From Hierarchy to Ethnicity: The Institutional Origins of Ranked Identities

Scholars of ethnic politics have posited that in some societies ascriptive identities are ranked relative to each other, but the origins of ranking are poorly understood. This paper develops a theory of ranked identities, and of why the elites of subaltern groups sometimes choose to invest in improving their status within the value systems of dominant groups, rather than in creating their own. This choice is conditioned by the fact that ranked identities are advantageous within informal patronage networks, while unranked identities are advantageous in winning elections. These theories receive some support from a panel dataset of political mobilization efforts by colonial Indian caste groups. Landed groups with few government employees tend to emphasize the ranked aspects of caste identity, while large groups in areas with elected local institutions emphasize other aspects of intergroup difference. These findings demonstrate the historical contingency of the modern concept of the ethnic group.