The Death of Belonging? Interactions between Neo-Medievalism, Security and National Identity

Justin Gibbins, Zayed University

Document Type

Article

Source of Publication

Social Evolution and History

Publication Date

3-1-2023

Abstract

New medievalism or neo-medievalism challenges the authority and capacity of the state. This weakening or hollowing out of the state has implications most notably for security. This is because a host of actors compete against and adulterate the state's monopoly on violence. Identities are also impacted by neo-medievalism, with multiple, cross-cutting and transnational networks of belonging all becoming more prevalent. However, a neglected area within the literature are the impacts on national identity: the perceived sense of belonging to a nation based on shared culture, memories or institutions. National identity is seen as becoming increasingly obsolete due to the myriad of state challengers. This paper instead argues that neo-medieval security considerations are themselves shaping national identity in different ways. This is addressed by examining the impacts of three such devel-opments: the changing nature of warfare, the increasing role of nonstate actors and the prevalence of transnational organizations.

ISSN

1681-4363

Publisher

Uchitel Publishing House

Volume

22

Issue

1

First Page

77

Last Page

101

Disciplines

Social and Behavioral Sciences

Keywords

national identity, neo-medievalism, organizations, security, states

Scopus ID

85159294867

Indexed in Scopus

yes

Open Access

yes

Open Access Type

Gold: This publication is openly available in an open access journal/series

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