Pan-nationalism

Pan-nationalism is a concept used in the social sciences to describe specific political movements. These movements aim to move past traditional national boundaries. They try to create a "higher" identity that is more inclusive. This new identity is built on common denominators shared by many people. These shared traits might be a specific region or a continent. They might also be based on a shared ethnic background.

This differs from standard nationalism, which focuses on a single nation-state.

There are different ways these movements function in practice. One way is through regional or continental groupings. Examples include Pan-Africanism, Pan-Americanism, and Pan-Asianism. These movements advocate for political identities based on large geographic areas. Another way is through ethnic nationalism. These movements seek a common identity based on ethnic groupings. Pan-Germanism and Pan-Slavism are examples of this type.

Some movements operate on two different levels of scale. Pan-Germanism can look at the unity of all Germanic peoples. It can also focus more narrowly on all ethnic Germans. This narrow view can include German-speaking Austrians and Swiss people.

Pan-nationalism has a distinct history rooted in nineteenth-century Europe. The movement began with Pan-Slavism. This developed among Slavic nations within the Austro-Hungarian and Turkish empires. A key figure in this movement was Ján Kollár. He argued that Slavs were a single people with a shared cultural heritage. This was followed by Pan-German thought. This movement aimed for German unification to create a "greater Germany." These early movements often used ideas about race to support their goals. They believed biological connections could create a permanent bond called a "Volk."

It is important to distinguish pan-nationalism from other similar ideas. It is not the same as irredentism. Irredentism involves making claims on nearby territories to expand a homeland. Scale is a major factor that separates them. For example, a Greater Albania would still be a relatively small country. However, an irredentist Greater Germany could have 100 million inhabitants. Pan-nationalism is also different from diaspora nationalism. Diaspora nationalism, like Zionism, focuses on a group returning to an ancestral homeland.

Many pan-nationalist movements in history have failed to achieve their ideal states. Yugoslavia was a notable attempt to unify South Slav nations. The name "Yugoslav" means "South Slav." After 1945, it functioned as a federation with separate internal nations. Pan-Americanism was another influential idea during Latin American independence movements. However, the new nation-states soon had different interests. They did not form a single federation as originally imagined. Instead, the term later came to mean cooperation led by the United States.

Other examples show the different scales of these ideologies. In Turkey, there are three pan-nationalisms of increasing size. Pan-Turkism refers to Turkic peoples. Pan-Turanism is even broader and covers much of central Asia. It can even include Finland and Hungary. Pan-Arabism seeks to unify the Arab world from the Atlantic to the Arabian Sea.

Unlike many other forms, Pan-Islamism is not based on race or ethnicity. It is a movement centered on religion to unite all Muslims.

In recent years, new forms of these ideas have emerged. Researcher Thomas Hegghammer describes a concept called "macro-nationalism." This emerged during the late Cold War era. He traces its origins to the Western counter-jihad movement and groups like al-Qaeda. Hegghammer also noted that some modern ideologies do not fit old categories. He described some views as a "doctrine of civilisational war." These modern developments show how pan-national ideas continue to evolve in complex ways.