Colonial “others” and nationalist politics in Malaysia
Recent debates on nationalism suggest that we should revisit the connection between ethnic identity and the nation, and the difficulties confronting post-colonial societies like Malaysia’s in their efforts to construct a unifying nationalist project. How and why has official Malaysian nationalism re...
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| Format: | Article |
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Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
1999
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| Online Access: | http://journalarticle.ukm.my/4159/ |
| _version_ | 1848810426140196864 |
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| author | Nair, Sheila |
| author_facet | Nair, Sheila |
| author_sort | Nair, Sheila |
| building | UKM Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Recent debates on nationalism suggest that we should revisit the connection between ethnic identity and the nation, and the difficulties confronting post-colonial societies like Malaysia’s in their efforts to construct a unifying nationalist project. How and why has official Malaysian nationalism reinforced ethnic identity even as it seeks a programmatic alternative to colonial strategies in inscribing the body of the nation? Arguing that the social construction of ethnicity under colonial rule has significant implications for the nation, the article explores how colonial rule shapes not only the consciousness of a European ‘self’ distinct from a colonized ‘other’, but also difference in the other which plays out in nationalist politics. Recent shifts in nationalist discourse reflect changes in the Malaysian social structure and suggest the possibility of a more unifying political discourse centered around the nation although it is too early to tell if it will decenter ethnic identity. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T23:30:19Z |
| format | Article |
| id | oai:generic.eprints.org:4159 |
| institution | Universiti Kebangasaan Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T23:30:19Z |
| publishDate | 1999 |
| publisher | Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | oai:generic.eprints.org:41592012-05-23T07:05:01Z http://journalarticle.ukm.my/4159/ Colonial “others” and nationalist politics in Malaysia Nair, Sheila Recent debates on nationalism suggest that we should revisit the connection between ethnic identity and the nation, and the difficulties confronting post-colonial societies like Malaysia’s in their efforts to construct a unifying nationalist project. How and why has official Malaysian nationalism reinforced ethnic identity even as it seeks a programmatic alternative to colonial strategies in inscribing the body of the nation? Arguing that the social construction of ethnicity under colonial rule has significant implications for the nation, the article explores how colonial rule shapes not only the consciousness of a European ‘self’ distinct from a colonized ‘other’, but also difference in the other which plays out in nationalist politics. Recent shifts in nationalist discourse reflect changes in the Malaysian social structure and suggest the possibility of a more unifying political discourse centered around the nation although it is too early to tell if it will decenter ethnic identity. Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia 1999-01 Article PeerReviewed Nair, Sheila (1999) Colonial “others” and nationalist politics in Malaysia. AKADEMIKA, 54 . pp. 55-79. ISSN 0126-5008 http://www.ukm.my/penerbit/jdem54-04.html |
| spellingShingle | Nair, Sheila Colonial “others” and nationalist politics in Malaysia |
| title | Colonial “others” and nationalist politics in Malaysia |
| title_full | Colonial “others” and nationalist politics in Malaysia |
| title_fullStr | Colonial “others” and nationalist politics in Malaysia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Colonial “others” and nationalist politics in Malaysia |
| title_short | Colonial “others” and nationalist politics in Malaysia |
| title_sort | colonial “others” and nationalist politics in malaysia |
| url | http://journalarticle.ukm.my/4159/ http://journalarticle.ukm.my/4159/ |