Economi gwleidyddol cenedlaetholdeb: Cenhedloedd di-wladwriaeth a’r system-fyd yn y longue duree / The political economy of nationalism: Stateless nations and the world-system in the longue durée

Parry, Samuel 2024. Economi gwleidyddol cenedlaetholdeb: Cenhedloedd di-wladwriaeth a’r system-fyd yn y longue duree / The political economy of nationalism: Stateless nations and the world-system in the longue durée. PhD Thesis, Cardiff University. Item availability restricted.

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Abstract

This research has two objectives: firstly, to analyse the long-term factors behind differences in economic development and spatial inequality; and secondly, to uncover whether this spatial inequality affects the salience of secessionism. To achieve this, factors such as history, geography, politics, and institutions will be examined. This thesis posits that to understand the economy of a place, it must first be situated within a world-system. By adopting a holistic approach, this analysis more fully illuminates the internal contradictions and socio-economic struggles within a particular place, as these are shaped by the world-system. This work incorporates a Longue Durée approach to history, popularized by the Annales School and Fernand Braudel. This form of analysis involves moving away from viewing nationalism as spatiotemporally permanent. A Longue Durée approach helps to uncover when, how, and why nations develop, and by understanding their origins, we will be better equipped to understand these movements today. This thesis specifically examines the role of stateless European nations within the world-system to determine whether their economic position is primarily due to their statelessness or other factors such as geography or history. Given their nature as stateless nations, secessionism is at least a hypothetically viable option for these places. This work will therefore address how nationalist politics interacts with economic structure, as well as the ensuing reaction of majority nationalism to minority nationalism within the world-system. The main case studies chosen for this analysis are: Wales within the United Kingdom, Catalunya within Spain, and the Mezzogiorno and Padania within Italy. Each of these case studies is geographically close to the core of the international iii world-system, yet each has a distinct set of economic structures and outcomes. The question, therefore, is what separates them and what binds them. This thesis finds that the form of incorporation into the central state is a stronger explanator for differences in economic development levels than the date of incorporation. Furthermore, geography and its interaction with the economic base are vital in understanding the long-term economic development of each case study. Of particular importance, it appears that some form of economic independence (formal or informal) allows for developmental policies that positively improve the position of stateless nations. This seems a necessary but not sufficient factor in explaining differences in economic development. Finally, the salience of nationalism appears not to be linked with the unevenness of economic development per se, but rather with the unevenness of economic development during times of state crisis. Conditions at the level of the world-system affect the salience and internal composition of nationalism within the state.

Item Type:	Thesis (PhD)
Date Type:	Completion
Status:	Unpublished
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General)
Uncontrolled Keywords:	English: Nationalism Political Economy World Systems Longue Duree Wales Spain Italy Capitalism Development Europe Economics Welsh: Cenedlaetholdeb Economi Gwleidyddol Systemau Byd Longue Duree Cymru Sbaen Yr Eidal Cyfalafiaeth Datblygiad Ewrop Economeg
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	28 August 2024
Last Modified:	14 Nov 2024 17:19
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/171588

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