1. Understanding Nationalism
To what extent should nation be the foundation of identity?

2. What is a nation? What is a country?
A nation is
People who feel a sense of belonging together
People who want to control their own destiny
From Latin meaning “people” or “race”
May not have official borders or government
A country is
Geographic area defined by official borders
Borders and government are recognized by other countries
World includes more than 190 official countries

3. Nation and Nation-state
An idea that means different things to different people. Some people think a nation is a country with physical territory and a government. Others think a nation is people who share a sense of belonging together and who want to control their own destiny.
Nation-state
A country that has physical borders and a single government that makes laws and conducts business on behalf of its citizens. Nation-states may be based on ethnic nationalism or civic nationalism or a combination of the two.

4. Civic Nation
According to Michael Ignatieff a civic nation is made up of people who share certain political beliefs. In that framework, race, colour, creed, gender, language, and ethnicity do not matter.
Civic Nation: citizens are equal; have the same rights and responsibilities
Based on shared values and beliefs
Civic means “related to citizens”
Ex. Canada

5. Civic Nation
Most civic nations have a constitution, or a legal document that outlines the rights and responsibilities of a society’s citizens
It includes the core laws that define the nation and how it will be governed.
It is valued because it lays out the kind of society they want to live in.
Elected politicians and the courts must support and conform with these ideas and rules.

6. Civic Nationalism
One understanding implies that Civic Nationalism emerges only after a nation state has been created.
Ex. Britain
Began as four separate nations: Northern Ireland, Scotland, England and Wales
Today people of these four nations live within the British nation-state
They share certain values and beliefs and they form a British civic nation.

7. Civic and Ethnic Nationalism
Civic nationalism is different from ethnic nationalism, which is based on shared ethnicity, culture, and language.
Ex. Germany
1800’s German-speaking peoples lived in a number of small states, but many people supported the idea of a German nation-state.

8. Emergence of Nationalism
Ethnic Nationalism
Pre-Existing characteristics or
traditions lead to a shared
sense of nation.
The people may then create a nation-state if
they choose to live together with others who
share their sense of nation.
Civic Nationalism
People or peoples who share
certain values and beliefs choose to
live together in a nation-state.
Their values and beliefs are often
expressed in a constitution.
The characteristics of the nation evolve over
time, as common beliefs and values enable
people to respect their differences.

9. How are nation and country different?
Can you “belong” to more than one nation? Country?
Can you identify with more than one nation? Country?
Does your identity stop at the invisible lines on the ground?

10. Expressions of Nationality
How do we express nationalism?
Language
Ethnicity
Culture
Religion
Geography
Politics
Is nationalism the same as patriotism?
Patriotism
Love of country or nation
May spark heroism
Related words: patriot, patriotic, patriate, repatriate

11. Understandings of Nation
Language, ethnicity, culture, religion, geography, relationship to land, spirituality, and politics are often commonalities shared by people who feel they belong to the same “nation” of people.
How could these traits be the glue that holds a “nation” together?

12. Language
When a language is spoken by a great many people it can create a feeling of belonging that inspires a sense of nation.
In Canada this can most easily be seen through the Francophone culture in Quebec.
Quebecois French has become distinct from the French spoken in France. It has created a sense of belonging.

13. Language
On the other hand, there are 480 million people around the world that speak English as a first language, but it would be hard to say that they make up a single nation.
Why would there be a distinction between the Quebecois, and the English speaking world?

14. Ethnicity
Ethnicity can be based on shared racial, cultural, national or linguistic characteristics.
In that sense then, talking about people of the “Vietnamese nation” may mean people physically residing in the Southeast Asian country of Vietnam, but it may also include other people around the world who do not actually live in Vietnam. As well, not all people who live in Vietnam are of Vietnamese heritage.

15. Ethnicity
Many people believe that building a nation around a shared ethnicity can help protect peoples’ collective identity.
However, it may also encourage people to think in terms of “us” and “them”, which can be a cause of conflict.
Can you think of any countries whose basis is set around ethnicity? Is Canada one of them?

16. Culture Culture can involved in shaping a person’s national identity.
Culture can be seen through dress, art, traditional ceremonies or stories, etc.
In Canada, the First Nations peoples have many distinct cultures. For example, the Haida on the West Coast have different traditions than the Piikani of the prairies, etc.
How can traditions create a national identity?

17. Religion
There are many different religions around the world and they serve to unify populations under one central doctrine.
However, a Christian in Saskatchewan could be very different from a Christian in Africa, or Alabama.
As well, within most world religions there are different sects that take different interpretations of the traditions
Being united under one common denominator can still provide a sense of nation

18. Geography
Mountains, oceans, and deserts are physical barriers that isolate peoples from one another.
This isolation can allow people to develop in their own ways and form a sense of nation
Ex. Tibet

19. Relationship to Land and Spirituality
Certain geographic characteristics create connections to the land for people that allow them to feel a sense of nation.
Ex. Niagara Falls, Hoodoos
Ex. Siksika
Often the connections to the land can lead to spiritual connections which also lead to a sense of belonging to a certain nation

20. Politics
Sovereignty- the political authority of a people to control their own affairs
Some people believe that a group of people can be a nation if they have sovereignty. Others believe it is only the desire to have sovereignty that qualifies a people as a nation
Ex. Tibet
Ex. Dene Nation in Northwest Territories