New Greek Nationalism

The creation of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia after the dismantlingof the Yugoslav federation has led to a revival of Greek nationalism. Greece hasrefused to recognize the new state as the ‘Republic of Macedonia’, sustainingthat its name and national symbols form part of Greek culture and identity andare, therefore, unacceptable. The aim of this study is to highlight the Greekclaims of ‘property’ over certain cultural traditions and, more specifically,the relationship between these claims and the ethno-cultural character of Greeknational identity. Moreover, the paper examines the strategic manipulation ofnationalist feelings by Greek politicians. The role of political and culturalmyths in (re)defining national identity and in drawing the boundaries, symbolicand territorial, between ‘us’ and the ‘others’ is investigated. The problemsthat may arise from such an ethnic conception of the nation-state are discussedand a ‘constitutional model of patriotism’ is proposed as an alternativesolution.