Anthony D. Smith
Encyclopedia
Anthony D. Smith is Professor Emeritus of Nationalism and Ethnicity at the London School of Economics
, and is considered one of the founders of the interdisciplinary field of nationalism studies
. His best-known contributions to the field are the distinction between 'civic' and 'ethnic' types of nation
s and nationalism
, and the idea that all nations have dominant 'ethnic cores'. While Smith agrees with other authors that nationalism is a modern
phenomenon, he insists that nations have pre-modern origins.
Smith took his first degree in Classics
and Philosophy
in Oxford
, and his master's degree and doctorate in Sociology
at the London School of Economics
.
He is a former student of the philosopher and anthropologist Ernest Gellner
, but did not share his view of nationalism in the long run. He created an approach of nationalism he called ethnosymbolism
, which is a synthesis of modernist and traditional
views on the subject.
Smith argues that nationalism draws on the pre-existing history of the "group", an attempt to fashion this history into a sense of common identity and shared history. This is not to say that this history should be academically valid or cogent - indeed, Smith asserts, many nationalisms are based on historically flawed interpretations of past events and tend to overly mythologise small, inaccurate parts of their history.
Nationalism, according to Smith, does not require that members of a "nation" should all be alike, only that they should feel an intense bond of solidarity to the nation and other members of their nation. A sense of nationalism can inhabit and be produced from whatever dominant ideology
exists in a given locale. Nationalism builds on pre-existing kinship
, religious and belief systems. Smith describes the ethnic groups that form the background of modern nations as "ethnies".
When speaking of nation-states Smith notes, "We may term a state a ‘nation-state’ only if and when a single ethnic and cultural population inhabits the boundaries of a state, and the boundaries of that state are coextensive with the boundaries of that ethnic and cultural population."
A nation, meanwhile, is “a named population sharing a historic territory, common myths and historical memories, a mass public culture
, a common economy and common legal rights and duties for its members”. Ethnies are in turn defined as “named units of population with common ancestry myths and historical memories, elements of shared culture, some link with a historic territory and some measure of solidarity, at least among their elites.” [- See Smith, Nations and Nationalism in a Global Era
(Cambridge, UK: Polity, 1995): p.57]. The boundaries of an ethnie can be quite recognisable even when not all of its characteristics appear at the same time. It is, in other words, not a question of a smallest common denominator.
London School of Economics
The London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
, and is considered one of the founders of the interdisciplinary field of nationalism studies
Nationalism studies
Nationalism studies is an interdisciplinary academic field devoted to the study of nationalism and related issues. While nationalism has been the subject of scholarly discussion since at least the late eighteenth century, it is only since the early 1990s that it has received enough attention for a...
. His best-known contributions to the field are the distinction between 'civic' and 'ethnic' types of nation
Nation
A nation may refer to a community of people who share a common language, culture, ethnicity, descent, and/or history. In this definition, a nation has no physical borders. However, it can also refer to people who share a common territory and government irrespective of their ethnic make-up...
s and nationalism
Nationalism
Nationalism is a political ideology that involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. In the 'modernist' image of the nation, it is nationalism that creates national identity. There are various definitions for what...
, and the idea that all nations have dominant 'ethnic cores'. While Smith agrees with other authors that nationalism is a modern
Modernity
Modernity typically refers to a post-traditional, post-medieval historical period, one marked by the move from feudalism toward capitalism, industrialization, secularization, rationalization, the nation-state and its constituent institutions and forms of surveillance...
phenomenon, he insists that nations have pre-modern origins.
Smith took his first degree in Classics
Classics
Classics is the branch of the Humanities comprising the languages, literature, philosophy, history, art, archaeology and other culture of the ancient Mediterranean world ; especially Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome during Classical Antiquity Classics (sometimes encompassing Classical Studies or...
and Philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
in Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
, and his master's degree and doctorate in Sociology
Sociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
at the London School of Economics
London School of Economics
The London School of Economics and Political Science is a public research university specialised in the social sciences located in London, United Kingdom, and a constituent college of the federal University of London...
