Stateless nation

A stateless nation is an ethnic group or nation that does not possess its own state[1] and is not the majority population in any nation state.[2] The term "stateless" implies that the group "should have" such a state.[3][4] Members of stateless nations may be citizens of the country in which they live, or they may be denied citizenship by that country. Stateless nations are usually not represented in international sports or in international organisations such as the United Nations. Nations without state are classified as fourth-world nations.[5][6][7] Some of the stateless nations have a history of statehood, some were always a stateless nation, dominated by another nation.

This article is about a nation lacking a nation state. For a community lacking a government, see stateless society. For persons lacking state affiliation, see statelessness.

The term was coined in 1983 by political scientist Jacques Leruez in his book L'Écosse, une nation sans État about the peculiar position of Scotland within the British state. It was later adopted and popularized by Scottish scholars such as David McCrone, Michael Keating and T. M. Devine.[8]

Stateless nations either are dispersed across a number of states (for example, the Yakthung Limbu People residing in east of Nepal, includes (Sikkim and Darjeeling) India and north-western part of Bangladesh as the Yakthung Limbuwan nation[9] and Yoruba people are found in the African states of Nigeria, Benin and Togo) or form the native population of a province within a larger state (such as the Uyghur people in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region within the People's Republic of China). Some stateless nations historically had a state, which was absorbed by another; for example, Tibet's declaration of independence in 1913 was not recognized, and it was invaded in 1951 by the People's Republic of China which claims that Tibet is an integral part of China, while the Tibetan government-in-exile maintains that Tibet is an independent state under an unlawful occupation.[10][11] Some ethnic groups were once a stateless nation that later became a nation state (for example, the nations of the Balkans such as the Croats, Serbs, Bosniaks, Slovenes, Montenegrins and Macedonians were once part of a multinational state of Yugoslavia; since the breakup of Yugoslavia many nation states were formed).

Stateless nations can have large populations; for example the Kurds have an estimated population of over 30 million people, which make them one of the largest stateless nations.[12] Multiple stateless nations can reside in the same geographical region or country; for example, Cantabrians, Bercians, Catalans, Canarians, Castilians, Basques, Aragonese, Galicians, Asturians, Valencians and Andalusians within Spanish State, or the Brahui, Santhals, Maithils and Balochs in South Asia, or Rohingya in Myanmar, and Kabyle people within Algeria in North Africa.[13] However, not all peoples within multi-cultural states have the same awareness of being a stateless nation. In Spain, only Basques and Catalans have claimed their right of self-determination, which in the Basque country gave rise to the militant movement ETA, and in the case of Catalonia, has led to multiple attempts to secede from Spain during the past four centuries, as an independent Catalan Republic.

As not all states are nation states, there are ethnic groups who live in multinational states without being considered "stateless nations".

Nation-states and nations without states

The symbiotic relationship between nations and states arose in early modern Western Europe (18th century) and it was exported to the rest of the world through colonial rule. Whereas the Western European nation-states are at present relinquishing some of their powers to the European Union, many of the former colonies are now the zealous defenders of the concept of national-statehood.[4]

Only a small fraction of the world's national groups have associated nation-states. The proportion was estimated to be 3 percent by Minahan. The rest are distributed in one or more states. Of the 192 member states of the United Nations in 2006, fewer than 20 are nation-states. Thus nation-states are not as common as often assumed, and stateless nations are the overwhelming majority of nations in the world.[4]

Consequences of colonialism and imperialism

During the imperial and colonial era, powerful nations extended their influence outside their homeland and this resulted in many colonized nations ceasing to be self-governing and have since been described as stateless nations.[14] Some nations have been victims of "carve out" and their homeland was divided among several countries. Even today the colonial boundaries form modern national boundaries. These often differ from cultural boundaries. This results in situations where people of the same language or culture are divided by national borders, for example New Guinea splits as West Papua (former Dutch colony) and Papua New Guinea (former British colony).[15] During decolonization, the colonial powers imposed a unified state structure irrespective of the ethnic differences and granted independence to their colonies as a multinational state. This led to successor states with many minority ethnic groups in them, which increased the potential for ethnic conflicts.[16][17][18][19] Some of these minority groups campaigned for self-determination. Stateless nations were not protected in all countries and become victims of atrocities such as discrimination, ethnic cleansing, genocide, forced assimilation, Exploitation of labour and natural resources.[20][21]

Nationalism and stateless nations

People with a common origin, history, language, culture, customs or religion can turn into a nation by awakening of national consciousness.[22] A nation can exist without a state, as is exemplified by the stateless nations. Citizenship is not always the nationality of a person.[23] In a multinational state different national identities can coexist or compete: for example, in Britain English nationalism, Scottish nationalism and Welsh nationalism exist and are held together by British nationalism.[24] Nationalism is often connected to separatism, because a nation achieves completeness through its independence.[25]

