The negation of one's ethnicity is often the result of the desire to be
assimilated into the mainstream of the society one is living in. However,
once one has been assimilated to a certain degree and has achieved a certain
standing in society, one can then afford to return to one's true ethnic
heritage. This explains why leaders of language and "cultural revival"
groups are often politicians or academics. The question, however, is
whether these leaders actually do articulate the true needs and desires of the
group they claim to represent, and also to what extent the average member
of the ethnic group can identify with them. To what extent, for example, will
the average working man accept the credibility of the person who advocates
that everyone should speak the minority language with their children and
that it should be taught in schools, when he himself speaks the dominant
language with his family as a result of the previous assimilation process?
Similarly, as Tholund (1980) asks, is the resurgence of ladies' native costumes
in NF really a sign of the awakening of the Frisian identity or rather an
excuse for politicians to show their "love" for the country and to have a couple of beautifully clad fair maidens to accompany them on festive occasions?
It is difficult to assess the true effect of such people and such
manifestations of "culture" in an ethnic group. On the one hand they tend
not to represent the true needs and desires of the average member of the
group, but on the other hand they do lend the language and culture more
prestige by their personal dedication to it.