Day 7: Nationalism
What is Nationalism?
Nationalism (राष्ट्रवाद) is the belief that the nation — a community of people sharing culture, language, history, and territory — is the fundamental unit of political organization, and that national interests should be the primary concern of governance.
Nationalism is not inherently left or right. It has been used by liberators (independence movements), dictators (Hitler, Mussolini), and democracies (national pride as civic glue).
Origins
Modern nationalism emerged from the French Revolution (1789), which proclaimed that sovereignty belongs to the nation (the people) rather than the king.
Key Historical Moments:
- French Revolution (1789) — sovereignty of the nation proclaimed
- Napoleonic Wars (1803–15) — Napoleon both spread and provoked nationalism across Europe
- Italian Unification (1861) — Garibaldi and Mazzini united Italy on national identity
- German Unification (1871) — Bismarck forged Germany
- Anti-colonial movements (1900s) — Indian independence, African liberation, Vietnamese resistance
Types of Nationalism
- Civic Nationalism — Based on shared political values, not ethnicity. Anyone who embraces the nation's laws and values is part of the nation.
- Ethnic Nationalism — Based on shared blood, ethnicity, language. You belong to the nation by birth.
- Anti-Colonial Nationalism — Nationalism as a tool for liberation against foreign rule.
- Economic Nationalism — Protecting national industry from foreign competition; self-sufficiency.
Nationalism in Nepal
Nationalism is perhaps the single most powerful political force in Nepal. Nepal was never colonized — a point of immense national pride. Nepali nationalism is built on:
- The Gurkha warrior tradition
- Mt. Everest (सगरमाथा) as a national symbol
- Prithvi Narayan Shah's unification of Nepal
- Being a buffer state between India and China The most charged nationalist issue is the relationship with India: the 2015 Indian blockade massively boosted Nepali nationalism, and the Kalapani-Lipulekh border dispute remains emotionally charged.
Nepal also has internal nationalisms: Madhesi identity, Newar identity, and various Janajati peoples asserting ethnic identity.
The Dark Side of Nationalism
Nationalism can unite, but it can also exclude minorities, justify aggression (Nazi Germany, Imperial Japan), suppress diversity, and create xenophobia. In Nepal, excessive hill-centric nationalism has historically marginalized Madhesis, Janajati peoples, and Dalits.
Daily Quiz
Q1: Which form of nationalism defines the nation primarily through shared citizenship and political institutions rather than heritage?
A) Ethnic Nationalism
B) Civic Nationalism ✓
C) Expansionist Nationalism
D) Integral Nationalism
Civic nationalism bases national identity on shared political principles and territory, where anyone who embraces the nation's laws can be a member.
Q2: Which theoretical approach posits that nations are natural, organic entities that have existed since time immemorial?
A) Modernism
B) Ethno-symbolism
C) Primordialism ✓
D) Liberal Nationalism
Primordialism views national and ethnic bonds as deeply rooted, ancient, and an inherent part of human nature.
Q3: What core characteristic distinguishes expansionist nationalism from liberal nationalism?
A) The pursuit of national self-determination
B) A belief in individual rights and constitutionalism
C) National chauvinism and the belief in superiority ✓
D) The preservation of shared cultural heritage
Expansionist nationalism is characterized by an exaggerated sense of superiority that justifies dominating other nations.
Q4: Ernst B. Haas suggests that supranational European identity is primarily the result of what mechanism?
A) Rational, instrumental cost-benefit calculations by citizens ✓
B) Implicit socialization through banal symbols
C) A shared primordial history common to all European ethnicities
D) The complete replacement of national identities by a single European culture
Haas argued that citizens shift loyalties to supranational levels when they perceive greater material benefits than the nation-state provides.
Q5: Which scenario best illustrates 'banal nationalism'?
A) A political leader advocating invasion based on historical myths
B) A citizen supporting a treaty to lower their personal tax rate
C) The subconscious reinforcement of identity through flags on daily postage stamps or currency ✓
D) A minority group engaging in a revolutionary movement
Banal nationalism refers to the everyday, often unnoticed symbols and rituals that establish the nation as a social fact in daily life.
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Day 7 of 77 in the Political Science series.
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