Modernization theory is the predominant explanation for emergence of nationalism among scholars of nationalism. Prominent modernization scholars, such as

Ernest Gellner Ernest André Gellner Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland, FRAI (9 December 1925 – 5 November 1995) was a British people, British-Czech people, Czech philosopher and social anthropology, social anthropologist describ ...

Benedict Anderson Benedict Richard O'Gorman Anderson (August 26, 1936 – December 13, 2015) was an Anglo-Irish political scientist and historian who lived and taught in the United States. Anderson is best known for his 1983 book '' Imagined Communities'', which e ...

and Eric Hobsbawn, say nationalism arose with modernization during the late 18th century. Processes that lead to the emergence of nationalism include industrialization and

democratic revolutions Democratic Revolution () is a Chilean Centre-left politics, centre-left to Left-wing politics, left-wing political party, founded in 2012 by some of the leaders of the 2011–13 Chilean student protests, 2011 Chilean student protests, most notab ...

. Modernization theory stands in contrast to primordialism and perennialism, which hold that nations are biological, innate phenomena or that they have ancient roots. Critics such as Anthony D. Smith and Philip Gorski argue that nationalisms did exist prior to

modernity Modernity, a topic in the humanities and social sciences, is both a historical period (the modern era) and the ensemble of particular socio-cultural norms, attitudes and practices that arose in the wake of the Renaissancein the "Age of Reas ...

. Critics have argued that modernization theory's applicability to nationalism in European colonies is limited, as more modernized colonies did not undergo nationalist mobilization earlier.

References

{{reflist, 30em Sociocultural evolution theory Modernity Nationalism studies

See also

References