Striving for Modernity: the Heterogeneous Formation of the Nation Concept in Early XX Century Chinese Intelligentsia

I analyse the genesis of the national concept in China by considering the period from the late XIX century to the early XX century, known as the period of “transition to nationalism” (Townsend 1992: 109). I stress the importance of the coeval intelli-gentsia in this nation-building process. I consider the work of two emblematic intel-lectuals, Yan Fu and Liang Qichao. Furthermore, I take into account different histori-ographical perspectives, stressing how nationalist ideas were not simply ‘copy-past-ed’ in the Chinese context, but subjected to substantial changes in combination with the traditional Chinese heritage.