Patriotism is a love and devotion to a country or homeland for no other reason than being resident there. Patriotism, however, has had different meanings over time, and its meaning is highly dependent upon context, geography, and philosophy.
It is a related sentiment to nationalism, but nationalism is not necessarily an inherent part of patriotism.[1][2]
The English term patriot is first attested in the Elizabethan era, via Middle French from Late Latin (6th century) patriota "fellow countryman", ultimately from Greek patriōtēs "fellow countryman". The abstract noun patriotism appears in the early 18th century.[3]
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Among the ancient Greeks, patriotism consisted of notions concerning language, religious ritual, ethics, law, and devotion to the common good, rather than pure identification with the state or polis.[4][5] a nation-Scholar J. Peter Euben writes that for the Greek philosopher Socrates, "patriotism does not require one to agree with everything that his country does and would actually promote analytical questioning in a quest to make the country the best it possibly can be."[6] In pre-Christian antiquity, politics and the institutions of the state were inseparable from religion. Varro identified the sphere of overlap between the society or the state and religion as civil theology (contrasting with natural theology and mythical theology). Loyalty to one's state, the laws, and one's fellow citizens was an act of piety parallel to filial piety expected within a family. Plato's Euthyphro discusses the dilemma that arises when the demands of patriotic piety clash with those of filial piety.
The first discussion of patriotism in the Age of Enlightenment was Abbé Coyer's Dissertation sur le vieux mot Patrie (1755). Coyer points out that patriotism implies the ideal of a rule of law and a degree of equality among fellow citizens.
In the 19th century, the "age of nationalism", patriotism became much more confrontational and aggressive than the ideals of good citizenship and striving for the common good in the Enlightenment. In this sense, patriotism is the ideal of social cohesion, humanitarianism, equality and harmony within one's own society, while nationalism is the struggle to put one's own nation ahead of other nations, perceived as external rivals or threats.[1] During the 19th century, patriotism became increasingly conflated with nationalism and even jingoism, but when used in contrast with nationalism, the term may still express the more constructive, less antagonistic or aggressive ideal.[1][7] In classical 18th century patriotism, loyalty to the State was chiefly considered in contrast to loyalty to the Church, and it was argued that clerics should not be allowed to teach in public schools as their patrie was heaven, so that they could not inspire love of the homeland in their students. One of the most influential proponents of this classical notion of patriotism was Jean-Jacques Rousseau.[1]
Patriotism may strengthened by adherence to a national religion (a civil religion or even a theocracy). This is the opposite of the separation of church and state demanded by the Enlightenment thinkers who saw patriotism and faith as opposing forces.
Patriotism may also be strengthened by expatriots feelings towards their "homeland". An example from colonial India is where the white settlers, many Indian born, became "more British than the British". This phenomenon known as amlexism.
Supporters of patriotism in ethics regard it as a virtue. In his influential article "Is patriotism a virtue?" (1984), the philosopher Alasdair MacIntyre notes that most contemporary conceptions of morality insist on a blindness to accidental traits like local origin and therefore reject patriotic selectivity. MacIntyre constructs an alternative conception of morality, that he claims would be compatible with patriotism. Charles Blattberg, in his book From Pluralist to Patriotic Politics (2000), has developed a similar conception of patriotism.
Patriotism implies a value preference for a specific civic or political community. Universalist beliefs reject such specific preferences, in favour of an alternative, wider, community. Paul Gomberg (2002) has compared patriotism to racism. He argues that the primary implication of patriotism in ethical theory is that a person has more moral duties to fellow members of the national community, than to non-members. Patriotism is therefore selective in its altruism.[8]
Patriotism is often portrayed as a more positive alternative to nationalism, which sometimes carries negative connotations. Some authors such as Morris Janowitz, Daniel Bar-Tal, or L. Snyder argue that patriotism is distinguished from nationalism by its lack of aggression or hatred for others, its defensiveness, and positive community building. Others, such as Michael Billig or Jean Bethke Elshtain argue that the difference is difficult to discern and relies largely on the attitude of the labeller.[9]
Several surveys have tried to measure patriotism for various reasons. The Correlates of War project found some correlation between war propensity and patriotism. The results from different studies are time dependent. Patriotism in Germany before the Great War (WWI) ranks at or near the top, whereas today it ranks at or near the bottom of surveys. The Patriotism Score table below is from the World Values Survey and refers to the average answer for high income residents of a country to the question: "Are you proud to be [insert nationality]?" It ranges from 1 (not proud) to 4 (very proud).[11]
| Country | Score |
|---|---|
| USA | 3.74 |
| Ireland | 3.73 |
| India | 3.67 |
| South Africa | 3.55 |
| Canada | 3.53 |
| Spain | 3.46 |
| Denmark | 3.27 |
| Italy | 3.25 |
| Sweden | 3.22 |
| France | 3.18 |
| Finland | 3.17 |
| Belgium | 3.07 |
| Netherlands | 2.93 |
| Germany | 2.75 |
| Average | 3.26 |
| Country | Score |
|---|---|
| USA | 3.92 |
| Venezuela | 3.73 |
| South Africa | 3.72 |
| India | 3.70 |
| Peru | 3.68 |
| Slovenia | 3.64 |
| Poland | 3.55 |
| Australia | 3.54 |
| Spain | 3.38 |
| Argentina | 3.29 |
| Sweden | 3.13 |
| Moldova | 2.98 |
| Japan | 2.85 |
| Russia | 2.69 |
| Switzerland | 2.59 |
| Lithuania | 2.47 |
| Latvia | 2.10 |
| Germany | 1.37 |
| Average | 3.12 |
Contrast with: