Managing nationalism in a surviving PLC

Contrary to the UK, here there be a trend that anyone who adopts the polish language also identifies himself as a Pole. And adding catholicism to that, it means even more "polish". The British Islands have their own specifics, the Eastern European Plain has its own.
That's not necessarily true. I can't comment on Ruthenia or on other places, but at least in Lithuania, Polish-speaking nobility retained a distinct "Lithuanian" identity well into the 18th and 19th century, and even, in some situations, as far as the 20th, well into the Lithuanian National Revival (Stanislaw Narusewicz, Michal Romer and other krajowci are a good example of this in the modern era). Of course, there was the overarching "Polish-Lithuanian" identity above it, and by the 19th century, it had become synonymous with Polish in Western terminology, but simply stating that a person who adopts the Polish language immediately becomes a Pole isn't necessarily correct.

I personally stand by the idea that Lithuania would be Poland's Scotland. Speaking the same language, member of the same federation and more or less supporting that federal identity, but still fiercely standing behind their own identity, be it in traditions, accent or reviving their old language and culture.
 
The stronger and more developed a state, the easier it is for it to integrate different ethnicities. The idea that different ethnicities cannot exist peacefully and happily in the same state is just toxic ethno-nationalist ideology responsible for constant mass death in the modern era. It's pretty disappointing that I see it so often here. Nationalism does not need to be based on ethnicity and countries like Austria-Hungary weren't going to "inevitably" break up. Even in OTL with all its problems, there was far more support for the empire than was commonly assumed (for example, see the introduction of The Hapsburg Empire) as late as WW1.

I've also written before on the surprising strength of Ottomanism and how even after terrible disasters that removed most of the Christian population from the OE, it had famous and important adherents like the Christian Butrus al-Bustani who was far from alone (See From the “Ottoman Nation” to “Hyphenated Ottomans”). Again, it's very important to look at process of state weakening and how incapacity to impose good government fuels the need for separation, rather than seeing ethnic separatism as something natural and intrinsic.
 
The stronger and more developed a state, the easier it is for it to integrate different ethnicities. The idea that different ethnicities cannot exist peacefully and happily in the same state is just toxic ethno-nationalist ideology responsible for constant mass death in the modern era. It's pretty disappointing that I see it so often here. Nationalism does not need to be based on ethnicity and countries like Austria-Hungary weren't going to "inevitably" break up. Even in OTL with all its problems, there was far more support for the empire than was commonly assumed (for example, see the introduction of The Hapsburg Empire) as late as WW1.

I've also written before on the surprising strength of Ottomanism and how even after terrible disasters that removed most of the Christian population from the OE, it had famous and important adherents like the Christian Butrus al-Bustani who was far from alone (See From the “Ottoman Nation” to “Hyphenated Ottomans”). Again, it's very important to look at process of state weakening and how incapacity to impose good government fuels the need for separation, rather than seeing ethnic separatism as something natural and intrinsic.
What could keep nations toghether? Common interests and common enemy, in the case of Poles and Lithuanians there is important reason to stay togheter-Russia and Pan-East Slavism spread by her among Ruthenian population of PLC.
 
What could keep nations toghether? Common interests and common enemy, in the case of Poles and Lithuanians there is important reason to stay togheter-Russia and Pan-East Slavism spread by her among Ruthenian population of PLC.

Why don't the Swiss, Spanish, Belgian, or British examples suggest a nation can be kept together?
 
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