What are the three things that most strongly define your identity?

[Maciamo]

I posted a thread on how Europeans viewed themselves and how much they identified with things such as one's family, gender, age group, nationality, region, level of education, occupation, sexual orientation, ethnicity, political orientation, or religion.

If you had to choose three things to define yourself in an international context, what would you choose? That can be any of the categories listed above or anything else you can think of. Personally I would add social class rather than occupation or level of education, as social class is more stable over time than a job and includes one's upbringing and values, not just academic diplomas.

 

[Jovialis]

We have two out of three that are the same choice, I see.

Personality, and personal interests.

I would have chosen social class too, it was a toss up between ethnicity/ancestry and social class.

I guess I went with my choice, since it is more relevant to the personality I project on the forum. The personality of "Jovialis", rather than my true self, perhaps?

I do find social class to be extremely important, and more important in everyday life operating in society, than ethnicity/ancestry in the majority situations.

Class, access to resources and luxuries have profound affects on a child's development. I am happy that my child has a more privileged lifestyle and access to better education than me. As well as a more modernized rearing, that is less punitive, and more nurturing. I don't fault my parents, but like them, I had a very medieval-style of childhood in terms of discipline.

 

[Maciamo]

To tell the truth, after I made the poll I also hesitated to choose ancestry/ethnicity. But I guess that living in my ancestral country it matters less in defining myself than it would have in a more multi-ethnic society like the US. I would have chosen it had I decided to choose four elements from the list.