Ultranationalism or extreme nationalism is an extreme form of nationalism in which a country asserts or maintains detrimental hegemony, supremacy, or other forms of control over other nations (usually through violent

coercion Coercion () is compelling a party to act in an involuntary manner by the use of threats, including threats to use force against a party. It involves a set of forceful actions which violate the free will of an individual in order to induce a desi ...

) to pursue its specific interests. Ultranationalist entities have been associated with the engagement of

political violence Political violence is violence which is perpetrated in order to achieve political goals. It can include violence which is used by a state against other states (war), violence which is used by a state against civilians and non-state actors (forced ...

even during peacetime. In ideological terms, scholars such as British political theorist Roger Griffin have found that ultranationalism arises from seeing

modern Modern may refer to: History * Modern history ** Early Modern period ** Late Modern period *** 18th century *** 19th century *** 20th century ** Contemporary history * Moderns, a faction of Freemasonry that existed in the 18th century Phil ...

nation-states A nation state is a political unit where the state and nation are congruent. It is a more precise concept than "country", since a country does not need to have a predominant ethnic group. A nation, in the sense of a common ethnicity, may i ...

as living organisms directly akin to physical people such that they can decay, grow, die, and additionally experience rebirth. Political campaigners have divided societies in stark

mythological Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrat ...

ways between those perceived as degenerately inferior and those perceived as a part of a great

cultural Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human Society, societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, and habits of the ...

destiny. Ultranationalism is an aspect of fascism, with historic governments such as the regime of Nazi Germany building on ultranationalist foundations using specific plans of supposed widespread national renewal.

Background concepts and broader context

According to Janusz Bugajski, "in its most extreme or developed forms, ultra-nationalism resembles fascism, marked by a xenophobic disdain of other nations, support for authoritarian political arrangements verging on totalitarianism, and a mythical emphasis on the 'organic unity' between a charismatic leader, an organizationally amorphous movement-type party, and the nation". British political theorist Roger Griffin has stated that ultranationalism is essentially founded on xenophobia in a way that finds supposed legitimacy "through deeply mythicized narratives of past cultural or political periods of historical greatness or of old scores to settle against alleged enemies". It can also draw on "vulgarized forms" of different aspects of the natural sciences such as anthropology and genetics, eugenics specifically playing a role, in order "to rationalize ideas of national superiority and destiny, of degeneracy and subhumanness" in Griffin's opinion. Ultranationalists view the

nation-state A nation state is a political unit where the state and nation are congruent. It is a more precise concept than "country", since a country does not need to have a predominant ethnic group. A nation, in the sense of a common ethnicity, may inc ...

as, according to Griffin, a living organism directly akin to a physical person such that it can decay, grow, die, and additionally experience rebirth. He has highlighted Nazi Germany as a regime founded on ultranationalism.

Historical movements and analysis

U.S. historian Walter Skya has written in ''Japan’s Holy War: The Ideology of Radical Shinto Ultranationalism'' that ultranationalism in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

drew upon traditional Shinto spiritual beliefs and militaristic attitudes regarding the nation's

racial identity A race is a categorization of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into groups generally viewed as distinct within a given society. The term came into common usage during the 1500s, when it was used to refer to groups of variou ...

. By the early twentieth century, fanaticism arising from this combination of ethnic nationalism and religious nationalism caused opposition to

democratic governance Democracy (From grc, δημοκρατία, dēmokratía, ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which the people have the authority to deliberate and decide legislation (" direct democracy"), or to choose gov ...

and support for Japanese territorial expansion. Skya particularly noted in his work the connection between ultranationalism and

by citing how, between 1921 and 1936, three serving and two former Prime Ministers of Japan were

assassinated Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have a ...

