third culture kid
Between-worlds child
A third culture kid is someone raised in a culture different from their parents' home culture, typically children of diplomats, military personnel, missionaries, or international business families.
The "third culture" is neither the parents' origin nor the host country, but a hybrid identity formed from navigating both: As a third culture kid, she never knew how to answer "Where are you from?"
Of two cultural backgrounds
- rootlessnessState of having no anchor
- belongingState of fitting in
- identity crisisLoss of personal certainty
- uprootedRemoved from foundation
alienation · hyphenated identity · homeland · home · nationality · self-concept · heritage · diaspora
Permanent change of residence
- transienceBrevity of existence
- expatriateOne living abroad permanently
- expatCitizen living abroad
- emigrantPerson resettling in another nation
overseas · repatriate · moving · international school · military brat · foreign service · posting · assignment
Capacity to recover quickly
- flexibilityAbility to adapt easily
- assimilationAbsorbing into a whole
- integrationCombining into a whole
- adjustmentAlteration to improve fit
acclimatization · code-switching · fitting in · blending in · chameleon · shape-shifting · survival skills · quick learner
- international communityNations considered collectively
- shared experienceEvent undergone by multiple people
- tribeSocial group sharing ancestry
- understandingMental comprehension of something
validation · global nomad · reentry · grief · loss
Of two cultural backgrounds
- interculturalBetween different cultures
- transnationalCrossing country lines
- polyglotOne knowing many languages
- multilingualKnowing multiple languages
worldview · global perspective · cosmopolitan · border crossing
bicultural
Of two cultural backgrounds
- rootlessnessState of having no anchor
- belongingState of fitting in
- identity crisisLoss of personal certainty
uprooted · alienation · hyphenated identity · homeland · home · nationality · self-concept · heritage · diaspora · ethnicity
relocation
Permanent change of residence
- transienceBrevity of existence
- expatriateOne living abroad permanently
- expatCitizen living abroad
emigrant · overseas · repatriate · moving · international school · military brat · foreign service · posting · assignment · packing
resilience
Capacity to recover quickly
- flexibilityAbility to adapt easily
- assimilationAbsorbing into a whole
- integrationCombining into a whole
adjustment · acclimatization · code-switching · fitting in · blending in · chameleon · shape-shifting · survival skills · quick learner · reinvention
expat bubble
- international communityNations considered collectively
- shared experienceEvent undergone by multiple people
- tribeSocial group sharing ancestry
understanding · validation · global nomad · reentry · grief · loss
bicultural
Of two cultural backgrounds
- interculturalBetween different cultures
- transnationalCrossing country lines
- polyglotOne knowing many languages
multilingual · worldview · global perspective · cosmopolitan · border crossing
- global experiencesstudy abroad, exchange student, travel abroad, volunteer abroad, exchange program
- emigrationemigrant, emigration, economic migrants, emigre, political refugees
- expatexpat, expat community, expat bubble, relocation, overseas posting
- Hyphenated IdentitiesAfrican-American, Mexican-American, Irish-American, Italian-American, Chinese-American
- multilingualspolyglot, bilingual, trilingual, quadrilingual, fluent speaker
- worldlyworldly, cosmopolitan, globe-trotter, globetrotter, world traveler
third culture kidhomegrown
Raised on one's property
native son · native daughter · local · provincial · parochial
third culture kidlocal
Of this area
homebody · native son · native daughter · townie · deeply rooted
third, thirds, thirdly, culture, cultures, cultural, culturally, cultured, culturing