The Wall_Spring 2023_Issue 9

Artwork: Maddy Hall, LVI

When British culture is mentioned, the first things that spring to mind are tea, fish and chips and an appreciation of queuing. However, the idea of being ‘British’ is not a monolithic identity. It encompasses individuals from other national backgrounds and enhances the diversity of Britain. Duru Kulac (she/her), LVI, explores explores how our understanding of what British culture is, is always growing. Culture can be defined as the collective beliefs, customs and social behaviour of a particular group of people or society.We may be connected through our ability to speak the same language, living in the same area or even adopting similar beliefs. But to what extent do we share a single, British culture? A benefit of British culture is that it is not homogenous: we are not all from the same background and traditions.The individual differences between the four Home Nations make us distinctive from other countries. Our diversity is what strengthens us as a community. Indeed, the cross-culturalism of the United Kingdom suggests the difficulty of arriving at a true definition of British culture, because a ‘British’ identity does not solely rely on one’s place of birth or nationality.

Our culture stems from our polite and respectful customs. Mutual respect and tolerance of those with different backgrounds and faiths are values that are significant to our culture. We are closely associated with humour, traditions and good manners.These characteristics are influenced by our education from a young age, and our tolerance is a trait that should be admired globally. a part of our culture thanks to the immigration of people from India, Pa kistan and Bangladesh.The dish is not inherently British, and this introduces the question of whether British culture is better expressed as a combination of many different cultures. Multiculturalism is the presence of several distinct cultural groups within a society.Without the existence of variation of backgrounds, we will become narrow-minded as a society and unaware of the beauty behind heritage. Instead, we should celebrate our national diversity and encourage individual freedom of expression, uniting through our appreciation of various cultures. In this way, we will reconceptualise our understanding of culture. Our national dish is, unsurprisingly, curry.This is a dish that is

As someone who possesses a dual citizenship, both Turkish and British, I have had the privilege to live in two different countries with two contrasting cultures. Culture is the backbone of our history: it represents those who came before us, those who were courageous enough to create change and form traditions. Personally, my culture forms a substantial part of me; it comprises my passion for how the arts and literature can bring people together and my generous hospitality towards others. The history behind the British Empire explains the United Kingdom’s multiculturalism. Many British people went to live and work in colonies and many colonial subjects resettled in Britain. Even today, former territories have strong ties to Britian and people continue to migrate. Interestingly, the 2011 census revealed that the overall percentage of British people who identify asWhite and Christian is declining.Another study shows that over 300 languages are spoken in the UK. Our comprehension of British Culture is still evolving in this moment, meaning there are so many traditions that currently we may be unaware about, but we are waiting to explore.

14