Editing Irredentism (section)

== Related concepts ==
=== Ethnicity ===
Ethnicity plays a central role in irredentism since most irredentist states justify their [[expansionist]] agenda based on shared ethnicity. In this regard, the goal of unifying parts of an ethnic group in a common nation-state is used as a justification for annexing foreign territories and going to war if the neighboring state resists.{{sfn|Lagasse|Goldman|Hobson|Norton|2020|loc=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/reference/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/irredentism Irredentism]}}{{sfn|White|Millett|2019|p=419}}{{sfn|Ambrosio|2011|pp=1346–1348|loc=irredentism}} Ethnicity is a grouping of people according to a set of shared attributes and similarities. It divides people into groups based on attributes like physical features, customs, [[tradition]], historical background, [[language]], [[culture]], [[religion]], and values.{{sfn|Chandra|2012|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=UPNQEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA64 64, 69–70]}}{{sfn|Richardson-Bouie|2003|loc=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/reference/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/ethnic-variationethnicity Ethnic Variation/Ethnicity]}}{{sfn|Law|2008|loc=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences-and-law/sociology-and-social-reform/sociology-general-terms-and-concepts/ethnicity Ethnicity]}} Not all these factors are equally relevant for every ethnic group. For some groups, one factor may predominate, as in [[ethno-linguistic]], ethno-racial, and [[ethno-religious]] identities. In most cases, ethnic identities are based on a set of common features.{{sfn|Alba|1992|loc=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences-and-law/sociology-and-social-reform/sociology-general-terms-and-concepts/ethnicity Ethnicity]}}{{sfn|Taras|Ganguly|2015|loc=1. Ethnic Conflict on the World Stage: Definitions}}

A central aspect of many ethnic identities is that all members share a common homeland or place of origin. This place of origin does not have to correspond to the area where the majority of the ethnic group currently lives in case they migrated from their homeland. Another feature is a common language or [[dialect]]. In many cases, religion also forms a vital aspect of ethnicity. Shared culture is another significant factor. It is a wide term and can include characteristic social institutions, diet, dress, and other practices. It is often difficult to draw clear boundaries between people based on their ethnicity.{{sfn|Law|2008|loc=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences-and-law/sociology-and-social-reform/sociology-general-terms-and-concepts/ethnicity Ethnicity]}} For this reason, some definitions focus less on actual objective features and stress instead that what unites an ethnic group is a subjective belief that such common features exist. In this view, the common belief matters more than the extent to which those shared features actually exist.{{sfn|Law|2008|loc=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences-and-law/sociology-and-social-reform/sociology-general-terms-and-concepts/ethnicity Ethnicity]}}{{sfn|Alba|1992|loc=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences-and-law/sociology-and-social-reform/sociology-general-terms-and-concepts/ethnicity Ethnicity]}} Examples of large ethnic groups are the [[Han Chinese]], the [[Arabs]], the [[Bengalis]], the [[Punjabis]], and the [[Turkish people|Turks]].{{sfn|Law|2008|loc=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences-and-law/sociology-and-social-reform/sociology-general-terms-and-concepts/ethnicity Ethnicity]}}{{sfn|Radstone|Wilson|2020}}

Some theorists, like [[sociologist]] John Milton Yinger, use terms like ''ethnic group'' or ''ethnicity'' as near-synonyms for ''nation''.{{sfn|Yinger|1994|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=ZVpBivDW8eYC&pg=PA11 11]}} Nations are usually based on ethnicity but what sets them apart from ethnicity is their political form as a state or a state-like entity. The physical and visible aspects of ethnicity, such as skin color and facial features, are often referred to as [[Race (human categorization)|race]], which may thus be understood as a subset of ethnicity.{{sfn|Law|2008|loc=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences-and-law/sociology-and-social-reform/sociology-general-terms-and-concepts/ethnicity Ethnicity]}} However, some theorists, like sociologist Pierre van den Berghe, contrast the two by restricting ethnicity to cultural traits and race to physical traits.{{sfn|Alba|1992|loc=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences-and-law/sociology-and-social-reform/sociology-general-terms-and-concepts/ethnicity Ethnicity]}}

