Becoming Autochthonous as a "Non-Native French" Person

This article forms part of a study on the different ways in which populations construct autochthony. Based on an ethnographic study carried out between 2009 and 2013 in a village in the Berry region, the author highlights an unusual situation of autochthony construction. In this context, Portuguese people who settled in the region in the 1960s, long-established families from the village, and more recently settled residents all interact socially. The author thus demonstrates how, through their commitment to their locale, in different ways, all of these protagonists assert the legitimacy of their presence in the village, and their feeling of belonging.