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First Nationalism Then Identity: On Bosnian Muslims and Their Bosniak Identity
First Nationalism Then Identity focuses on the case of Bosnian Muslims, a rare historic instance of a new nation emerging. Although for Bosnian Muslims the process of national emergence and the assertion of a new salient identity have been going on for over two decades, Mirsad Kriještorac is the first to explain the significance of the whole process and how the adoption of their new Bosniak identity occurred. He provides a historical overview of Yugoslav and Bosnian Slavic Muslims' transformation into a full-fledged distinct and independent national group as well as addresses the important question in the field of nationalism studies about the relationship between and workings of nationalism and identity. While this book is noteworthy for ordinary readers interested in the case of Bosnian Muslims, it is an important contribution to the scholarly debate on the role of nationalism in the political life of a group and adds an interdisciplinary perspective to comparative politics scholarship by drawing from anthropology, history, geography, and sociology.
Fig. 4.3. Front view of the West Bosnian Islamic Center, on Bleecker St., Utica, NY, just a few blocks away from the other Bosnian Islamic Center in the city. (Photograph by author, 2021.)
Fig. 4.4. The Bosnian Islamic Center on Court St., Utica, NY, in the center of the city and a few blocks away from the West Bosnian Islamic Center. (Photograph by author, 2021.)
Fig. 5.3. Entrance of Tampa Bay Bosnian Muslim masjid, with a sign and flags of Bosnian designation. Such displays are uncommon for Muslim centers, but a common sight for most Bosnian Muslim places of worship throughout the United States. (Photograph by author, May 2015.)