Medieval Antecedents of the Modern Nations
Medieval Antecedents of the Modern Nations

Summary/Abstract: The term “nation” with its derivatives is current in every day contemporary life, recurring frequently and drawing attention after the fall of the communist regimes in Europe. The most comprehensive international institution of the states of the world today is called “The United Nations” (UN). On the other hand, one talks more and more frequently about “globalization” or “mondialization,” about a “united Europe,” about a “regional Europe,” all often considered opposite realities to a world divided among nations. Many theorists consider that nations are an obsolete reality, which has caused great conflicts and suffering and which needs to be replaced with new forms of human community, more adequate to the exigencies of mankind. There are several arguments in this sense: on the one hand, today there are more trans-national organizations and institutions than there have ever been; on the other hand, there has never been such an emphasis on the autonomy of regions, on local and regional languages, on the decentralizing of national states in previous times during the modern and contemporary period.

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