Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-q99xh Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-23T06:10:28.609Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The role of a minority's reference state in ethnic relations

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 July 2009

Pieter van Houten
Pieter van Houten
Affiliation:
University of Chicago, (Chicago).
Get access

Abstract

This article presents a model of the triangular relationship between minority, majority, and the minority's reference state which is a feature of many ethnic relations. The presence of a reference state can overcome a potential commitment problem between minority and majority if it is perceived to be both militarily strong and moderately irredentist. Empirical material from Croatia, Transylvania, Estonia and Crimea suggests the plausibility of the model. Russia's role as a reference state is particularly interesting.

L'article présente un modèle de relation triangulaire entre minorité, majorité et l'État de référence pour la minorité comme schéma des relations interethniques. La présence d'un État de référence permet de surmonter un possible problème de conflit de loyauté entre majorité et minorité, si cet État est perçu comme militairement puissant et modérément irrédenriste. Des données empiriques concernant la Croatie, la Transylvanie, l'Estonie, la Crimée et surtout la Russie plaident pour la plausibilité du modèle.

Die Dreiecksbeziehung zwischen Minderheit, Mehrheit und dem Bezugsstaat der Minderheit, typisch fur viele ethnische Beziehungen, soil hier als Modell schematisiert werden. Die Berufung auf einen Bezugsstaat kann ein potenoelles Verpflichtungsproblem zwischen Minderheit und Mehrheit überwinden helfen, wenn er sowohl als militärisch stark, als auch als irredentistisch gilt. Erfahrungen aus Kroatien, Transsylvanien, Estland und der Krim lassen dieses Modell plausibel erscheinen. Vor allen Dingen Rußlands Rolle als Bezugsland ist von Interesse.

Type
Making credible commitments
Information
European Journal of Sociology / Archives Européennes de Sociologie , Volume 39 , Issue 1 , May 1998 , pp. 110 - 146
Copyright
Copyright © Archives Européenes de Sociology 1998

