Abstract
For nearly two centuries, nationalism has proven to be one of the most powerful political ideologies, first emerging in nineteenth-century Europe, and, much like the Hungarians and the Germans, Europe’s Jewish communities felt its impact. Zionism – the idea that the Jews are a nation entitled to a state of their own – was born in this environment, and the Jews who embraced it launched a revolution that challenged and ultimately transformed Jewish culture, religious practices, identity, and politics.
We will begin by asking “What is nationalism?” and “What is Jewish nationalism?” We will then examine how Zionism came to dominate the landscape of Jewish politics and culture in thetwentieth century, how it fueled the mass migration of Jews to the Middle East, and how it led to the establishment of Israel as the “Jewish state.”
We will then look at the ways in which Zionism has shaped daily life in the Israel. The Arab- Israeli conflict – which is as much a clash between Zionism and Palestinian nationalism as it is a conflict over religion – has had a pivotal influence on Israel’s social, political, and cultural developments. Israelis have needed to construct their state, institutions, and identities against the backdrop of their neighbors’ hostility. Of equal significance is the relationship between the “Jewish state” and the millions of Jews who continue to live outside of Israel, many of whom view Israel as their surrogate motherland even though they choose not to live there.
The history of modern Israel has proven to be an important chapter in the long history of the Jewish people and in the turbulent geopolitics of the Middle East. Both have been irrevocably transformed by Zionism and Israel, the “Jewish state.”