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History and Theories of

Nationalism

By Rob Kevlihan
Presented at Billim Summer School on Nationalism and Teaching History, Almaty,
Kazakhstan, July 2007
Participative Exercise
What just happened in sociological terms?

What relevance does this exercise have to


discussions on identity and nationalism?

Is it a useful tool?
Analysis: Participative Exercise
What just happened?
Category formation (Charles Tilly, Durable
Inequality)
Ascribed status versus achieved characteristics
Analysis: Participative Exercise
Is it relevant?
Simplistic: Identities as social arrangements reinforced
by socially constructed and continuously re-negotiated
stories – located not inside human bodies but in ties
amongst persons (Tilly, Stories, Identities and Political
Change)
The role of power in defining which characteristics are
salient for the purposes of category formation (c.f. The
political salience of difference: Why Chewas and
Tumbukas are Allies in Zambia and Adversaries in
Malawi (Posner, APSR, 2004, 98, 4, pp529-545)
Is it useful????
Defining Nationalism
Negative connotations of nationalism
Relationship between a community and the
state
That community often (but not always)
compromises a particular ethnic group
Politicization of identity
“Nation-state”
Theories of Nationalism
Primordialism
A people have always existed in a particular place and
after many years of struggle have established / will
establish an independent state
Largely viewed as a „straw man‟ in the literature but it
can reflect popular views of the state, particularly if
promulgated through the educational system, official
media etc.
Can be contrasted with theories that argue that
nationalism is a purely modern phenomenon
Theories of Nationalism
Nationalism and industrialization / modernization
Industrial revolution in western Europe in 19th century
led to mass urbanization and new forms of associational
life (Tönnies: Gemeinschaft und Gesellschaft)
Also led to a massive expansion of state capacity and
penetration of society – e.g. through educational system
(Gellner, Hobsbawn)
While the scale of associative activity within states also
increased through communicative action (Deutsch)
The Invention of Tradition (Hobsbawn & Ranger)
Theories of Nationalism
Imagined Communities (Anderson)
Also a function of modernity, but origins earlier – from
invention of the printing press
Nationalism developed in different ways in different
places (linguistic, official and creole nationalisms)
Creole the first form in the Americas; official and
linguistic first arose in Europe
Largely a socially constructed and modern phenomenon
– „imagined communities‟
Theories of Nationalism
Ethno Symbolism (Smith)
Middle road – idea of ethnie
Recognizes the importance of modern
processes but
Symbols and artifacts of an ethnic group are
important – content matters
Element of continuity but not primordialist
Theories of Nationalism
Territorial-Civic (Individualistic) versus
Ethno-cultural nationalism (Shared cultural
characteristics) (Hans Kohn)
Variations of civic nationalism
Unitary – USA: E pluribus unum
- France: Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité
Consociational (Lijphart) – France, Belgium,
Northern Ireland
Critiques of Nationalist Canon
Danger of any dominant meta narrative
Gender based critique
Relational Analysis
Nationalism as a form of contentious
politics
Cosmopolitanism
Critiques of Nationalist Canon

Dangers of any meta-narrative – the


subaltern critique (Chatterjee) „Fragments
of nationalism‟ – multiple stories and
imaginings instead of one all powerful
hegemonic nationalism in any given locale
Critiques of Nationalist canon

Gender based critique (Enloe)


Inherently genderized and indeed, male, origins
and influences on nationalism;
but (Yuval-Davis) the role of women in passing
on values between generations and use of
womanhood to support nationalist discourse.
Critiques of Nationalist Canon

Relational analysis at the inter-state level


Brubaker – triangle between governing state,
alternative nationalism of minority within that
state and nationalism of neighboring state that
has affinity with the minority
Typology: Minority, homeland and
nationalizing nationalisms
Critiques of Nationalist Canon
Nationalism as a form of contentious
politics
Nationalism as an outcome – one not always
intended at the outset
Importance of political mobilization (Mc
Adam, Tarrow and Tilly, Dynamics of
Contention), including Opportunity Spirals,
Identity Shift, Competition and Brokerage)
History and Nationalism
Historical hagiography
How history is written and taught – dominance
of primordialism?
Historians as organic intellectuals of the state?
All narratives are informed by theory –
either implicitly or explicitly
e.g. Marxist stages of development
History and Nationalism
Method
Value / Fact distinction (Weber)
The importance of inconvenient facts (Weber)
Self awareness
Subject
Nationalism as outcome of contentious politics (e.g.
Tarrow, Tilly and McAdam)
Nationalism as long term socio-political process
Nationalism as false conciousness?
History and Nationalism
Distinctive Strengths of Historians
The importance of empirics
Making sense out of sometimes chaotic
situations
Identifying weaknesses in (western derived)
theory
Relevance to Central Asia
Modern origins of state boundaries as a result of
Soviet nationality policies
Dominance of titular nationalities in each of the
states but presence of other ethnic groups
State building policies of new states – language
policies, state symbolism, nationality requirements
and continued use of ethnic markers (e.g. ID
cards)
Relevance to Central Asia
Massimo d‟Azeglio “We have made Italy;
now it is time to make Italians”
Role of historical hagiography in state
formation and legitimation
Historical revisionism
Social movements of a nationalist character
The dangers of meta narratives – squeezing out
the possibility of pluralistic states?

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