Ethnic nationalism, also known as ethnonationalism, is a form of nationalism in which the nation and nationality are defined in terms of ethnicity, with emphasis on an ethnocentric (and in some cases an ethnostate/ethnocratic) approach to various political issues related to national affirmation of a particular ethnic group. Ethnic nationalism is widespread globally. Many states incorporate elements of ethnic nationalism into their citizenship and immigration policies, including preferential treatment or expedited citizenship for members of the dominant ethnic group or for co-ethnics living abroad.
The central tenet of ethnic nationalists is that "nations are defined by a shared heritage, which usually includes a common language, a common faith, and a common ethnic ancestry". Those of other ethnicities may be classified as second-class citizens. Because of these attributes, ethnic nationalism is closely related to nativism, and is associated with the radical right,Bar-on, 2018, p. 25 but in the case of some separatist, anti-imperialist, or liberal ethno-nationalism, these attributes may be less pronounced, except for the emphasis on ethnicity.
Scholars of diaspora studies broaden the concept of "nation" to diasporic communities. The terms "ethnonation" and "ethnonationalism" are sometimes used to describe a conceptual collective of dispersed ethnics. Defining an ethnos widely can lead to ethnic nationalism becoming a form of pan-nationalism or macronationalism, as in cases such as pan-Germanism or pan-Slavism.
In scholarly literature, following a theoretical distinction by Hans Kohn, ethnic nationalism is usually contrasted with civic nationalism, although this distinction has also been criticized.Cohen, 2022, pp. 6–8Özkirimli, Umut. (2005). Contemporary Debates on Nationalism: A Critical Introduction. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.Azurmendi, Joxe (2014): Historia, arraza, nazioa, Donostia: Elkar. Civic and ethnic nationalism are idealized categories; many states combine elements of both.
History Greece gained independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1830, followed by the unification of Italy and Germany in the 1860s and 1870s. The Balkan Wars, World War I, and the subsequent collapse of the Ottoman, Austro-Hungarian, and Russian empires accelerated ethnic disaggregation through migration, population transfers, forced expulsions, and genocide. The study of ethnonationalism emerged in the early 20th century in the interwar period between World War I and World War II, with the "redrawing of the political map of Europe in part along ethnic and national lines according to a proclaimed "right of peoples" to self-determination and the rise of fascist ethnocentric ideologies (including Nazism). Philosopher Hans Kohn was one of the first to differentiate ethnic nationalism from civic nationalism in his 1944 publication The Idea of Nationalism: A Study in Its Origins and Background.
During the Cold War, the independence movement initiated in former European colonies in Asia and Africa reinvigorated research into ethnic, tribal and national identities and the "political difficulties" stemming from their interactions with territorial statehood, while the collapse of the Soviet Union in the 1980s and 1990s and the "resurgence of ethnic and national claims and conflicts in its aftermath" only further spurred ethnonationalism scholarship in the late 20th century.
Increased international migration as a function of contemporary globalization has also given rise to "ethno-national" movements, including reactionary "nativist" groups focused on exclusionary identity politics. In the developed world, such trends have in some cases taken on an explicitly xenophobic and racist character, as seen in the example of "white nationalism" in the United States.
Characteristics The central political tenet of ethnic nationalism is that ethnic groups are entitled to self-determination. The outcome of this right to self-determination may vary, from calls for self-regulated administrative bodies within an already established society, to an autonomous entity separate from that society, to the institution of ethnic federalism within a multi-ethnic society, to establishing an independent sovereign state removed from that society. In international relations, it also leads to policies and movements for irredentism to claim a common nation based upon ethnicity, or for the establishment of an ethnocratic (mono-ethnocratic or poly-ethnocratic) political structure in which the state apparatus is controlled by a politically and militarily dominant ethnic nationalist group or a group of several ethnic nationalist groups from select ethnicities to further its interests, power and resources.
In scholarly literature, ethnic nationalism is usually contrasted with civic nationalism. Ethnic nationalism bases membership of the nation on descent or heredity, often articulated in terms of common blood or kinship, rather than on political membership. Hence, nation states with strong traditions of ethnic nationalism tend to define nationality or citizenship by jus sanguinis (the law of blood, descent from a person of that nationality), and countries with strong traditions of civic nationalism tend to define nationality or citizenship by jus soli (the law of soil, birth within the nation state). Ethnic nationalism is, therefore, seen as exclusive, while civic nationalism tends to be inclusive. Rather than allegiance to common civic ideals and cultural traditions, then, ethnic nationalism tends to emphasise narratives of common descent.
Recent theories and empirical data suggest that people maintain dual lay beliefs about nationality, such that it can be both inherited biologically at birth and acquired culturally in life.
