"Scaling" the Nation State - Religion, Language and Ethnicity in Asia and Europe

Abstract

In Asia and Europe, as in many other regions around the world, shifting perceptions of “nationhood” and a renegotiation of what it means to belong to a “nation state” have surfaced. What, for instance, does being Japanese or German entail today? While citizenship and nationality (passport) are still relevant in formal procedures and for the entitlement to enjoy certain rights, religion, ethnicity and language play increasingly prominent roles in the formation of an emotional affiliation with a “nation”. This becomes evident, for instance, among migrant communities who may enjoy formal citizenship rights but whose ethnic, cultural, religious or linguistic needs are rarely catered to – e.g. with regard to public holidays, official information in one’s first or heritage language, diet restrictions, religiously informed rituals, political representation, etc.