awareness and experience of one’s belonging to a certain ethnic group, including knowledge, feelings and behavioral manifestations, reflecting identity with this group and difference from others. It includes a cognitive component (knowledge and ideas about one’s own ethnic group), an affective component (emotional attitude and the significance of membership in a group) and a behavioral component (manifestations of ethnicity in behavior and interaction). Ethnic identity forms a stable part of the personality, contributes to the development of a positive self-concept and serves as internal protection in difficult social conditions.