Ethnic solidarity can provide a sense of belonging as well as physical and mental security. It can help people identify with a common purpose.{{sfn|Law|2008|loc=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences-and-law/sociology-and-social-reform/sociology-general-terms-and-concepts/ethnicity Ethnicity]}} However, ethnicity has also been the source of many conflicts. It has been responsible for various forms of [[mass violence]], including [[ethnic cleansing]] and [[genocide]]. The perpetrators usually form part of the ruling majority and target ethnic minority groups.{{sfn|Law|2008|loc=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences-and-law/sociology-and-social-reform/sociology-general-terms-and-concepts/ethnicity Ethnicity]}}{{sfn|Sherrer|2005}} Not all ethnic-based conflicts involve mass violence, like many forms of [[ethnic discrimination]].{{sfn|Law|2008|loc=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences-and-law/sociology-and-social-reform/sociology-general-terms-and-concepts/ethnicity Ethnicity]}}

=== Nationalism and nation-state===
{{main|Nationalism|Nation state}}
Irredentism is often seen as a product of modern nationalism, i.e. the claim that a nation should have its own sovereign state.{{sfn|Lagasse|Goldman|Hobson|Norton|2020|loc=[https://www.encyclopedia.com/reference/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/irredentism Irredentism]}}{{sfn|White|Millett|2019|p=420}} In this regard, irredentism emerged with and depends on the modern idea of nation-states.{{sfn|Clarke|Foweraker|2003|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=eT9PEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA375 375–376]}} The start of modern nationalism is often associated with the French Revolution in 1789. This spawned various nationalist [[revolution]]s in Europe around the mid-nineteenth century. They often resulted in a replacement of [[Dynasty|dynastic]] imperial governments.{{sfn|White|Millett|2019|p=420}} A central aspect of nationalism is that it sees states as entities with clearly delimited borders that should correspond to national boundaries.{{sfn|Clarke|Foweraker|2003|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=eT9PEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA375 375–376]}}{{sfn|Kornprobst|2008|pp=7–8}} Irredentism reflects the importance people ascribe to these borders and how exactly they are drawn. One difficulty in this regard is that the exact boundaries are often difficult to justify and are therefore challenged in favor of alternatives. Irredentism manifests some of the most aggressive aspects of modern nationalism.{{sfn|Griffiths|O'Callaghan|Roach|2008|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=9vU7xX4eNf4C&pg=PA175 175–177]}} It can be seen as a side effect of nationalism paired with the importance it ascribes to borders and the difficulties in agreeing on them.{{sfn|Clarke|Foweraker|2003|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=eT9PEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA375 375–376]}}{{sfn|Kornprobst|2008|pp=10–11}}

=== Secession ===
{{main|Secession}}
[[File:US Secession map 1861.svg|thumb|alt=Map showing the secession of southern states surrounding the events of the American Civil War|Surrounding the events of the [[American Civil War]], various southern states (shown in bright and dark red) seceded from the [[United States]].]]
Irredentism is closely related to secession.{{sfn|Ambrosio|2011|pp=1346–1348|loc=irredentism}}{{sfn|Saideman|Ayres|2000|pp=[https://www.jstor.org/stable/2647868 1126–1144]}}{{sfn|Horowitz|2011|p=158}} Secession can be defined as "an attempt by an ethnic group claiming a homeland to withdraw with its territory from the authority of a larger state of which it is a part."{{sfn|Horowitz|2011|p=158}} Irredentism, by contrast, is initiated by members of an ethnic group in one state to incorporate territories across their border housing ethnically kindred people.{{sfn|Horowitz|2011|p=158}} Secession happens when a part of an existing state breaks away to form an independent entity. This was the case, for example, in the [[United States]], when many of the [[Slavery|slaveholding]] southern states decided to secede from the Union to form the [[Confederate States of America]] in 1861.{{sfn|Ackermann|Schroeder|Terry|Upshur|2008b|p=4}}{{sfn|Griffiths|O'Callaghan|Roach|2008|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=9vU7xX4eNf4C&pg=PA175 175–177]}}

In the case of irredentism, the break-away area does not become independent but merges into another entity.{{sfn|Griffiths|O'Callaghan|Roach|2008|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=9vU7xX4eNf4C&pg=PA175 175–177]}}{{sfn|Ambrosio|2011|pp=1346–1348|loc=irredentism}}{{sfn|Clarke|Foweraker|2003|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=eT9PEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA375 375–376]}} Irredentism is often seen as a government decision, unlike secession.{{sfn|Siroky|Hale|2017|p=1}} Both movements are influential phenomena in contemporary politics but, as Horowitz argues, secession movements are much more frequent in [[postcolonial]] states. However, he also holds that secession movements are less likely to succeed since they usually have very few military resources compared to irredentist states. For this reason, they normally need prolonged external assistance, often from another state.{{sfn|Horowitz|2011|pp=159–160}} However, such state policies are subject to change. For example, the Indian government supported the [[Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam|Sri Lankan Tamil secessionists]] up to 1987 but then reach an [[Indian intervention in the Sri Lankan Civil War|agreement with the Sri Lankan government]] and helped suppress the movement.{{sfn|Horowitz|2011|p=162}}{{sfn|Senaratne|2021|pp=[https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/abs/internal-selfdetermination-in-international-law/sri-lanka/A82170DEF8B07A020F676BBC01C9DEBF 155–194]|loc=Sri Lanka: A Case Study}}{{sfn|Ackermann|Schroeder|Terry|Upshur|2008a|pp=403–404}}

