The role of ancestry in the idea of ​​"the British" and "the German" : beyond the myths around the distinction between civic and ethnic nations

Resumo

This article views ancestry as a controversial marker of 'the British' and 'the German'. Taking into consideration both the evolution of nationality laws and the empirical data of the International Social Survey Program (ISSP, 2003), it is shown that the "classic" distinction between civic nations and ethnic nations tends to overestimate the differences between nations, while which underestimates intra-national differences. The fact that in both England and Germany the highest levels of formal education are strongly associated with more ethnically inclusive notions of 'legitimate national belonging', emphasizes the potential of formal education in contemporary multicultural societies.