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Nationalism is a spirit that integrates people to collectively strive to achieve political

independence, maintain political sovereignty, and participate in the process of
nation-building. However, nationalism cannot be ignited without the existence of the
nation.
The Nation is not a state but a group of people who are bound together by a common
religion, history, language, tradition, or common political interest. So, regardless of the
nature of nation (culturally or politically, or both) patriotism or national consciousness is
always a binding factor. However, the feature of national consciousness is not merely the
sentiment of loyalty or affection for one’s nation but the aspiration to self-governance and
achievement of statehood. Therefore, the concept of nation is attached with sovereignty
and homeland, while nationalism is a quest for establishing a nation-state, where people
have a right to self-determination for creating their political and legal system. Nationalism
can never be extinct because it is a belief of the people which integrate them towards a
common goal of building a strong, developed, and powerful nation. Even the rapid
expansion of globalization, transnational free market, and multiculturalism couldn’t
weaken nationalist sentiments among the people.

Major revolutions in the history like the American Revolution, the French revolution, the
Russian revolution, the Indian independence movement, Iran’s Islamic revolution, among
many others championed the spirit of nationalism. While nature and character may vary
from country to country, national consciousness is the major force behind the
establishment of an independent nation-state. For example, the French revolution reflected
the liberal political nationalism where people integrated to remove inequality and class
privileges and establish a nation-state which respects the sovereignty, self-determination,
equality, liberty, and fraternity. Unlike French nationalism, Iran’s Islamic revolution
reflected cultural nationalism where Shi’a people were bound together by sharing common
ethnicity and religion in the quest for establishing an Islamic state and prevent western
influence.
The Emergence of Nationalism
Although the word nationalism only emerged in political language after 1840, its
importance grew significantly in the 19th century with revolutions across Europe). In this
period, the most significant event involving nationalism occurred in 1914, when a fear of
Slav nationalism led to the assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand which resulted
in the First World War.
After the war, the Versailles Treaty made reference to notions of “nation states”, which
became the primary concept used by US President Woodrow Wilson when instituting the
doctrine of national self-determination. This action subsequently gave rise to substantial
claims of nationalism around the world
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Dahbour contradicts this, arguing that national self-determination was a response to the
colonization of states which eventually demanded national liberation. Furthermore, self-
determination not only gives rise to nationalism but also to ethical and legal citizenship and
with it, the ability of a nation to self-govern. As a result, Dahbour argues that nationalism is
a specific claim made for self-determination.
Civic nationalism: This form of nationalism is based on the idea that strict adherence to
the legal system of a given nation for a certain period of time will make an individual a
member of that nation, that is to say, the nation is defined by adherence to its laws and
rules and behaving in a moral and ethical manner according to those rules. It is the most
inclusive form of nationalism. Examples of countries which adhere to civic nationalism are
the United States and Russia. It is perhaps the most common form of nationalism. The
obvious positives of this form of nationalism are that anyone can become a citizen of a
nation which practices civic nationalism, as such, civic nationalist countries such as the US
thrive on high-skilled and medium-skilled immigration, as people all around the globe are
enticed to emigrate to the country and to work hard to achieve their dreams, which in turn
exponentially benefits the nation’s economy. However, the obvious negatives of this form
of nationalism are the multicultural and multiracial connotations, which undeniably cause
conflict and problems with social cohesion, additionally, civic nationalism would eventually
result in the dilution of the nation’s original culture or ethnic group, as people from a wide
variety of religions, cultures, races, and ethnicities would migrate to these nations and
eventually either form a plurality of the population or even the majority.
Cultural nationalism: This form of nationalism is based on the idea that having a shared
culture, either by assimilating into it or being born into it is the prerequisite for citizenship
and thus national belonging. The nation is defined by culture, as such, culturally nationalist
countries tend to be culturally homogeneous. It is probably the 2nd most common form of
nationalism and definitely the 3rd most inclusive. It is very difficult to differentiate
between countries which de facto adhere to cultural nationalism and countries which de
jure adhere to cultural nationalism, however, it can be said that countries such as China
adhere to cultural nationalism. There are many positives to cultural nationalism, the most
obvious is that cultural nationalism can unite a multiracial nation by breaking down
cultural barriers between the races thereby reducing the differences between these groups
and uniting them under one flag, government, and nation. The obvious negatives are that
cultural nationalism does not always successfully unify the nation, countries such as the
Roman Empire embraced cultural nationalism and yet that did not prevent it from being
shattered by separatism. Another negative is that, although cultural nationalism does
preserve the culture of a given ethnic group, it fails to protect the unique ancestry of that
ethnic group, as such, much like civic nationalism, cultural nationalism eventually results in
the dilution of the nation’s original ethnic group, due to a large-scale change in that group’s
heritage and ancestry.
Ethnic nationalism: This form of nationalism is based on the idea that being of the same
or similar ethnic group is the prerequisite for citizenship and national belonging. The
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nation is defined by ethnicity, as such, ethnic nationalist countries tend to be ethnically,

