Assimilation meaning：Assimilation | Definition

assimilation, in anthropology[1] and sociology[2], the process whereby individuals or groups of differing ethnic heritage are absorbed into the dominant culture[3] of a society. The process of assimilating[4] involves taking on the traits of the dominant culture[5] to such a degree that the assimilating group becomes socially indistinguishable from other members of the society. As such, assimilation is the most extreme form of acculturation[6]. Although assimilation may be compelled through force or undertaken voluntarily, it is rare for a minority group[7] to replace its previous cultural practices completely; religion, food preferences, proxemics (e.g., the physical distance between people in a given social situation), and aesthetics[8] are among the characteristics that tend to be most resistant to change. Assimilation does not denote “racial” or biological fusion, though such fusion may occur.

Attempts to compel minority gro...