Essentialist identity defines tradition as authentic, timeless, unbroken origin-rootedness.

Evidence

It is, of course, a closed conception of “tribe,” diaspora, and homeland. To have a cultural identity in this sense is to be primordially in touch with an unchanging essential core, which is timeless, binding future and present to past in an unbroken line. This umbilical cord is what we call “tradition,” the test of which is its truth to its origins, its self-presence to itself, its “authenticity.” It is, of course, a myth—with all the real power that our governing myths carry to shape our imaginaries, influence our actions, give meaning to our lives, and make sense of our history. — Stuart Hall, Essential Essays, Volume 2, 827

Categorization

• DEFINE: Defines the essentialist/primordialist model of cultural identity against which Hall will offer diasporic identity as a critique — a core concept for the field.
• XREF: Directly anticipates and connects to the reader’s Scaffolding Theory vocabulary on the construction of the ‘Other’ and critique of origins-based identity claims.