Boundary making and the reproduction of otherness among different generations of Turkish-origin residents in the Netherlands

Abstract

This article explores how Turkish immigrants in the Netherlands experience and reproduce othering and boundary-making. Drawing on Bourdieu’s concepts of habitus, capital, and field, it conceptualizes othering as both vertical (majority–minority) and horizontal (minority–minority). Based on ethnographic research conducted in Utrecht’s Kanaleneiland, including 29 interviews and 60 hours of observation, the study identifies clear generational differences. While the first generation emphasizes religion, the second relies on cultural and nationalist distinctions, and the third mobilizes meritocratic ideas of deservingness. Overall, Turkish immigrants’ othering practices appear as reactive and strategic efforts to maintain a middle-tier position within Dutch society. The findings underline that integration is a multidimensional process shaped not only by majority–minority relations but also by boundary-making and hierarchies among minority groups themselves, highlighting the importance of addressing intra-minority dynamics in integration policies. © 2026 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.