On territory, the nation-state and the crisis of the hyphen

Abstract

This article aims to stimulate a new theoretical debate around the notion of territory in the age of globalization. Rather than espousing the neoliberalist view on de-territorialization or contributing to the examination of the new 'spatial fixes' associated with the re-territorialization of modes of capital production and accumulation, the article focuses on the politicoinstitutional dimension of territory. My argument is that we should not limit our understanding of territory to a device in the hands of the state to control and to contain people, but explore the role that territory plays as a principle of social organization and integration in today's multicultural societies. This argument is discussed in relation to the so-called 'crisis of the hyphen', i.e. the increasingly problematic link between the nation and the state within Western European societies.

Immigration societies and the question of ‘the national’

“…Instead, it redirects the analytical gaze towards the importance of the very act of sharing a common national territory (Antonsich, 2009). This sharing produces habits and sensibilities which in turn (co)produce a nationally scaled collective and its distinctiveness (Antonsich 2009), as increasingly, if implicitly, acknowledged also in state-led reconceptualizations of national citizenship in countries like Germany away from jus sanguinis and towards jus domicili (Matejskova, 2013). This continuously (re)produced national can be examined in a myriad of ways, including its inscription in the landscape as a material, mundane presence or its working as a common temporal matrix in the organization of people's everyday lives (Edensor, 2002).…”

Images and identity: Children constructing a sense of belonging to Europe

“…It is no longer easy to untangle who counts as a fellow citizen, and at what level where political loyalties are frequently spread across national boundaries (Anderson, 1991;Healy, 2013;Antonsich, 2009). In such circumstances, Clark argues that migrants are more likely to develop multiple attachments and allegiances beyond the boundaries of the state (Clark, 2009).…”

“…Benhabib, for example, suggests that the development of a European identity enables citizens to encompass a much richer sense of solidarity with broader groups (Benhabib, 2004). Nevertheless, the image of 'the citizen' has come under considerable scrutiny as all too often relying on definitions that are situated in highly territorial ways (Keating, 2009;Antonsich, 2009). However, the perceived disconnect to the EU by its citizens has led many scholars to speculate as to why the emergence of a sense of European identity has yet to fully emerge (Agirdag et al, 2012).…”

Editorial: Ethno-cultural diversity and contemporary national societies

“…We stress the importance of paying attention to the scale of the nation without making assumptions about its oppressive or homogenising tendencies. Instead, there is a need to deconstruct and dissect the nation, both as a notion and practice, exactly at a time when it faces enduring mistrust in scholarly work dealing with diversity and change (Antonsich 2009). We contend that the national scale is an important one to hold onto even as it interacts with other scales; it is a necessary scale, which still permeates and affects people's lives and identities in myriad ways, and the specific practices, negotiations and processes that occur as a result need to be examined.…”