Understanding National Identity

Primary Author or Creator:
David McCrone
Additional Author(s) / Creators
Frank Bechhofer
Publisher:
Cambridge Univerity Press
Alternative Published Date
2015
Category:
Type of Resource:
Book
Length (Pages, words, minutes etc...)
238pp
Fast Facts

How does national identity relate to politics and constitutional change?

More details

We live in a world in which being a 'citizen' of a state and being a 'national' are by no means the same. Amidst much scholarly debate about 'nations' and 'nationalism', comparatively little has been written explicitly on 'national identity' and a great deal less is solidly evidence-based. This book focuses on national identity in England and Scotland. Using data collected over twenty years it asks: does national identity really matter to people? How does 'national identity' differ from 'nationality' and having a passport? Are there particular people and places which have ambiguous or contested national identities? What happens if someone makes a claim to a national identity? On what basis do others accept or reject the claim? Does national identity have much internal substance, or is it simply about defending group boundaries? How does national identity relate to politics and constitutional change?

English