| Migration of populations involves not merely physical transplantation but often a movement from one framework of knowledge to another. The decision to migrate is often based on the recognition of imminent threats at the present location or better opportunities elsewhere. Hence, migrants do not leave their countries with blank slates nor do they flow in certain directions without some knowledge to guide their journeys. In this thesis, the preeminence of knowledge in facilitating migratory transitions is investigated through multiple methods (census data, document analysis, interviews and a survey). The qualitative and quantitative methods used allow a concurrent examination of the roles of indigenous and western knowledge in the migratory experience of Ethiopian immigrants to Toronto.;The findings that emerged from the study discern that these two knowledge systems interact both in consensual and confrontational styles---the dual styles further integrative knowledge acquisition in different fashions. (1) While indigenous knowledge stabilizes immigrants' psychological states, Western knowledge facilitates life-sustaining material acquisition. In other words, while indigenous knowledge serves to explain emotional salience, Western knowledge serves to explain epistemic salience in the lives of immigrants. (2) Knowledge age integration is a personal and processional. Immigrants' pace of integration is dependent on their capacities to perform in various domains, such as employment, housing and education. The study shows that the concurrent utilization of indigenous and host knowledge systems facilitates integration. This research approaches both systems of knowledge as a fluid mixture of experiences, values, contextual information and insights. They both provide a framework for evaluating and incorporating new experiences. Both indigenous and host society knowledge is embedded not only in documents but also in social routines, processes, practices and norms, guiding migrants throughout the phases of migration. |
