From Waverley to Outlander: reinforcing Scottish diasporic identity through book consumption

ABSTRACT

Books are arguably fundamental to national identity and scholars across various theoretical perspectives perceive books as being integral to the creation, perpetuation, and myths and symbols of nations. This article uses interview data with leaders of Scottish heritage organizations to investigate the role of books in Scottish diasporic identity. This article concludes that books can be a binding force in diaspora communities, and lived diasporic Scots and ancestral Scots consume different types of Scottish books that reflect personalization of myths and symbols presented in these books.     

Scottish devolution and the Scottish diaspora

This paper describes the relationship that exists between Scotland and its diaspora and the ways in which this has changed since the advent of devolution. Based on interviews carried out primarily in the United States, it explores how members of the diaspora have adopted a less historical and sentimental approach to their ‘homeland’ and are increasingly knowledgeable about Scottish constitutional change. In part this has resulted from the growth of the internet and the ease of finding out about developments in Scotland itself, as well as the greater ease and affordability of travel back to Scotland. But, most importantly, the existence of a government in Edinburgh has allowed Scottish politicians and organizations to engage with the diaspora in events such as Tartan Day, in a way in which London-based politicians were never likely to do. Tourist developments promoted by the Scottish government, such as the Year of Homecoming in 2009, have also been highly significant. Thus links between Scotland and its diaspora have been changed and strengthened in various ways.     

1707年英格兰、苏格兰合并的特征

1707年,英格兰、苏格兰合并为大不列颠联合王国。这一合并具有以下特征:遵循了互利原则,英格兰、苏格兰都通过合并得到了自己渴望已久的利益;合并以法律的形式在联合王国内为英格兰、苏格兰各自的民族认同,尤其是为处于弱势的苏格兰民族认同,留有充分的余地。这向世人展示了不同民族以互利、相互尊重为基础,共同营建一个民族国家的理念。     

Statelessness in a world of nation-states: the cases of Kurdish diasporas in Sweden and the UK

Mass displacement in the Middle East is a major political challenge for contemporary Middle Eastern and Western states. As a consequence, statelessness has emerged as one of the central political issues in relation to the collapse and weakening of the states in the Middle East. Through deploying a qualitative inquiry and interviews with 50 Kurdish immigrants, this article investigates how members of Kurdish diasporas in Sweden and the UK conceive and experience statelessness in a world of unequal nation-states and hierarchical citizenship. Since diasporas are important non-state actors in nation-building processes, it is important to analyse their diasporic visions and the ways they challenge or reinforce the power of the nation-state in the context of migration. While from a legal or a right-based approach, the solution to statelessness is found in acquisition of a nationality/citizenship, I posit that in a world structured by the political normativity of the nation-state, nations without states will continue to be in search of national self-determination, political autonomy and sovereignty in the international comity of sovereign nations.     

The Conservative Party and devolved national identities: Scotland and Wales compared

This article focuses on the role of national identity in the behaviour and performance of the Scottish Conservative Party – the main voice of opposition to devolution in the 1990s. In particular, it will address the apparent flat-lining of its popular vote, arguing that this is a direct consequence of the party doggedly adhering to a more traditional form of ‘unionist nationalism’. This can be contrasted with Wales, where the party has adapted well to devolution, and enjoyed a steady improvement in its electoral performances.     

Early Mexican Federalism and the Multiple Origins of Nationhood

Abstract

After independence from Spain in 1821, the provinces of Mexico sought self-government through the creation of a federal republic. The first federal republic, 1824–1835, constituted the creation of a nation. All regions participated in establishing a national identity that was a mosaic of regional identities. A strong centralist-conservative movement, however, opposed federalism because it threatened the traditional hegemony of central elites in Mexico City. Mexican federalism was based on a concept of dual sovereignty, in which both the states and the nation were sovereign. It included universal male suffrage and room for participation by the masses, something which came to trouble political elites of all ideological persuasions. Though overthrown in 1835, Mexican federalism was later resurgent, but the principle that the states had created the nation was gradually lost.     

