sikhs, have decisively shaped contemporary Sikh identity narratives.Sikh dominant identity narrative was shaped in a dialogic relation between the colonizers and Sikh intellectual elite in the 19th century and it relied on rigid boundaries between Sikhs and non-Sikhs. Sikh reformists strived to create a unified and distinct community, with its own rituals, symbols and collective memory. This normative definition of a homogeneous community has been strengthened in post-colonial Britain, under the influence of public policies towards immigrant minorities and of Sikh politics of recognition. The latter draws on the idea that Sikhs represent a model minority, entertaining a priviliged relationship with the British.However, the diversity of socio-religious practices and belonging observed during fieldwork highlights that, despite Sikh leadership claims to represent a homogenous community, there remains a plurality of ways to be a diasporic Sikh.