culturally and racially homogeneous. Ethnic nationalism is most definitely 5th most
inclusive form of nationalism and the 3rd least common form of nationalism. No countries
in the world, to my knowledge, are completely ethnically nationalist, however, countries
such as Israel, Saudi Arabia and Japan have certain laws which can be regarded as ethnic
nationalist in their nature. The obvious positive of ethnic nationalism is that it allows for
the complete preservation of the ethnicity, as such, ethnic nationalism is the only type of
nationalism which leads to the complete preservation of a people. There really is no
objective negatives of ethnic nationalism, however, it cannot be denied that ethnic
nationalism excludes many people from immigrating into and from becoming citizens of an
ethnic nationalist country.
Racial nationalism: This form of nationalism is based on the idea that belonging to the
same racial or sub-racial group is the prerequisite for citizenship and national belonging.
The nation is defined by the race or sub-race, as such, racial nationalist countries tend to be
racially homogenous, although this certainly does not imply cultural or ethnic
homogeneity, White Nationalists such as Richard Spender, who are really racial
nationalists, not ethnic nationalists (“White” or “European” isn’t an ethnicity) would have
no issues with a multicultural, multi-ethnic and multi religious Pan-European ethno state,
provided that all the ethnicities within that state were “European”. Racial nationalism is
definitely the 4th least inclusive form of nationalism and the 2nd least common form of
nationalism. An example of a completely racial nationalist state would be Liberia, as only
individuals who are “Negroes” or of “Negro descent” can become citizens. A positive of
racial nationalism is that all the members of a racial nationalist country are, theoretically,
biologically linked to a degree, which provides for reduced tensions and greater social
cohesion, however, the multiculturalism and multi-religiousness of such a state would still
bring about problems. A negative of racial nationalism is that its foundations are extremely
shaky, in the example of a Pan-European ethno state, the idea that all the myriad European
ethnicities would feel “kinship” towards each other on the basis of loose and distant
biological ties is very ignorant and definitely not scrupulous.
Religious nationalism: This form of nationalism is based on the idea that belonging to the
same religion is the prerequisite for citizenship and national belonging. The nation is
defined by the religion, as such, religious nationalist countries would be very religiously
homogeneous, but not racially, ethnically, or culturally homogenous. Religious nationalism
is the 3rd most inclusive form of nationalism, and the least popular form of nationalism. An
example of a religious nationalist country would be the Vatican City, which only grants
citizenship to the Cardinals which reside in the Vatican or in Rome, the Holy see’s
diplomats, and people who reside in the Vatican due to their office or service, such as the
Swiss Guard. The requirements for all of these things is to be a Catholic, which by extension
means that only Catholics can become citizens of the Vatican. A positive of religious
nationalism is that, by introducing religious homogeneity, it decreases social tensions in
regards to differing religions. A negative of religious nationalism is that it seeks to unite all
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members of a religious group, regardless of any other demographic factors, which would
most definitely cause tension and issues with social cohesion.
German nationalism that began to develop before World War II was a major motivation
behind many individuals who joined the Nazi Party. Adolf Hitler, the leader of the Nazi
Party, used his profound oratory skills to manipulate the German people into following his
regime’s propaganda. The people were looking for something to improve the economic
situation caused by the depression. The Nazi Party had a great propensity to purvey
“mythical nationalist beliefs”; in 1933, they began deliberately blaming the Jewish
population for the economic disparity in Germany.”
Nationalism has two meanings; it is a doctrine and a political movement. It is a doctrine on
nations’ rights, interests, and responsibilities and a movement aimed at furthering these
rights. The core concept of nationalism is a nation. The nation is the bearer of collective
rights, the source of political legitimacy and an embodiment of horizontal comradeship and
solidarity. According to John Breuilly, the nationalist doctrine is built upon three main
assertions: “There exists a nation with an explicit and peculiar character; the interests and
values of this nation take priority over all other interests and values; the nation must be as
independent as possible. This usually requires at least attainment of political sovereignty.”