. The totalitarian Japanese government of the 1930s and 1940s relied not just on encouragement by the country's military but additionally enjoyed widespread popular support. Israeli political journalist

Gideon Levy Gideon Levy ( he, גדעון לוי; born 2 June 1953) is an Israeli journalist and author. Levy writes opinion pieces and a weekly column for the newspaper ''Haaretz'' that often focus on the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories. ...

wrote in late 2015 that the

Israeli-Palestinian conflict Israelis ( he, יִשְׂרָאֵלִים‎, translit=Yīśrāʾēlīm; ar, الإسرائيليين, translit=al-ʾIsrāʾīliyyin) are the citizens and nationals of the State of Israel. The country's populace is composed primarily of Jew ...

has led to a decay in the civil society within Israel, with an ultranationalist movement that "bases its power on incitement to hatred" using "folkloric religion" gaining ground over decades such that: Russian irredentism in which a militant

imperial state An Imperial State or Imperial Estate ( la, Status Imperii; german: Reichsstand, plural: ') was a part of the Holy Roman Empire with representation and the right to vote in the Imperial Diet ('). Rulers of these Estates were able to exercise si ...

is proposed that stretches across both Asia and Europe without regard for current international borders has been described as ultranationalism by the U.S. publication '' Los Angeles Times'', with the aggressive actions of Russian President Vladimir Putin being credited as an evolution of political arguments by multiple figures from the past. Examples include

Nikolai Berdyaev Nikolai Alexandrovich Berdyaev (; russian: Никола́й Алекса́ндрович Бердя́ев; – 24 March 1948) was a Russian Empire, Russian philosopher, theologian, and Christian existentialism, Christian existentialist who e ...

, Aleksandr Dugin (the author of 1997's '' The Foundations of Geopolitics: The Geopolitical Future of Russia''), Lev Gumilyov, and Ivan Ilyin. The newspaper highlighted the justifications given in support of the

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...

, quoting Putin's declaration that he must militarily combat an "empire of lies" created by the U.S. to suffocate Russia. The absolute dictatorship of

Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania **Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language ***Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language **Romanian cuisine, traditional ...

leader

Nicolae Ceausescu Nicolae may refer to: * Nicolae (name), a Romanian name * ''Nicolae'' (novel), a 1997 novel See also *Nicolai (disambiguation) *Nicolao Nicolao is an Italian given name and a surname. It may refer to the following: Given name *Nicolao Civitali ...

has been described as an example of communism taking an ultranationalist approach by ''

Haaretz ''Haaretz'' ( , originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , ) is an Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel, and is now published in both Hebrew and English in the Berliner f ...

''. The Israeli publication cited the

antisemitism Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

of the dictator in terms of actions such as his

historical denialism Historical negationism, also called denialism, is falsification or distortion of the historical record. It should not be conflated with '' historical revisionism'', a broader term that extends to newly evidenced, fairly reasoned academic reinter ...

about the Holocaust. Ceausescu additionally took efforts to purge those of Jewish background from political authority. ''

'' has also labeled Hungarian Prime Minister

Viktor Orban The name Victor or Viktor may refer to: * Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname Arts and entertainment Film * ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film * ''Victor'' (1993 film), a French shor ...

as an ultranationalist given that leader's views on autocratic rule and racial identity, particularly Orban's public condemnation of "race-mixing". He's also been called as such as by NPR, an American news agency, with the politician's inherent opposition to democratic liberalism as a concept being cited. The business-centered publication Bloomberg News stated in a 2021 story that the rise of ultranationalist viewpoints in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

, particularly in terms of those who advocate for extremism on social media, presents a direct challenge to the current government of the nation, with

General Secretary Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the organization. The term is derived ...

Xi Jinping facing opposition in his attempts to set forth climate change related economic reforms about

greenhouse gas A greenhouse gas (GHG or GhG) is a gas that Absorption (electromagnetic radiation), absorbs and Emission (electromagnetic radiation), emits radiant energy within the thermal infrared range, causing the greenhouse effect. The primary greenhouse ...

es. Chinese political activists have asserted, according to the publication, a

conspiracy theory A conspiracy theory is an explanation for an event or situation that invokes a conspiracy by sinister and powerful groups, often political in motivation, when other explanations are more probable.Additional sources: * * * * The term has a nega ...

that said reforms represent some kind of capitulation to foreign interests at the expense of China's citizens. Enviromentalist policies have come into being in a complex fashion inside China, facing complicated opinions among many.

Ultranationalist political parties

Currently represented in national legislatures

The following political parties have been characterised as ultranationalist. *:

Pauline Hanson's One Nation Pauline Hanson's One Nation (PHON or ONP), also known as One Nation or One Nation Party, is a Right-wing populism, right-wing populist List of political parties in Australia, political party in Australia. It is led by Pauline Hanson. One Nat ...