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Asiwaju, A.I., ed. (1985), Partitioned Africans: Ethnic Relations Across Africa's International Boundaries 1884–1984 (New York: St. Martin's Press).Google Scholar
Barth, Fredrik, ed. (1969), Ethnic Groups and Boundaries: The Social Organization of Culture Difference (Boston: Little Brown).Google Scholar
Biro, Sandor (1992), The Nationalities Problem in Transylvania 1867–1940 (New York: Columbia University Press).Google Scholar
Borsody, Stephen (1982), Hungary's Road to Trianon: Peacemaking and Propaganda, in Kiraly, et al. , eds.Google Scholar
Bremmer, Ian (1993), Ethnic Issues in Crimea, RFE/RL Research Report, 2, 18: 24–28.Google Scholar
Brubaker, Rogers (1996), Nationalism Reframed: Nationhood and the National Question in the New Europe (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bukkvoll, Tor (1995), A Fall From Grace for Crimean Separatists, Transition, 1, 21: 46–49.Google Scholar
Bungs, Dzintra (1993), Progress on Withdrawal from the Baltic States, RFE/RL Research Report, 2, 25: 50–59.Google Scholar
Bungs, Dzintra, Girnius, Saulius, and Kionka, Riina (1992), Citizenship Legislation in the Baltic States, RFE/RL Research Report, 1, 50: 38–40.Google Scholar
Chinn, Jeff and Kaiser, Robert (1996), Russians as the New Minority: Ethnicity and Nationalism in the Soviet Successor States (Boulder: Westview Press).Google Scholar
Clemens, Walter C. Jr., (1991), Baltic Independence and Russian Empire (New York: St. Martin's Press).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cohen, Lenard J. (1993), Broken Bonds: The Disintegration of Yugoslavia (Boulder: Westview Press).Google Scholar
Crow, Suzanne (1993), Russian Parliament Asserts Control over Sevastopol, RFE/RL Research Report, 2, 31: 37–41.Google Scholar
Dawisha, Karen and Parrott, Bruce (1994), Russia and the New States of Eurasia (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Diuk, Nadia and Karatnycky, Adrian (1993), New Nations Rising: The Fall of the Soviets and the Challenge of Independence (New York: John Wiley & Sons).Google Scholar
Drohobycky, Maria, ed. (1995), Crimea: Dynamics, Challenges, and Prospects (Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield).Google Scholar
Fearon, James D. (1994), Ethnic War as a Commitment Problem,paper presented at the APSA conference,New York.Google Scholar
Fearon, James D. (1998), Commitment Problems and the Spread of Ethnic Conflict, in Lake, David A. and Rothchild, Donald, eds, Ethnic Conflict: Fear, Diffusion, Escalation (Princeton: Princeton University Press).Google Scholar
Fearon, James D. and Laitin, David D. (1996), Explaining Interethnic Cooperation, American Political Science Review, 90: 715–735.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fischer-Galati, Stephen (1982), Trianon and Romania, in Kiraly, et al. , eds.Google Scholar
Fischer-Galati, Stephen (1983), The Great Powers and the Fate of Transylvania Between the Two World Wars, in Cadzow, John F., Ludanyi, Andrew, and Elteto, Louis J., eds, Transylvania: The Roots of Ethnic Conflict (Kent: Kent State University Press).Google Scholar
Foye, Stephen (1992), Russian Politics Complicates Baltic Troop Withdrawals, RFE/RL Research Report, 1, 46: 30–35.Google Scholar
Gagnon, V.P. Jr., (1995), Ethnic Nationalism and International Conflict: The Case of Serbia, International Security, 19, 3: 130–166.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Girnius, Saulius (1994), The Baltic States, RFE/RL Research Report, 3, 16: 5–8.Google Scholar
Girnius, Saulius (1996), Estonia: Relations With Russia Turn Bitter, Transition, 2, 11: 42–45.Google Scholar
Glenny, Misha (1993), The Fall of Yugoslavia: The Third Balkan War (New York: Penguin).Google Scholar
Glenny, Misha (1995). Yugoslavia: The Great Fall, New York Review of Books, 42, 5: 56–65.Google Scholar
Haabsaar, Enn and Kirch, Aksel (1997), Influence of Russia on the Integration of Russians in Estonia: Historical Retrospection and the Current Trends, in Kirch, A., ed., The Integration of Non-Estonians into Estonian Society: History, Problems and Trends (Tallinn: Estonian Academic Publishers).Google Scholar
Haas, Ain (1996), Non-violence in Ethnic Relations in Estonia, Journal of Baltic Studies, 27:47–76.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hill, Fiona and Jewett, Pamela (1994), Back in the USSR: Russia's Intervention in the Internal Affairs of the Former Soviet Republics and the Implications for United States Policy Toward Russia (Cambridge: Harvard University report).Google Scholar
Horowitz, Donald L. (1985), Ethnic Groups in Conflict (Berkeley: University of California Press).Google Scholar
Illyes, Elemer (1982), National Minorities in Romania: Change in Transylvania (New York: Columbia University Press).Google Scholar
Juhasz, Gyula (1979), Hungarian Foreign Policy 1919–1945 (Budapest: Akademiai Kiado).Google Scholar
Kaplan, Cinthia (1993), Estonia: A Plural Society on the Road to Independence, in Bremmer, Ian and Taras, Ray, eds, Nations and Politics in the Soviet Successor States (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press).Google Scholar
Kaplan, Cinthia (1998), Ethnicity and Sovereignty: Insights from Russian Negotiations with Estonia and Tatarstan, in Lake, David A. and Rothchild, Donald, eds, Ethnic Conflict: Fear, Diffusion, Escalation (Princeton: Princeton University Press).Google Scholar
Kionka, Riina (1992), Armed Incidents Aggravate Russian-Estonian Relations, RFE/RL Research Report, 1, 34: 34–37.Google Scholar
Kiraly, Bela K., Pastor, Peter, and Sanders, Ivan, eds (1982), War and Society in East Central Europe, Vol VI. Essays on World War I: Total War and Peacemaking, A Case Study on Trianon (New York: Columbia University Press).Google Scholar
Kirch, Marika and Kirch, Aksel (1997), Identity Changes and the Emergence of a New Integration Paradigm, in Kirch, A., ed., The Integration of Non-Estonians into Estonian Society: History, Problems and Trends (Tallinn: Estonian Academic Publishers).Google Scholar
