Foundations of National Identity

<p> Since it emergence in the 19th century in response to feudalism nationalism has been a mixed blessing. Originally seen as a positive force often enough it has resulted in warfare and persecution of minorities so much so that over time it has been considered a social evil whose apparent decline has been greeted as a positive development. The author disputes this or rather he maintains that the picture that emerges is more complex: nationalism is not disappearing but has taken on a different form. What we are experiencing is an increasing autonomy of ethnonations i.e. nations without a state in the wake of a weakening of the multinational states and the transfer of their sovereignty upwards in the case of Europe to the federation of the European Union and downwards to the ethnonations.</p><p> Catalonia is the major case study in this book but it is embedded in a comprehensive theoretical framework as well as the historical and contemporary reality of Europe opening up a new perspective. The author one of the foremost scholars in this field brilliantly succeeds in developing an original clear and comprehensive vision of nationalism that is accessible to a wide readership.</p>