ABSTRACT

Ethnic identities have existed throughout recorded history. Even in ancient times, ethnic groups such as the Hebrews, Babylonians and Egyptians were important political actors (Smith 1986). When different linguistic and religious

groups mix, political issues inevitably arise, leading to ‘ethnic conflict’. These conflicts are almost always managed peacefully, however. To take one example, the Soviet Union is said to have included 120 ethnic groups, yet with all of these points of friction, there was only a handful of cases of ethnic groups clashing violently when the Soviet Union collapsed (Fearon and Laitin 1996).