Klatt, Martin (1994), Russians in the ‘Near Abroad’, RFE/RL Research Report, 3, 32: 33–44.Google Scholar
Kolstoe, Paul (1995), Russians in the Former Soviet Republics (Bloomington: Indiana University Press).Google Scholar
Kozhemiakin, Alexander V. and Kanet, Roger E. (1997), Russia and its Western Neighbours in the ‘Near Abroad’, in Kanet, and Kozhemiakin, , eds, The Foreign Policy of the Russian Federation (New York: St. Martin's Press).Google Scholar
Kramer, John M. (1993), ‘Energy Shock’ from Russia Jolts Baltic States, RFE/RL Research Report, 2, 17:41–49.Google Scholar
Laitin, David D. (1995), National Revivals and Violence, Archives européennes de sociologie, XXXVI: 3–43.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Laitin, David D. (1998), Identity in Formation: The Russian-Speaking Population in the Near Abroad (Ithaca: Cornell University Press).Google Scholar
Lapychak, Chrystyna (1995), Crackdown on Crimean Separatism, Transition, 1, 8: 2–5.Google Scholar
Lengyel, Zsolt K. (1993), Auf der Suche nach dem Kompromiß: Ursprünge and Gestalten des frühen Transsilvanismus 1918–1928 (München: Verlag Ungarisches Institut).Google Scholar
Livezeanu, Irina (1995), Cultural Politics in Greater Romania: Regionalism, Nation Building, and Ethnic Struggle, 1918–1930 (Ithaca: Cornell University Press).Google Scholar
Ludanyi, Andrew (1982), The Hungarians of Transylvania, in Kiraly, et al. , eds.Google Scholar
Macartney, C.A. (1937), Hungary and Her Successors: The Treaty of Trianon and Its Consequences 1919–1937 (London: Oxford University Press).Google Scholar
Markus, Ustina (1994), Crimea Restores 1992 Constitution, RFE/RL Research Report, 3, 23: 9–12.Google Scholar
Marshall, Monty G. (1993), States at Risk: Ethnopolitics in the Multinational States of Eastern Europe, in Gurr, Ted R., Minorities at Risk: A Global View of Ethnopolitical Conflicts (Washington: United States Institute of Peace Press).Google Scholar
Melvin, Neil (1995), Russians Beyond Russia: The Politics of National Identity (London: Royal Institute of International Affairs).Google Scholar
Mocsy, Istvan I. (1982), Partition of Hungary and the Origins of the Refugee Problem, in Kiraly, et al. , eds.Google Scholar
Pastor, Peter (1982), Hungarian Territorial Losses During the Liberal-Democratic Revolution of 1918–1919, in Kiraly, et al. , eds.Google Scholar
Pearson, Raymond (1983), National Minorities in Eastern Europe, 1848–1945 (New York: St. Martin's Press).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Posen, Barry R. (1993), The Security Dilemma and Ethnic Conflict, Survival, 35, 1: 27–47.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rose, Richard and Maley, William (1994), Conflict or Compromise in the Baltic States, RFE/RL Research Report, 3, 28: 26–35.Google Scholar
Rothschild, Joseph (1974), East Central Europe between the Two World Wars (Seattle: University of Washington Press).Google Scholar
Russell, Wynne (1995), Russian Relations with the ‘Near Abroad’, in Shearman, Peter, ed., Russian Foreign Policy Since 1990 (Boulder: Westview Press).Google Scholar
Sasse, Gwendolyn (1996), The Crimean Issue, Journal of Communist Studies and Transition Politics, 12: 83–100.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sheehy, Ann (1993), The Estonian Law on Aliens, RFE/RL Research Report, 2, 38:7–11.Google Scholar
Silber, Laura and Little, Allan (1996), Yugoslavia: Death of a Nation (New York: TV Books, Inc).Google Scholar
Smelser, Ronald M. (1975), The Sudeten Problem 1933–1938: Volkstumpolitik and the Formulation of Nazi Foreign Policy (Middletown: Wesleyan University Press).Google Scholar
Smith, Graham and Wilson, Andrew (1997). Rethinking Russia's Post-Soviet Diaspora: The Potential of Political Mobilisation in Eastern Ukraine and North-east Estonia, Europe-Asia Studies, 49: 845–864.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Solchanyk, Roman (1991), Centrifugal Movements in Ukraine on the Eve of Independence Referendum, Report on the USSR, 3, 48:8–13.Google Scholar
Solchanyk, Roman (1992a), Ukrainian-Russian Confrontation over the Crimea, RFE/RL Research Report, 1, 8: 26–30.Google Scholar
Solchanyk, Roman (1992b), The Crimean Imbroglio: Kiev and Simferopol, RFE/RL Research Report, 1, 33: 13–16.Google Scholar
Solchanyk, Roman (1992c), The Crimean Imbroglio: Kiev and Moscow, RFE/RL Research Report, 1, 40: 6–10.Google Scholar
Stewart, Susan (1993), Ukraine's Policy Toward Its Ethnic Minorities, RFE/RL Research Report, 2, 36: 55–62.Google Scholar
Szegedi, Edith (1992), Ansätze zum innerethnischen Dialog in Rumänien 1918–1940 und 1990, in Seewann, Gerhard, ed., Minderheitenfragen in Südosteuropa (München: Oldenbourg Verlag).Google Scholar
Taagepera, Rein (1993), Estonia: Return to Independence (Boulder: Westview Press).Google Scholar
Taras, Ray (1993), Conclusion: Making Sense of Matrioshka Nationalism, in Bremmer, Ian and Taras, Ray, eds, Nations and Politics in the Soviet Successor States (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press).Google Scholar
Toth, Peter P. (1996), Hungarians in the Successor States: From World War I to World War II, Nationalities Papers, 24: 425–435.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tulko, Alexander (1995), Conflicting Reports Fuel Crimean Tension, Transition, 1, 6: 16–18.Google Scholar
Vetik, Raivo (1993), Ethnic Conflict and Accommodation in Post-Communist Estonia, Journal of Peace Research, 30: 271–280.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Weingast, Barry R. (1998), Constructing Trust: The Politics and Economics of Ethnic and Regional Conflict, in Haupler, Virginia, Soltan, Karol, and Uslaner, Eric, eds, Where is the New Institutionalism Now? (Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press).Google Scholar
Zevelev, Igor (1996), Russia and the Russian Diasporas, Post-Soviet Affairs, 12: 265–284.CrossRefGoogle Scholar