Nationalism remains one of the most powerful ideas in the modern state, shaping a country’s legitimacy, political loyalty and national identity, the article argues.
It cites political scientists Benedict Anderson, Ernest Gellner and Anthony D. Smith to say national identity is built over generations through shared experience, institutions, history and social agreement.
For Bangladesh, Bengali nationalism provided the cultural and political basis for the language movement, autonomy movement and Liberation War, the article says. After independence, it argues, the challenge became creating an inclusive civic identity for people of all religions, communities and ethnic groups.
The article says Bangladeshi nationalism emerged under President Ziaur Rahman as a state philosophy centered on territory, sovereignty, the constitution and citizenship. It argues that Bengali and Bangladeshi nationalism should be treated as complementary rather than competing inheritances.
It describes the July 2024 uprising as a political awakening among young people and says the movement showed that citizens want accountable institutions, justice and equal opportunity, not merely a change of government.
The article says a July National Charter was prepared under the interim government and that a majority backed the charter and related constitutional-reform proposals in a Feb. 12, 2026 referendum. It notes differing views among analysts over whether the reform process has been sufficiently tested for long-term stability.
Drawing comparisons with Germany, Singapore and Turkey, it argues that Bangladesh needs stronger institutions, merit-based governance and a civic social contract.
Bangladesh is now an emerging economy of about $450 billion, the article says, but it argues that economic growth alone cannot resolve weak human-development indicators, perceived corruption and the exclusion of many young people from education and work.
It says a modern national identity should rest on territorial sovereignty and pluralism, democratic historical memory, institutional governance, inclusive development, and strategic autonomy in foreign policy.
The article concludes that nationalism can unite people when it protects equal rights, the rule of law and opportunity, but can divide them when it is turned into a partisan tool. It says Bangladesh’s future will depend on whether its institutions can preserve citizens’ trust.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report