by Sonia-Doris Andras

Created on: November 22, 2011

Nation and its composites imply the existence of a population on a given territory sharing the same language, culture, religion, ideals (as much as possible). Therefore, the nation is the community itself, national is what pertains to the community and nationalism is the theory behind the whole concept. This group of terms is usually connected with such ideas as ethnicity and patriotism. Unlike a nation that refers to a general common cultural heritage, ethnic is a much more specialized term, designating a – local – community sharing not only the same language, but the same genetic traits, in other words, the same blood. Patriotism is closely connected to nationalism, but their relationship is blurry: even though none is an actual ideology, both refer to an ardent love of one’s nation. The difference might lie in the usage of the two terms: patriotism (and its root, patriot) is usually used in direct conversation by the persons implied themselves as a key term to incite the population in a way or another to serve their country (nation, community, even ethnic group) especially in military and elegiac contexts.

Nationalism is used either in theoretical discourse or as a derogatory term meant for a narrow-minded individual that can only see the good in his or her own country/nation/ethnic group, while the others may perish, perhaps even by his or her own hands. According to Chris Rohmann, nationalism is an “ideology that seeks to unify or create a nation, usually based on a common geographic, ethnic, linguistic, cultural, religious, or historical identity” (271), assuming “the right of self-determination, free of outside influence, and usually implies the existence of a nation-state with full international sovereignty” (271).

Even though the origin of the notion is still a rather controversial matter, Rohmann places it around the late Middle Ages, when the feudal order was starting to crumble, and, through the years, it began gaining more and more importance, reaching its peak in the decades following the Enlightenment awakening to the idea of nation-state and independence, and consequently, during the Imperialist pursuits to impose certain nations’ ways. Of course nationalism can be of various degrees with Fascism as a violent extreme, Rohmann adds.

George Schöpflin, on the other hand, considers that – at least in Europe’s case – the ideas of nation, nationhood and

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