Editing Nation (section)

== Etymology and terminology ==
The English word ''nation'' from [[Middle English]] c. 1300, ''nacioun'' "a race of people, large group of people with common ancestry and language," from [[Old French]] ''nacion'' "birth (''naissance''), rank; descendants, relatives; country, homeland" (12c.) and directly from [[Latin]] ''nationem'' (nominative [[wikt:Special:Search/natio|''natio'']] ''(nātĭō), supine of verb nascar « to birth » ([[supine]] : natum)'') "birth, origin; breed, stock, kind, species; race of people, tribe," literally "that which has been born," from ''natus'', past participle of ''nasci'' "be born" ([[Old Latin]] ''gnasci''), from [[Proto-Indo-European language|PIE]] root *gene- "give birth, beget," with derivatives referring to procreation and familial and tribal groups.<ref>{{Cite web |title=nation {{!}} Etymology of nation by etymonline |url=https://www.etymonline.com/word/nation |access-date=2024-01-24 |website=www.etymonline.com |language=en}}</ref>

In Latin, ''natio'' represents the children of the same birth and also a human group of same origin.<ref>Dictionnaire ''[[Le Petit Robert]]'', édition 2002.</ref> By [[Cicero]], ''natio'' is used for "people".<ref>''Dictionnaire Latin-Français'', [[Félix Gaffiot|Gaffiot]].</ref>

''[[Black's Law Dictionary]]'' defines a nation as follows:
<blockquote>'''nation''', ''n.'' (14c) '''1.''' A large group of people having a common origin, language, tradition, and usage constitutes a political entity. • When a nation is coincident with a state, the term ''nation-state'' is often used....
<P>...</P>
'''2.''' A community of people inhabiting a defined territory and organized under an independent government; a sovereign political state....<ref name = "black">{{cite dictionary |dictionary=[[Black's Law Dictionary]] |edition=10th |date=2014 |isbn=978-0-314-61300-4 |title=nation |page=1183 |publisher=Thomson Reuters |editor-first=Bryan A. |editor-last=Garner}}</ref></blockquote>

The word "nation" is sometimes used as synonym for:
* [[State (polity)]] or [[sovereign state]]: a government that controls a specific territory, which may or may not be associated with any particular ethnic group
* [[Country]]: a geographic territory, which may or may not have an affiliation with a government or ethnic group
* [[Ethnic group]] in older texts due to its original meaning and etymology

Thus the phrase "nations of the world" could be referring to the top-level governments (as in the name for the [[United Nations]]), various large geographical territories, or various large ethnic groups of the planet.

Depending on the meaning of "nation" used, the term "[[nation state]]" could be used to distinguish larger states from small [[city state]]s, or could be used to distinguish [[multinational state]]s from those with a single ethnic group.