《东方杂志》与中国西藏

鸦片战争以后,产生了中国近代意义的报刊,这些报刊有官办的,有商办的；有国人自办的,亦有外资创办的。这些报刊的创办者所处的政治文化背景、办报的目的差别很大．但对西藏问题却都十分关注。特别是我国自办的报刊更加关注西藏的重大政治问题,及时报道国家的治藏方略和政策得失,传达国内外关于西藏的信息。文章以《东方杂志》为个案,论述晚清报刊与中国西藏的关系,从而阐明西藏是祖国神圣不可分割的一部分。     

试论民族问题在社会发展中的相对独立性和特殊重要性

长期以来囿于“民族问题是社会革命总问题的一部分”的教条 ,用民族问题与阶级斗争的联系性来否定民族问题的相对独立性是我们难以真正重视民族问题的思想根源。而民族问题的相对独立性是不容忽视的。民族问题的实质是民族交往的负效应。民族问题的复杂性与长期性以及社会主次矛盾的易位都决定了民族问题所具有的相对独立性 ,因而不能把民族问题的实质视为其他社会问题。民族问题与其他社会问题相联系 ,但旧的民族矛盾解决了 ,还会产生新的民族矛盾 ,直至民族的彻底消亡。这就是民族问题所具有的特殊重要性     

关于中华民族构成的思考

"中华民族是由56个兄弟民族组成"的说法是否涉嫌把未识别民族排斥在中华民族大家庭之外,台湾世居少数民族的成分问题也是一个值得重新认识的问题,土生葡人是不是一个单一的民族已经成为必须正视的问题.因此有必要对"中华民族是由56个兄弟民族组成的"的提法进行重新认识.这是关系到国家统一和民族团结的大问题.     

简论国家主权原则与民族自决原则之间关系的演化

国家主权原则和民族自决原则是伴随着近代民族国家的建立而产生的,此后经历了一个发展、演化的复杂过程.在当代,这两大原则都遇到了严峻的挑战,显现出相对化的特征.对于如何应对过度使用民族自决原则挑战国家主权原则的问题,本文也进行了探讨.     

Orgasm and the West. A history of pleasure from the sixteenth century to the present

ABSTRACT

This study analyses the experiences of exiles within international rugby union in Britain. The emphasis is on challenging existing sociological assumptions surrounding national identity and sports labour migration. Eight international rugby exiles were invited to take part in semi-structured interviews and several themes emerged. The major findings from the study demonstrate that exiles are subject to an array of cultural attachments and personal experiences which shape their national identities. As migrants, their repositioning in relation to the nation is increasingly deemed to be the norm in rugby union. However, additional influences were also shown to persist to varying degrees.     

Between citizen and bogus asylum seeker: management of migration in the EU through the technology of morality

The article examines the rationality behind the simultaneous enhancement and restriction of mobility of various categories of migrants in the European Union. Through Foucauldian understanding of economic man as a dominant subjectivity in neoliberal risk society, the article shows how the European migration law produces two types of economic men: EU citizens and bogus asylum seekers. Whereas migration of EU citizens is considered not only rational but also moral behaviour, migration of those perceived as bogus asylum seekers is condemned as immoral and irrational. This differing approach towards EU citizens on the one hand, and asylum seekers on the other, constitutes a mode of governing migration in the EU referred in this article as technology of morality.     

Where and why can expatriates vote in regional elections? A comparative analysis of regional electoral practices in Europe and North America

ABSTRACT

The article constitutes the first systematic attempt to survey and account for the enfranchisement of non-resident citizens in regional elections. Shifting the focus away from the state to the regional demos, it is divided into two parts. First, it examines whether the spectacular horizontal diffusion of external voting legislation widely observed in existing scholarship has also spread vertically to regional elections, through a comparative overview of the conditions of eligibility to the regional franchise in 292 American and European regions. The remarkable diversity of regional electoral arrangements both within and across states calls for a more in-depth explanatory analysis of the ‘micro-foundations of diaspora policy’ in specific regions. The second part thus compares two negative cases, Flanders and Scotland, where expanding the franchise to expatriates has been seriously considered and yet ultimately failed. It goes on to examine the frustrated outcome in the light of three dimensions of the political opportunity structure: whether the region has the power to alter the composition of the demos (self-determination powers), the expected electoral gains and losses among political parties within the regional party system (electoral interests), and the (in)compatibility of extending the suffrage to expatriates with the pursuit of autonomy goals (self-determination aims).     

