Homeland
Topic: Nationalism and National Self-determination · NCERT: Class 11, Ch 7 "Nationalism"
Meaning
A homeland is the land a nation sees as its own because its people have lived there together for a long time. People call it the motherland, the fatherland or the holy land. NCERT counts a homeland as one of the things that bind a nation, alongside shared history and shared political ideals. It matters because land carries deep feeling. When two peoples claim the same homeland, it becomes a major cause of conflict.
Example
The Indian nation identifies with the rivers and mountains of the subcontinent. Kashmir shows the danger side: rival claims to the same land have led to long conflict. Outside India, the Jewish people were scattered across the world but still claimed Palestine as their "promised land". This claim led to the Balfour Declaration (1917) and the creation of Israel (1948).
Don't confuse with
- Irredentism: a homeland is the land a people feel is theirs. Irredentism is a claim to land that another state now holds, made because "our" people live there or it once belonged to us.