*: Freedom Party of Austria *: Vlaams Belang *: Patriota *: Revival *:

Homeland Movement ''Homeland Movement'' is the debut studio album by Australian rock band Yothu Yindi that was released in April 1989 on the Mushroom Records label. The album peaked at number 59 on the ARIA Chart in 1992. Background and release Following a tou ...

ELAM Elam (; Linear Elamite: ''hatamti''; Cuneiform Elamite: ; Sumerian: ; Akkadian: ; he, עֵילָם ''ʿēlām''; peo, 𐎢𐎺𐎩 ''hūja'') was an ancient civilization centered in the far west and southwest of modern-day Iran, stretc ...

*: Freedom and Direct Democracy *: Danish People's Party *: Conservative People's Party of Estonia *:

National Rally The National Rally (french: Rassemblement National, ; RN), until 2018 known as the National Front (french: link=no, Front National, ; FN), is a Far-right politics, far-rightAbridged list of reliable sources that refer to National Rally as fa ...

, Reconquête *: Finns Party *:

Alternative for Germany Alternative for Germany (german: link=no, Alternative für Deutschland, AfD; ) is a right-wing populist * * * * * * * political party in Germany. AfD is known for its opposition to the European Union, as well as immigration to Germany. I ...

*: Greek Solution *:

Our Homeland Movement Our Homeland Movement (Hungarian language, Hungarian: ''Mi Hazánk Mozgalom,'' MHM) is a Hungarian Far-right politics, far-right political party founded by Ásotthalom mayor and former Jobbik Vice-President László Toroczkai and other Jobbik dis ...

Shiv Sena Shiv Sena ( IAST: ''Śiva Sēnā'') () was a right-wing to far-right Marathi regionalist and Hindu ultranationalist political party in India founded in 1966 by cartoonist Bal Thackeray. Originally emerging from nativist movements in Bom ...

*: Religious Zionist Party *:

Brothers of Italy Brothers of Italy ( it, Fratelli d'Italia, FdI) is a national-conservative and right-wing populist political party in Italy. It is led by Giorgia Meloni, the incumbent Prime Minister of Italy and the first woman to serve in the position. Accor ...

*: Liberal Democratic Party (faction) *:

Pakistan Muslim League (Z) Pakistan Muslim League (Zia-ul-Haq Shaheed) ( ur, ) is a political party in Pakistan formed in 2002. It is named after General Zia-ul-Haq, Pakistan's president from 1978 to 1988. With the general elections of 2002, Ijaz-ul-Haq won the National A ...

*: National Movement *: Alliance for the Union of Romanians *:

Liberal Democratic Party of Russia ) , abbreviation = LDPR (English)ЛДПР (Russian) , native_name = , newspaper = ''For the Russian People'' , youth_wing = , seats1_title = Seats in the Federation Council , seats1 = , seats2_title ...

, Rodina *:

Serbian Party Oathkeepers The Serbian Party Oathkeepers ( sr-cyrl, Српска странка Заветници, Srpska stranka Zavetnici, SSZ) is a far-right political party in Serbia. The party's previous name was Serbian Movement Oathkeepers ( sr-cyrl, Српск� ...

Economic Freedom Fighters The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) is a South African left-wing to far-left pan-Africanist and Marxist–Leninist political party. It was founded by expelled former African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) President Julius Malema, and hi ...

*: People's Party Our Slovakia *: Vox *:

Sweden Democrats The Sweden Democrats ( sv , Sverigedemokraterna ; SD ) is a nationalist and right-wing populist political party in Sweden. As of 2022, it is the largest member of Sweden's right-wing governing bloc to which it provides confidence and supply, a ...

Swiss People's Party The Swiss People's Party (german: Schweizerische Volkspartei, SVP; rm, Partida populara Svizra, PPS), also known as the Democratic Union of the Centre (french: Union démocratique du centre, UDC; it, Unione Democratica di Centro, UDC), is a nati ...

*: Nationalist Movement Party, Great Union Party *: Svoboda

Represented parties with former ultranationalist tendencies or factions

The following political parties historically had ultranationalist tendencies or factions. * : Serb Democratic Party * :

Croatian Democratic Union The Croatian Democratic Union ( hr, Hrvatska demokratska zajednica, lit=Croatian Democratic Community, HDZ) is the major conservative, centre-right political party in Croatia. It is one of the two major contemporary political parties in Croa ...

* : Jobbik * : Golkar * :

VMRO-DPMNE Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization – Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity ( mk, Внатрешна македонска револуционерна организација – Демократска партија за ...

* : Dveri, Serbian Renewal Movement

Formerly represented in national legislatures

Attack Attack may refer to: Warfare and combat * Offensive (military) * Charge (warfare) * Attack (fencing) * Strike (attack) * Attack (computing) * Attack aircraft Books and publishing * ''The Attack'' (novel), a book * '' Attack No. 1'', comic an ...

, VMRO,

National Front for the Salvation of Bulgaria The National Front for the Salvation of Bulgaria ( bg, Национален фронт за спасение на България, Natsionalen front za spasenie na Bŭlgariya, NFSB), is an ultranationalist political party in Bulgaria. History ...

* : Communist Party of Kampuchea * :

Croatian Party of Rights The Croatian Party of Rights ( hr, Hrvatska stranka prava or HSP) is an extra-parliamentary nationalist political party in Croatia. The "right(s)" in the party's name refer to the legal and moral reasons that justify the independence and autonom ...

Croatian Pure Party of Rights Croatian Pure Party of Rights ( hr, Hrvatska čista stranka prava or HČSP) is a far-right political party in Croatia founded in 1992. The party claims to be an ideological descendant of the identically named right-wing Serbophobic historical p ...

* :

Golden Dawn Golden Dawn or The Golden Dawn may refer to: Organizations * Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, a nineteenth century magical order based in Britain ** The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, Inc., a modern revival founded in 1977 ** Open Source ...

* : Kach *: Imperial Rule Assistance Association * : Union Solidarity and Development Party * :

Kilusang Bagong Lipunan The New Society Movement ( fil, Kilusang Bagong Lipunan, KBL), formerly named the New Society Movement of United Nationalists, Liberals, et cetera ( fil, Kilusang Bagong Lipunan ng Nagkakaisang Nacionalista, Liberal, at iba pa, KBLNNL), is a ...

* : Serbian Radical Party,

Party of Serbian Unity The Party of Serbian Unity ( sr, Странка српског јединства, Stranka srpskog jedinstva; abbr. ССЈ, SSJ) was a nationalist political party in Serbia, founded by Željko Ražnatović "Arkan". It is today known as the Co ...

* : Slovak National Party * : National Party *:

National Youth National Youth ( sv, Nationell ungdom) was a Swedish neofascist and openly racist organisation. National Youth was closely linked with the Swedish Resistance Movement. SÄPO classified it as a white power organisation and Expo classified it as a N ...

* : FET y de las JONS *: Right Sector

Ultranationalist political organizations

Pancasila Youth The Pancasila Youth ( id, Pemuda Pancasila, ''PP'') is an Indonesian far-right paramilitary organization established in 1959. The organisation's name refers to ''Pancasila'', the official "five principles" of the Indonesian state. Pemuda Pancas ...

*: Army Comrades Association *: Nippon Kaigi, Zaitokukai *: Perkasa *:

Nationalist Front of Mexico The Nationalist Front of Mexico ( es, Frente Nacionalista de México), formerly known as the Organization for the National Will ( es, Organización por la Voluntad Nacional) and the Mexicanist Nationalist Front ( es, Frente Nacional Mexicanista), ...

, National Synarchist Union *: Patriotic Association of Myanmar *: Russian Imperial Movement, Wagner Group *: Bodu Bala Sena, Sinhala Ravaya *: Grey Wolves *:

English Defence League The English Defence League (EDL) is a far-right, Islamophobic organisation in the United Kingdom. A social movement and pressure group that employs street demonstrations as its main tactic, the EDL presents itself as a single-issue movement ...

, Siol nan Gaidheal

References

{{Nationalism Fascism Far-right politics Nationalism Neo-fascism Political extremism Political science terminology Sectarianism Xenophobia