> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.nationalism.io/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.nationalism.io/nationalism/what-is-nationalism.md).

# What is Nationalism?

Nationalism is the belief that a people understood as a nation, usually because of shared identity, history, culture, territory, ancestry, religion or political values, should possess collective political self-determination. This may take the form of statehood, autonomy, national unity, independence, or control over the institutions that govern the nation. It often emphasises loyalty, solidarity and obligation toward the nation, sometimes above other political or social attachments.

A nation and a state are not the same thing. A nation is a people understood as sharing a collective identity, while a state is a political institution governing a territory. A nation-state exists where the state is understood as the political expression of a particular nation. Different forms of nationalism disagree over who can truly belong to that nation.

## **The goal of nationalism**

The central goal of nationalism is usually to secure the nation’s collective self-determination, continuity and political agency. This may involve independence, statehood, autonomy, cultural preservation, political unity or control over national institutions.

## Priorities for preservation and continuity

Different forms of nationalism help with prioritising the preservation and continuity of different things:

* **Civic-state continuity** - Prioritises preserving the state’s sovereignty, shared institutions, laws, citizenship, civic values, constitutional order, systems of governance and political identity.
* **Cultural continuity** - Prioritises preserving the nation’s language, customs, traditions, beliefs, historical memory, social norms, public culture and way of life.
* **People continuity** - Prioritises preserving the nation as a distinct historical people, including its long-established ancestral population, descendants and inherited group identity.

These priorities can often be combined. For example, some nationalists may argue that preserving the continuity of a distinct people is also the best way to preserve that people’s culture and civic-state. In this view, demographic continuity supports cultural and civic-state continuity. Others may place greater emphasis on cultural continuity, arguing that the nation can endure even if its population changes, so long as newcomers adopt the language, customs, values and way of life. Civic nationalists, by contrast, may see civic-state continuity as the core requirement: the nation-state persists as long as its laws, institutions, citizenship and shared political values remain intact.

In this sense, civic-state continuity can be seen as the most minimal form of preservation, cultural continuity as a broader form, and people continuity as the most encompassing, because it aims to preserve not only the civic-state and culture, but also the historical population associated with them.

## **Three distinct forms of nationalism**

Different forms of nationalism define the nation in different ways and prioritise different forms of continuity and preservation, such as political continuity, cultural continuity or people continuity. The following are some distinct forms of nationalism that will be used for comparisons across this analysis on nationalism:

* **Civic nationalism** - Defines the nation through shared citizenship, laws, political institutions, civic values and participation in a common public life. It prioritises civic-state continuity, seeking to preserve the nation’s sovereignty, institutions, legal order, civic unity and equal citizenship.
* **Cultural nationalism** - Defines the nation through a shared culture, including language, customs, traditions, beliefs, social norms, historical memory and way of life. It prioritises cultural continuity, seeking to preserve and transmit the nation’s culture across generations, including through education, assimilation and common cultural practices.
* **Ancestral nationalism** - Defines the nation through continuity with a distinct historical people, including shared ancestry and lineage. It prioritises people continuity, seeking to preserve the long-established ancestral population associated with the nation. This is often as the basis for also preserving its culture and political inheritance as well.

## Other forms of nationalism

Ancestral nationalism is just one example form of nationalism that focuses on the preservation and continuity of a distinct group. There are also other forms of nationalism that can be considered such as ethno-nationalism, ethnic nationalism, nativism nationalism, blood nationalism and blood and soil nationalism. You can read more about all of these here and why ancestral nationalism is being used as the distinct type of nationalism for this analysis about nationalism:

{% content-ref url="/pages/P1AGDyFEt3SKeKqRn5gP" %}
[Other forms of nationalism](/nationalism/what-is-nationalism/other-forms-of-nationalism.md)
{% endcontent-ref %}

## **Most important mechanisms of political membership**

The most defining components of political membership within a nation-state are concerned with which individuals receive citizenship and voting power and who can become a representative in national government.

* **Citizenship** - Determines who is formally recognised as belonging to the nation-state and who holds legal rights, protections and duties. Citizenship determines who has permanent membership within the nation.
* **Voting power** - Determines who can influence the direction, leadership and laws of the nation-state. Those with voting power help shape political control and the nation’s future.
* **Representation** - Determines who can govern, legislate and speak on behalf of the nation-state. Representation shapes whether political power is translated into governance that reflects the nation’s interests.

## **Multiracial and multicultural societies**

Nationalism does not necessarily require a nation-state to be ancestrally homogenous or monocultural. Each nation-state may adopt different rules for membership, residence and cultural expectations.

* **Civic nationalism** - Can be multiracial and multicultural in principle, because membership is based on citizenship and shared political institutions rather than ancestry. However, it may still require integration into a common civic culture.
* **Cultural nationalism** - Cultural nationalism can be multiracial if people of different ancestries adopt the national culture. It is less easily multicultural if multiculturalism means equal recognition of multiple distinct cultures, because cultural nationalism usually gives priority to one national culture.
* **Ancestral nationalism** - Ancestral nationalism may tolerate cultural or racial diversity within the nation-state, but it defines full national membership through descent from the historic national population. Non-ancestral groups may be accepted as residents but they are not regarded as full members of the nation.

Nationalism is primarily concerned with defining who belongs to the nation and who holds the authority to shape its political future. Other groups and cultures may coexist within a nation-state under these different forms of nationalism, but the extent of that coexistence depends on how the nation defines membership, residence and cultural boundaries, which is then reflected in its migration, residency and integration policies.