This is a lexicon entry that gathers the technical meaning of this term in Shahrur across his different books, and connects its various uses.
This entry belongs to Shahrur’s lexicon. For reading by theme, one may refer to Shahrur’s major themes and shared concepts.
The meaning according to Shahrur
Nationalism is a bond based on the unity of tongue, language, and thought among a rational group. It indicates a level of belonging that distinguishes the group from others without confining identity to a single element or making it an instrument of exclusion.
Distinctions
- It differs from the ummah because the ummah is broader in meaning and is not confined to the bond of language and thought alone
- It differs from the group when the group is understood in terms of behavior, system, or otherwise, whereas nationalism is specifically tied to the bond of language, tongue, and thought.
Passages from his books
- Drying Up the Sources of Terrorism: nationalism is understood in the source as a bond of language, tongue, and thought among a rational group. The author makes it a level of belonging distinct from the ummah and the people, so that identity is not reduced to a single dimension and is not used to justify exclusion
What is adjacent to it and what differs from it
- The ummah
- Mutual recognition and multiple belonging produce a group without contradiction
- The group is defined by behavior, language, or system
- Nationalism is the bond of language and thought
- Multiple levels of belonging
- There is no contradiction between belongings