“小国家”整合“大民族”——瑞士国家与民族建构的历史进程

"A Small State Integrates the Big Ethnic Groups":Nation-Building and Sate-Building in Switzerland

本文主要分析瑞士如何在强邻并立的严峻地缘政治环境中生存下来,并在国内不同语言、文化的族群中打造出统一的瑞士国家与民族认同和稳定的国家体制。传统观点将瑞士联邦政府实施的"直接民主"、联邦制下的地方自治,以及对不同语言和多元文化的保护政策等看做是保持国内各个族群,特别是使用不同语言的居民之间能够和平、和睦相处的"灵丹妙药",把瑞士树立成"不同民族间融合"以及成功解决"民族间冲突"的一个典范。但是从历史的角度来看,这些具体的政策和制度并非瑞士国家和民族建构成功的原因,而是它的结果。瑞士建国进程中所面临的初始条件、外部威胁、地缘政治和战争冲突等因素才是决定其成功建立统一的国家和民族认同的关键所在。

This paper tries to explain how Switzerland,as a small country facing disadvantageous geopolitical environment,could survive and successfully construct a common state and national identity among the multicultural and multilingual ethnic groups.The orthodox view attributes this success to the ideas including 'direct democracy' and 'local autonomy under the federal system' and the polices to protect multi-culture and multi-language,and Switzerland is always regarded as a model for the successful solution of ethnic conflicts.However,such policies and institutions are only an outcome of,but not the causes for the successful building of the Swiss nation and state.It is the initial conditions,external threats,geopolitical environment and wars in the process of state-building that is the key to understanding its success in forging a common national identity.