Among scholars of nationalism, a number of types of nationalism have been presented. Nationalism may manifest itself as part of an official state ideology or as a popular non-state movement and may be expressed along racial, civic, ethnic, linguistic, religious or ideological lines. These self-definitions of the nation are used to classify types of nationalism, but such categories are not mutually exclusive and many nationalist movements combine some or all of these elements to varying degrees. Nationalist movements can also be classified by other criteria, such as scale and location.
Some political theorists, like Umut Özkirimli, make the case that any distinction between forms of nationalism is false.. In all forms of nationalism, the populations believe that they share some kind of common culture. Arguably, all types of nationalism merely refer to different ways academics throughout the years have tried to define nationalism. Similarly, Yael Tamir has argued that the differences between the oft-dichotomized ethnic and civic nationalism are blurred.
Ethnic nationalism
Ethnic nationalism, also known as ethnonationalism, is a form of nationalism wherein the nation and nationality are defined in terms of ethnicity, with emphasis on an ethnocentric (and in some cases an ethnocratic) approach to various political issues related to national affirmation of a particular ethnic group.
The central tenet of ethnic nationalists is that "nations are defined by a shared heritage, which usually includes a common language, a common faith, and a common ethnic ancestry". Those of other ethnicities may be classified as second-class citizens.
Ethnic nationalism was traditionally the determinant type of nationalism in Eastern Europe.
Expansionist nationalism Expansionist nationalism is an aggressive radical form of ethnic nationalism (ethnonationalism) that incorporates autonomous, heightened ethnic consciousness and patriotic sentiments with atavistic fears and hatreds focused on "other" or foreign peoples, framing a belief in expansion or recovery of formerly owned territories through militaristic means.
Racial nationalism
Racial nationalism is an ideology that advocates a racial definition of national identity. Racial nationalism seeks to preserve a given race through policies such as banning race mixing and the immigration of other races. Its ideas tend to be in direct conflict with those of anti-racism and multiculturalism. An example is white nationalism.
Romantic nationalism Romantic nationalism, also known as organic nationalism and identity nationalism, is the form of ethnic nationalism in which the state derives political legitimacy as a natural ("organic") consequence and expression of the nation, race, or ethnicity. It reflected the ideals of Romanticism and was opposed to Enlightenment rationalism. Romantic nationalism emphasized a historical ethnic culture which meets the Romantic Ideal; folklore developed as a Romantic nationalist concept. The Brothers Grimm were inspired by Herder's writings to create an idealized collection of tales which they labeled as ethnically German. Historian Jules Michelet exemplifies French romantic-nationalist history.
Liberal ethnonationalism Generally, "liberal nationalism" is used in a similar sense to "civic nationalism"; liberal nationalism is a kind of nationalism recently defended by political philosophers who believe that there can be a non-xenophobic form of nationalism compatible with liberal values of freedom, tolerance, equality, and individual rights.Yael Tamir. 1993. Liberal Nationalism. Princeton University Press. ; Will Kymlicka. 1995. Multicultural Citizenship. Oxford University Press. ; David Miller. 1995. On Nationality. Oxford University Press. . However, not all "liberal nationalism" is always "civic nationalism"; there are also liberals who advocate moderate nationalism that affirm ethnic identity, also referred to as "liberal ethnonationalism".
Xenophobic movements in long-established Western European states indeed often took a 'civic national' form, rejecting a given group's ability to assimilate with the nation due to its belonging to a cross-border community (ex. Irish Catholics in Britain, Ashkenazi Jews in France). On the other hand, while liberal subnational separatist movements were commonly associated with ethnic nationalism; such nationalists as the Corsican Republic, United Irishmen, Breton Federalist League or Catalan Republican Party could combine a rejection of the unitary civic-national state with a belief in liberal universalism.
During Taiwan's KMT one-party dictatorship, the Kuomintang (KMT) defended Chinese state nationalism. Opposing this, liberals and progressives such as anti-KMT Tangwai politicians or the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) defended Taiwanese-based ethno-nationalism; emphasizing Hoklo-Identity and local-centered nativism. South Korea prioritized South Korean-based "state nationalism" (국가주의) over Korean ethnic nationalism during the right-wing dictatorship; in response, political liberals and leftists defended "liberal [ethnic] nationalism" (자유주의적 민족주의),윤상현 / Yun Sang Hyun (2013). 『사상계』의 근대 국민 주체 형성 기획 — 자유주의적 민족주의 담론을 중심으로 — [Liberal Nationalism among Korean Intellectuals at the Start of the Contemporary Era]. vol., no.11, pp. 47-83 (37 pages) a moderate version of Korean ethnic nationalism. Even today, major left-liberal and progressive nationalists in Taiwan and South Korea advocate anti-imperialistic liberal ethno-nationalism and are critical of right-wing state-nationalism (such as Republic of China nationalism and South Korean [state] nationalism). As countries that had experienced communist dictatorships in the past—including Eastern European countries like North Macedonia—underwent liberalization, they mobilized ethno-nationalism to oppose the authoritarian governments that had suppressed nationalism.