中越边境广西金龙布傣族群的“天”与天琴

立足田野调查,从起源、仪式、诗经、"巫"身份等方面,系统剖析了中越边境广西龙州县金龙镇布傣族群的"天"信仰、"做天"仪式、"天琴"法师及法事操持者等内容,为深化相关研究提供了基本参考。     

俄语熟语活用的语用依据及其与汉语的对比

俄语熟语活用早已成为语言学家们的重要研究课题,本文试从活用的语用依据入手,对其进行分析和探讨,以揭示其本质的、规律性的特征,并且通过俄汉两种语言中熟语活用的对比,发现二者的共性与差异。     

新民主主义革命时期中国共产党提升中华民族凝聚力的贡献

新民主主义革命时期是中华民族凝聚力提升的重要历史时期,中国共产党通过“对外求民族独立,对内求民族平等”的革命斗争践行中华民族共同体意识,引领中华民族全面觉醒并凝聚一体,真正意义上结束了中华民族百年屈辱史,将中华民族凝聚力提升到新的高度。欲知大道,必先为史,新民主主义革命时期中国共产党提升中华民族凝聚力的重要贡献体现在：坚持武装夺取政权的革命道路,为提升中华民族凝聚力提供战略保障;建立争取民族独立民族解放统一战线,为提升中华民族凝聚力奠定牢固的阶级基础;构筑新的社会秩序,为提升中华民族凝聚力培育适宜的社会环境。中国共产党在浴血奋斗的28年里将爱国主义精神贯穿始终,将祖国统一的前景一一描绘,使中华各民族实现了真正的民族平等、民族团结,增强各民族之间的凝聚力与向心力。     

民国时期的“回族界说”与中国共产党《回回民族问题》的理论意义

现有研究表明,中国讲汉语的回回在晚明已经形成为一个具有共同祖先认同的独特的族类群体(民族),但是到晚清特别是辛亥革命之后,出现回回学者关于"回族界说"的争议,而且大多数回回精英都不主张回族是一个独立的"民族",也不赞成使用"回族"的称呼。本文认为回回精英的这种立场,主要是因为从西方传入的"民族"概念蕴含"一个民族一个国家"的意义,而中国的回回用"争教不争国"表达了在政治上认同中国的生存策略。这种生存策略的确定,不仅与清代后期的民族压迫有关,而且也受到民国期间中国大社会(国民党和大多数主流学者)的"民族"理论和方针的影响。反观中国共产党的《回回民族问题》(1941年),一方面尊重学理,没有否认中国多民族国家中存在汉族以外的"民族";另一方面修正了少数民族"民族自决"的主张,改为民族平等下的"民族自治"。其在学理上确立了多民族国家中真正实行民族平等政策的理论基础,同时也为中国回回民族指明了不需要否认自己民族身份的发展道路。     

Diaspora mobilisation for conflict and post-conflict reconstruction: contextual and comparative dimensions

ABSTRACT

This special issue seeks to move the scholarly conversation beyond notions of conflict-generated diasporas as simply agents of conflict or peace. The field is ripe to unpack the notion of context for diaspora mobilisation in International Relations, the focus and novelty of this special issue. Theorising in this volume goes beyond current prevalent thinking that contexts are host-states in which diasporas live, and original home-states to which they are transnationally connected. The emphasis here is that diasporas have linkages to different contexts, and that their embeddedness in these contexts – simultaneously or sequentially in time – either shapes their mobilizations or is shaped by them. The volume theorises about spatialities and temporalities of diaspora engagement: it emphasises spatial notions such as multi-sited embeddedness, positionality, and translocalism on the one side, and temporal notions such as critical junctures, transformative events, simultaneity, crises, and durability of conflicts on the other. This collection further adds new thematic areas to current scholarly inquiry, opening the discussion beyond interest in diaspora remittances, economic development, and extraterritorial voting. The authors take little-explored paths to examine diasporas as agents in transitional justice processes, contested sovereignty, and fragile and de facto states, as well as in civic and ethnic-based activism.     

Prolegomenon: Glocality at the bus terminal: space and the enactment of transnational citizenships

This paper is an initial examination the significance of spatial relations to the constitution of transnational citizenships. Specifically, the paper explores practices of place and space in a Barbadian bus terminal. This terminal is a rich site at which citizens, migrants, state managers and economic elites contest the meanings of both Barbadian citizenship and the Caribbean regional integration movement. It is an integration movement prompted, in part, by the imperatives of globalization – trading blocs are a matter of survival. Yet the movement of people that is facilitated by this regional project is made even more complex by those colonial legacies of international migrations – forced and otherwise – which have shaped race relations in the region.