Role in discrimination In 2018, Tendayi Achiume, a UN Special Rapporteur on racism, released a UN Human Rights Council report which states that "more than 75% of the world's known stateless populations belong to minority groups" and highlights the role of ethnonationalism in the international deprivation of citizenship rights. In the report, Achiume re-stated that international human rights law prohibits citizens from discriminating against non-citizens on the basis of their race, descent, national or ethnic origin and she also stated that citizenship, nationality, and immigration laws which discriminate against non-citizens are violations of international law. She also noted the role of laws restricting marriage rights with respect to certain national, religious, ethnic or racial groups, which she said were "often deployed by states to preserve notions of national, ethnic and racial "purity"." Achiume called ethnonationalist politics the "most obvious driver of racial discrimination in citizenship and immigration laws" and driven by populist leaders defining nations "in terms of assumed blood ties and ethnicity".
In the 19th and 20th centuries, European colonial powers used ethnonationalism to justify barring colonial subjects from citizenship, and in Europe, Jews and Roma were excluded from citizenship on the same grounds. Today, migrants are a frequent target of ethnonationalist rhetoric related to "ethnic purity and religious, cultural or linguistic preservation". Even countries with proud histories of immigration have fallen prey to the vilification of "certain racial, religious and national groups" on prejudicial grounds. Achiume called the case of the Rohingya Muslims a "chilling example", with the Burma Citizenship Act of 1982 discriminating based on ethnicity and rendering many Rohingya stateless. The violation of the rights of Afro-Caribbean British citizens from the "Windrush generation" is a pertinent example of similar prejudice in the developed world but states all over the world use misinformation to portray "certain racial, national and religious groups as inherent threats to national security" and justify stripping or denying rights.
Extreme forms of ethnic nationalism, as in the case of Myanmar and its government's persecution of the Rohingya, have been identified as causes of various genocides and episodes of ethnic cleansing. In his 2005 book The Great Game of Genocide, historian Donald Bloxham argued that the Armenian genocide "represents a clear logic of ethnic nationalism when it is carried to its absolute extreme in multinational societies."
Other nationalist variants Diaspora nationalism
Liberal Ethno-nationalism
Generally, "liberal nationalism" is used in a similar sense to "civic nationalism"; liberal nationalism is a kind of nationalism recently defended by political philosophers who believe that there can be a non-xenophobic form of nationalism compatible with liberal values of freedom, tolerance, equality, and individual rights.Yael Tamir. 1993. Liberal Nationalism. Princeton University Press. ; Will Kymlicka. 1995. Multicultural Citizenship. Oxford University Press. ; David Miller. 1995. On Nationality. Oxford University Press. . However, not all "liberal nationalism" is always "civic nationalism"; there are also liberals who advocate moderate nationalism that affirm ethnic identity, also referred to as "liberal ethnonationalism". Ethnic nationalism is generally considered to be more related to dictatorship, but in some areas ethnic nationalism has rather become the main driving force to promote democratization against the state nationalist (which can function as a form of civic nationalist) dictatorship.
In 19th century Europe, liberal movements often affirmed ethnic nationalism in the modern sense along with to topple classical conservatism; István Széchenyi was a representative of liberal ethnic nationalism. Liberal Zionism is an ideology that combines Zionism—an ethnocultural nationalist ideology—with secular liberal values. In some regions, including South Korea, Taiwan, etc., there is a liberal/progressive ethno-nationalism tradition against conservative state-nationalism.Cloudy forecast for Moon’s ‘Sunshine Policy 2.0’ East Asia Forum (2017. 07. 20). "In South Korean politics, liberal political parties often support a policy of engagement with North Korea. This is because left-wing politicians tend to value miunjok (the Korean race) over the North–South ideological and political divide. In a broader sense, liberals embrace ethno-nationalism; the notion that sharing the same bloodline is superior to temporary national partition. Conservatives on the other hand support regime-based nationalism, which puts emphasis on being South Korean and stresses the differences in social and political values between the two Koreas."
In Austria before Anschluss, pan-German Völkisch nationalism was widely accepted among national-liberals to fight Catholic-based conservative Austrian nationalism. As countries that had experienced communist dictatorships in the past—including Eastern European countries like North Macedonia—underwent liberalization, they mobilized ethno-nationalism to oppose the authoritarian governments that had suppressed nationalism.
Social Ethno-nationalism Social Ethno-nationalism is a doctrine aimed at promoting social progress while defending the ethnic interests of different peoples, both emancipation and supremacy. For example, the Australian Labor Party had a strong white nationalist component and has openly supported the White Australia policy in the past.
Secular Arab nationalism advocated by Baathism and previously by Nasserism defends Arab socialism. There are also examples of leftist American black nationalism, including Black power movement. South American indigenous groups also have as their basis the defense of the ethnic interests of Amerindians while promoting social progress and the sharing of wealth.Antonio Carlos de Souza Lima, « L'indigénisme au Brésil : migration et réappropriation d’un savoir administratif », Revue de synthèse, semestre, No. 3–4, juillet-décembre 2000, .
Stateless and Anti-imperial nationalism