For the last two centuries, nationalism has been a central feature
of society and politics. Few ideologies can match its power and
resonance, and no other political movement and symbolic language
has such worldwide appeal and resilience. But nationalism is also a
form of public culture and political religion, which draws on much
older cultural and symbolic forms.
Seeking to do justice to these different facets of nationalism,
the second edition of this popular and respected overview has been
revised and updated with contemporary developments and the latest
scholarly work. It aims to provide a concise and accessible
introduction to the core concepts and varieties of nationalist
ideology; a clear analysis of the major competing paradigms and
theories of nations and nationalism; a critical account of the
often opposed histories and periodization of the nation and
nationalism; and an assessment of the prospects of nationalism and
its continued global power and persistence.
Broad and comparative in scope, the book is strongly
interdisciplinary, drawing on ideas and insights from history,
political science, sociology and anthropology. The focus is
theoretical, but it also includes a fresh examination of some of
the main historical and contemporary empirical contributions to the
literature on the subject. It will continue to be an invaluable
resource for students of nationalism across the social
sciences.
Table of Content
Preface vii
Introduction 1
1 Concepts 5
The Meanings of Nationalism 5
Definitions 9
2 Ideologies 24
Fundamental Ideals 27
Core Concepts 31
Nationalism as Culture and Religion 36
Voluntarism and Organicism 39
‘Ethnic’ and ‘Civic’ Nationalisms 42
3 Paradigms 47
Modernism 49
Perennialism 53
Primordialism 55
Ethno-symbolism 60
Conclusion 63
4 Theories 66
Ideology and Industrialism 66
Reason and Emotion 72
Politics and Culture 77
Elites and Everyday Nationalism 82
Construction and Reinterpretation 85
Conclusion 93
5 Histories 95
‘Great Nations’, Small Ethnies 96
Nations Before Nationalism 100
Nations in Antiquity? 110
Nations in History: An Alternative View 115
Conclusion 125
6 Prospects 129
Proliferating Nationalism 129
The Demise of the Nation-state? 132
Hybrid Identities? 136
The Dissolution of Nationalism? 139
The Consumer Society 141
Global Culture? 143
Internationalizing Nationalism 146
Uneven Ethno-histories 150
Sacred Foundations 153
Conclusion 157
Notes 159
Appendix 172
References 177
Index 197
About the author
Anthony D. Smith is Emeritus Professor of Nationalism and Ethnicity at the London School of Economics.
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