Nationalism from Nation to Statehood

Compared to the plethora of publications dealing with the break-up of Yugoslavia and its constituent nations, the emergence of Slovenia has hardly been awarded any attention. Offering a comprehensive sociological account of the development of Slovenian nation and national identity and examining the process of creation of Slovenian state, this book fills the gap in existing research by analysing nationalism in its plurality and complexity as both a pre-statehood and post-independence phenomenon. The Slovenian case exhibits the interlinking of nationhood and statehood, for the political claim to statehood was dependent on the construction of a shared cultural Slovenian identity, as much as on the broader historical circumstances that favoured Slovenia’s independence. The concept of nationalism is shown to entail nationalist endeavours for a separate cultural identity, political movement for independent statehood, as well as nationalistic practices promoting the dominant nation. Apart from professionals in the field of nation and nationalism studies, the book should attract all interested in the Central-Eastern Europe, post-communist transformations, and so-called stateless nations.