Liberal Zionism is an ideology that combines Zionism—an ethnocultural nationalist ideology—with secular liberal values. Liberal Zionists define Israel as a Jewish and democratic state and support two-state solution and equal rights to Arab citizens of Israel.
In 19th century Europe, liberal movements often affirmed ethnic nationalism in the modern sense along with to topple classical conservatism; István Széchenyi was a representative of liberal ethnic nationalism.
Left-wing ethnonationalism
While left-wing nationalism has a weaker ethnic nationalist component than right-wing nationalism, some national liberation movements have also combined with ethnic nationalism; Northeast Asia and Vietnam's "national liberation" (民族解放, Minzu jiefang) are representative.
Civic nationalism Civic nationalism, sometimes known as democratic nationalism and liberal nationalism, is a political identity built around shared citizenship within the state, with emphasis on political institutions and liberal principles, which its citizens pledge to uphold. It aims to adhere to traditional liberal values of freedom, tolerance, equality, and individual rights, and is not based on ethnocentrism.Tamir, Yael. 1993. Liberal Nationalism. Princeton University Press. ; Will Kymlicka. 1995. Multicultural Citizenship. Oxford University Press. ; David Miller. 1995. On Nationality. Oxford University Press. . Civic nationalists often defend the value of national identity by arguing that individuals need it as a partial shared aspect of their identity to lead meaningful, autonomous livesKymlicka, Will. 1995. Multicultural Citizenship. Oxford University Press. . For criticism, see: Patten, Alan. 1999. "The Autonomy Argument for Liberal Nationalism." Nations and Nationalism. 5(1): 1–17. and that democratic polities need a national identity to function properly.Miller, David. 1995. On Nationality. Oxford University Press. . For criticism, see: Abizadeh, Arash. 2002. "Does Liberal Democracy Presuppose a Cultural Nation? Four Arguments." American Political Science Review 96 (3): 495–509; Abizadeh, Arash. 2004. "Liberal Nationalist versus Postnational Social Integration ." Nations and Nationalism 10(3): 231–250.
Membership in the civic nation is open to every person by citizenship, regardless of culture or ethnicity; those who share these values can be considered members of the nation. In theory, a civic nation or state does not aim to promote one culture over another. German philosopher Jürgen Habermas has argued that immigrants to a liberal-democratic state need not assimilate into the host culture but only accept the principles of the country's constitution (constitutional patriotism).
Donald Ipperciel argues civic nationalism historically was a determining factor in the development of modern constitutional and democratic states. The 20th-century revival of civic nationalism played a key role in the ideological war against racism. However, as the Turkish political scientist Umut Özkirimli states, "civic" nations can be as intolerant and cruel as the so-called "ethnic" nations, citing French Jacobin techniques of persecution that were used by 20th-century fascists.
State nationalism State nationalism, state-based nationalism, state-led nationalism, or "statism" () equates 'state identity' with 'national identity' and values state authority. State nationalism is classified as civic nationalism by the dichotomy that divides nationalism into "civic" and "ethnic", but it is not necessarily liberal and has been present in authoritarian politics. Soviet nationalism, Shōwa Statism, Kemalism, Francoism, and Communist-led Chinese state nationalism are all classified as state nationalism.
Ideological nationalism
Revolutionary nationalism Revolutionary nationalism is a broad label that has been applied to many different types of nationalist political movements that wish to achieve their goals through a revolution against the established order. Individuals and organizations described as being revolutionary nationalist include some political currents within the French Revolution,David A. Bell, "Lingua Populi, Lingua Dei: Language, Religion, and the Origins of French Revolutionary Nationalism" in The American Historical Review, Dec. 1995, Vol. 100, No. 5, p. 1436 Irish republicans engaged in armed struggle against the British crown,Brian Jenkins, Irish Nationalism and the British State: From Repeal to Revolutionary Nationalism, McGill-Queen's University Press, 2006, p. 255 the Can Vuong movement against French rule in 19th century Vietnam,David L. Anderson, edit., The Columbia History of the Vietnam War, Columbia University Press, 2017, chapter: "Setting the Stage: Vietnamese Revolutionary Nationalism and the First Vietnam War," Mark Philip Bradley, p. 96-97 the Indian independence movement in the 20th century,L.N. Rana, "Revolutionary Nationalism in Jharkhand" in Proceedings of the Indian History Congress, 2000–2001, Vol. 61, Part One, p. 718 some participants in the Mexican Revolution,Robert F. Alegre, Railroad Radicals in Cold War Mexico: Gender, Class, and Memory, University of Nebraska Press, 2014, chapter: "'The Mexican Revolution Was Made on the Rails': Revolutionary Nationalism, Class Formation, and the Early Impact of the Cold War," p. 29 Benito Mussolini and the Italian Fascists,A. James Gregor, Young Mussolini and the Intellectual Origins of Fascism, University of California Press, 1979, p. 99 the Autonomous Government of Khorasan,Stephanie Cronin, "An Experiment in Revolutionary Nationalism: The Rebellion of Colonel Muhammad Taqi