[[File:Cold War border changes.png|thumb|left|260px|Changes in national boundaries after the end of the [[Cold War]] and the [[dissolution of the Soviet Union]] and [[breakup of Yugoslavia]]]]
Horowitz holds that it is important to distinguish secessionist and irredentist movements since they differ significantly concerning their motivation, context, and goals.{{sfn|Horowitz|2011|pp=159–160}} Despite these differences, irredentism and secessionism are closely related nonetheless.{{sfn|Ambrosio|2011|pp=1346–1348|loc=irredentism}}{{sfn|Saideman|Ayres|2000|pp=[https://www.jstor.org/stable/2647868 1126–1144]}} In some cases, the two tendencies may exist side by side. It is also possible that the advocates of one movement change their outlook and promote the other. Whether a movement favors irredentism or secessionism is determined, among other things, by the prospects of forming an independent state in contrast to joining another state.{{sfn|Horowitz|2011|pp=160–161}} A further factor is whether the irredentist state is likely to espouse a similar [[ideology]] to the one found in the territory intending to break away. The anticipated reaction of the international community is an additional factor, i.e. whether it would embrace, tolerate, or reject the detachment or the absorption by another state.{{sfn|Horowitz|2011|pp=161–162}}

=== Revanchism ===
Irredentism and [[revanchism]] are closely related, differing in terms of motive.{{sfn|Wittmann|2016|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=lm91DQAAQBAJ&pg=PA301 301–302]}}{{sfn|Burnett|2020|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=OprzDwAAQBAJ&pg=PR17 xvii]}}{{sfn|Nolan|2002|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=4-LnRiwEgR0C&pg=PA1400 1400]}} Irredentism has a positive goal of building a "greater" state that fulfills the ideals of a nation-state. It aims to unify people claimed to belong together through their shared national identity based on ethnicity, culture, and history.{{sfn|White|Millett|2019|p=420}}{{sfn|Clarke|Foweraker|2003|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=eT9PEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA375 375–376]}}{{sfn|Wittmann|2016|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=lm91DQAAQBAJ&pg=PA301 301–302]}}

The goal for revanchism is more negative because it focuses on [[revenge]] for some earlier [[grievance]] or injustice and aims to reverse territorial losses due to a previous defeat.{{sfn|Wittmann|2016|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=lm91DQAAQBAJ&pg=PA301 301–302]}}{{sfn|Margalit|2009|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=tk8xNAyKrfkC&pg=PA69 69]}}{{sfn|Ghervas|2021|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=dnseEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA151 151]}} Contrasting irredentism with revanchism, political scientist Anna M. Wittmann argues that Germany's annexation of the Sudetenland in 1938 constitutes irredentism because of its emphasis on a shared language and ethnicity, whereas Germany's [[invasion of Poland]] the following year constitutes revanchism due to its justification as revenge for previous territorial losses.{{sfn|Wittmann|2016|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=lm91DQAAQBAJ&pg=PA301 301–302]}} The term "revanchism" comes from the French term {{lang|fr|revanche}}, meaning ''revenge''.{{sfn|Wittmann|2016|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=lm91DQAAQBAJ&pg=PA301 301–302]}}{{sfn|Nolan|2002|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=4-LnRiwEgR0C&pg=PA1400 1400]}} It was originally used in the aftermath of the [[Franco-Prussian War]] for nationalists intending to reclaim the lost territory of [[Alsace-Lorraine]].{{sfn|Wittmann|2016|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=lm91DQAAQBAJ&pg=PA301 301–302]}} [[Saddam Hussein]] justified the [[Iraqi invasion of Kuwait]] in 1990 by claiming [[Kuwait]] had always been an integral part of Iraq and only became an independent nation due to the interference of the British Empire.{{sfn|Humphreys|2005|p=[https://books.google.com/books?id=37kwDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA105 105]}}