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In brief, nationalism is a theory of political legitimacy, which requires the ethnic boundaries should not be cut across political ones, and, in particular, that ethnic boundaries within a given state — a contingency already formally excluded by the principle in its general formulation — should not separate the power holders from the rest.

— Ernest Gellner Nations and Nationalism (1983)

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More quotes by Ernest Gellner

It is nationalism which engenders nations, and not the other way round.

Nations and Nationalism (1983)

I do not recommend any legislative action against hermeneutics.

Anthropology and Politics (1995)

People are even more reluctant to admit that man explains nothing, than they were to admit that God explains nothing.

Legitimation of Belief (1975)

Tribalism never prospers, for when it does, everyone will respect it as a true nationalism, and no-one will dare call it tribalism.

Nations and Nationalism (1983)

When knowledge is the slave of social considerations, it defines a special class; when it serves its own ends only, it no longer does so.

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Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Ernest Gellner (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.