Russian Nationalism
Creating a Civic Identity
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.36399/GroundingsUG.1.276Keywords:
Nationalism, National Identity, Russia, Soviet, Post-soviet, Identity, Dissent, Civic-based, GovernmentAbstract
A shared sense of identity within a state is a stabilising structure allowing a focus for citizens to rally around. As a multi-ethnic state Russia has always been faced with the problem of how to imbue its citizens with a sense of identity that strengthens the state without causing dissent among the majority ethnic Russians or the many different minorities encapsulated within its territory. The choice between a civic based identity and an ethnically based national identity has faced the ruling apparatus for hundreds of years, and still poses a problem for both the people and the government of today’s Russia.
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