Nationalism

From Latin natio — birth, tribe, people born together. Nationalism as a political movement emerged in Europe in the late 18th and 19th centuries, tied to the French Revolution's idea of the sovereign nation-people. Before nationalism, loyalty was typically to dynasties, religions, or localities rather than nations.

Political scientists distinguish civic nationalism (attachment to shared political values and institutions, open to anyone who joins) from ethnic nationalism (attachment to a particular people defined by ancestry, language, or religion). Both exist along spectrums. The 19th century's nationalist movements created modern nation-states and freed peoples from empires. The 20th century's nationalist movements also produced two world wars and the Holocaust. The word has no fixed valence — what matters is what kind and toward whom.