What Is Civic Nationalism?
Civic nationalism means nationalism based on civic or state identity rather than ethnocentrism. Part of the Nationalist family.
Definition
Civic nationalism means nationalism based on civic or state identity rather than ethnocentrism.
Definition quoted from Wikipedia: Civic nationalism (text available under CC BY-SA 4.0; checked October 20, 2026).
Core ideas
- Nation defined by citizenship and shared institutions.
- Inclusive membership.
- Loyalty to the constitution and its values.
Core ideas, origins and thinkers: Atlas summary.
Where Civic Nationalism sits on the Atlas maps
| Map dimension | Score (0–100) | Position | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|
| Economic Collective / planned ↔ Market | 66 | toward market | |
| Social Progressive ↔ Traditional | 48 | near the center | |
| Authority Libertarian ↔ Authoritarian | 24 | toward libertarian | |
| National identity Cosmopolitan ↔ Nationalist | 77 | toward nationalist | |
| Foreign policy Non-intervention ↔ Intervention | 31 | toward non-intervention |
All nine underlying dimensions
| Dimension | Score | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| Economic ownership Collective ownership ↔ Private ownership | 69 | toward private ownership |
| Civil liberties Civil liberty ↔ State restrictions | 34 | toward civil liberty |
| National identity Cosmopolitan ↔ Nationalist | 77 | toward nationalist |
| Social and cultural values Progressive ↔ Traditionalist | 53 | near the center |
| Political governance Democratic ↔ Autocratic | 15 | strongly toward democratic |
| Equality and hierarchy Egalitarian ↔ Hierarchical | 48 | near the center |
| Economic management Free market ↔ State planning | 37 | near the center |
| Military intervention Non-intervention ↔ Intervention | 31 | toward non-intervention |
| Religion and government Secular state ↔ Religious authority | 36 | near the center |
These positions are estimates on the Atlas’s nine-dimension scale, produced by running the tradition’s core principles through the same questions and scoring used for test-takers. They are interpretations for comparison, not objective measurements. How scores are made.
Estimated positions on key questions
| Statement | Position | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Opposition parties should be free to compete in elections. | Strongly agrees | estimated from doctrine |
| A national religious authority should have the power to veto legislation. | Strongly disagrees | estimated from doctrine |
| People should be free to criticize the government without fear of legal punishment. | Strongly agrees | estimated from doctrine |
| The means of production should ultimately be owned collectively. | Strongly disagrees | estimated from doctrine |
| Central economic planning is preferable to decentralized market decisions. | Strongly disagrees | estimated from doctrine |
| National borders should become less important over time. | Strongly disagrees | estimated from doctrine |
| Military power should be used proactively when serious external threats are emerging. | Strongly disagrees | estimated from doctrine |
| Society works best when established social hierarchies are respected. | Strongly disagrees | estimated from doctrine |
| Same-sex couples should have the same right to marry as opposite-sex couples. | Agrees | estimated from doctrine |
| Laws should be based on secular reasoning rather than religious teaching. | Agrees | estimated from doctrine |
Related ideologies
Liberal Nationalism93% similar position · NationalistLocalism91% similar position · TechnocraticNational Liberalism90% similar position · LiberalFederalism90% similar position · TechnocraticModerate Conservatism89% similar position · CentristSocial Market Economy88% similar position · Centrist
Main differences from the closest ideologies
- Compared with Liberal Nationalism, Civic Nationalism sits 13 points further toward traditional on the social dimension.
- Compared with Localism, Civic Nationalism sits 20 points further toward intervention on the foreign policy dimension.
- Compared with National Liberalism, Civic Nationalism sits 16 points further toward non-intervention on the foreign policy dimension.
Comparisons
Civic Nationalism vs Ethnonationalism
Figures with the closest estimated positions
Closeness of estimated positions only; this does not mean these people identify with Civic Nationalism.
Tim Pool92% similar positionJoe Rogan90% similar positionThomas Jefferson89% similar positionTulsi Gabbard89% similar positionRobert F. Kennedy Jr.88% similar positionAbraham Lincoln87% similar position
Sources
- Wikipedia: Civic nationalism
- Wikipedia: Civic Nationalism (Wikipedia search)
- Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Nationalism
Position last reviewed: not yet reviewed individually.