.
He is a former student of the philosopher and anthropologist Ernest Gellner
Ernest Gellner
Ernest André Gellner was a philosopher and social anthropologist, described by The Daily Telegraph when he died as one of the world's most vigorous intellectuals and by The Independent as a "one-man crusade for critical rationalism."His first book, Words and Things —famously, and uniquely...
, but did not share his view of nationalism in the long run. He created an approach of nationalism he called ethnosymbolism
Ethnosymbolism
Ethnosymbolism is a school of thought in the study of nationalism that stresses the importance of symbols, myths, values and traditions in the formation and persistence of the modern nation.- External links :*...
, which is a synthesis of modernist and traditional
Primordialism
Primordialism or perennialism is the argument which contends that nations are ancient, natural phenomena.Primordialism can be traced philosophically to the ideas of German Romanticism, particularly in the works of Johann Gottlieb Fichte and Johann Gottfried Herder. For Herder, the nation was...
views on the subject.
Smith argues that nationalism draws on the pre-existing history of the "group", an attempt to fashion this history into a sense of common identity and shared history. This is not to say that this history should be academically valid or cogent - indeed, Smith asserts, many nationalisms are based on historically flawed interpretations of past events and tend to overly mythologise small, inaccurate parts of their history.
Nationalism, according to Smith, does not require that members of a "nation" should all be alike, only that they should feel an intense bond of solidarity to the nation and other members of their nation. A sense of nationalism can inhabit and be produced from whatever dominant ideology
Dominant ideology
The dominant ideology, in Marxist theory, is the set of common values and beliefs shared by most people in a given society, framing how the majority think about a range of topics...
exists in a given locale. Nationalism builds on pre-existing kinship
Kinship
Kinship is a relationship between any entities that share a genealogical origin, through either biological, cultural, or historical descent. And descent groups, lineages, etc. are treated in their own subsections....
, religious and belief systems. Smith describes the ethnic groups that form the background of modern nations as "ethnies".
When speaking of nation-states Smith notes, "We may term a state a ‘nation-state’ only if and when a single ethnic and cultural population inhabits the boundaries of a state, and the boundaries of that state are coextensive with the boundaries of that ethnic and cultural population."
A nation, meanwhile, is “a named population sharing a historic territory, common myths and historical memories, a mass public culture
Public Culture
Public Culture is a reviewed interdisciplinary academic journal of cultural studies, founded in 1988 by anthropologists Carol Breckenridge and Arjun Appadurai...
, a common economy and common legal rights and duties for its members”. Ethnies are in turn defined as “named units of population with common ancestry myths and historical memories, elements of shared culture, some link with a historic territory and some measure of solidarity, at least among their elites.” [- See Smith, Nations and Nationalism in a Global Era
(Cambridge, UK: Polity, 1995): p.57]. The boundaries of an ethnie can be quite recognisable even when not all of its characteristics appear at the same time. It is, in other words, not a question of a smallest common denominator.
Selected publications
- (1971) Theories of Nationalism, ISBN 0-7156-0555-0; 2nd ed. (1983), ISBN 0-7156-0584-4
- (1983) State and Nation in the Third World, ISBN 9780710801999
- (1987) The Ethnic Origins of Nations, ISBN 0-631-15205-9
- (1991) National Identity, ISBN 0-14-012565-5
- (1995) Nations and Nationalism in a Global Era, ISBN 0-7456-1018-8
- (1998) Nationalism and Modernism, ISBN 0-415-06340-X
- (1999) Myths and Memories of the Nation, ISBN 9780198296843
- (2000) The Nation in History, ISBN 0-7456-2580-0
- (2003) Chosen Peoples: Sacred Sources of National Identity, ISBN 0-19-210017-3
- (2004) The Antiquity of Nations, ISBN 0745627455
- (2008) Cultural Foundations of Nations: Hierarchy, Covenant and Republic, ISBN 1405177985
- (2009) Ethno-symbolism and Nationalism: A Cultural Approach, ISBN 9780415497985