Religion and Identity in Appalachia and Carpathia

Abstract

This paper will examine the creation of an Appalachian blend of religious elements. It will then look at the attempt to replace it by bourgeois, mainstream Protestant Home missionaries, who followed behind the colonial-like capitalists and additionally contributed to the creation of the “hillbilly” stereotype in the late 19th/early 20th century. This pattern was replicated overseas during the coeval “age of imperialism.” Even though traditional churches persist, today the “outside” denominations dominate the religious landscape.