Throughout history, numerous nations declared their independence, but not all succeeded in establishing a state. Even today, there are active autonomy and independence movements around the world. The claim of the stateless nations to self-determination is often denied due to geopolitical interests and increasing globalization of the world.[26][27][28][29] Stateless nations sometimes show solidarity with other stateless nations and maintain diplomatic relations.[30][31]

Not all peoples claim that they are nations or aspire to be states. Some see themselves as part of the multinational state and they believe that their interests are well represented in it. This is also associated with Pan-nationalism (Indian nationalism or Chinese nationalism).[32]

Claims of stateless nations

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

The following is a list of stateless nations that meet these criteria:

• has no sovereign state of its own.[1]
• does not form a majority in any sovereign state.[33]
• one or more autonomist or secessionist movements are known to exist.[4]
• not recognized by any UN members as a state (see also: partially recognized state).[34]
• not a subgroup of a nation (Bengali Hindus, Mexican American).

People	Flag	Language	Predominant religion	Population (approx.)	Continent	States	Homeland	Irredentist movement	Notes
Tamils		Tamil language	Hinduism (mostly Shaivism)	76,000,000	Asia	India, Sri Lanka	Tamil Nadu, Tamil Eelam	Tamil nationalism, Greater Tamil Nadu, TNRT, Tamil Nadu Liberation Army, Sri Lankan Tamil nationalism, LTTE, Sri Lankan Civil War, TGTE, Vaddukoddai Resolution	Historically ruled Tamilakam and parts of Sri Lanka. Has regional autonomy in Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Demand autonomy in North Eastern Province or total secession from Sri Lanka.
Sikhs		Punjabi language	Sikhism	27,000,000	Asia	India, Pakistan	Punjab	Khalistan Movement	Separate country called Khalistan in Punjab India include parts Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Rajasthan And Punjab Pakistan include parts Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan and Sind.
Kurds		Kurdish	Islam with minorities of Christianity, Zoroastrianism, Yazdânism Deism and Agnosticism	30,000,000–45,600,000[35][36](worldwide population including autonomous regions like Iraqi Kurdistan and Rojava)	Asia	Iraq, Turkey, Iran and Syria	Kurdistan	Kurdish nationalism, Kurdish–Turkish conflict, Kurdish-Iranian conflict, Iraqi–Kurdish conflict, and Kurdish–Syrian conflict	Regional autonomy in Iraqi Kurdistan and Rojava.
Yoruba people		Yoruba language	Christianity, Islam	35,000,000[37][38]	Africa	Nigeria, Benin and Togo	Yorubaland	Oodua Peoples Congress
Igbo people		Igbo language	Christianity (primarily Roman Catholicism with significant Protestant minorities	30,000,000[39]	Africa	Nigeria	Igboland	Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra, Indigenous People of Biafra	Attempted secession from Nigeria in 1967 sparked the Nigerian Civil war
Occitan people		Occitan, French, Italian, Spanish	Roman Catholicism	16,000,000	Europe	France, Monaco, Italy and Spain (Val d'Aran)	Occitania	Occitan nationalism (Occitan Party, Partit de la Nacion Occitana, Libertat)	Seek self-determination, greater autonomy or total secession from France.
Assamese people		Assamese language	Hinduism	15,000,000[40]	Asia	India	Assam	Assam separatist movements, ULFA Insurgency in Northeast India	Regional autonomy in Assam.
Uyghur people		Uyghur language	Islam	15,000,000[41]	Asia	China, Soviet Union (includes Kazakhstan(223,100 (2009)), Uzbekistan 55,220 (2008), Kyrgyzstan49,000 (2009), Russia 3,700 (2010))[42]	East Turkestan (Uyghuristan)	Irredentism is politically fragmented (East Turkestan Liberation Organization, East Turkestan independence movement)	Limited autonomy in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.
Palestinian people[43]		Arabic	Islam (majority), Christianity	13,000,000	Asia	West Bank, Gaza Strip, Jordan, Israel, Syria, Lebanon	Palestine	Palestinian nationalism (PLO)	Seek self-determination from occupying powers.
Zulu people		Zulu language	Christianity, Zulu religion	12,159,000	Africa	South Africa, Lesotho, Zimbabwe, Eswatini	KwaZulu-Natal	Inkatha Freedom Party	Limited autonomy in the KwaZulu-Natal region, which maintains a traditional Zulu king.
Bavarians		German, Bavarian	Christianity (Roman Catholicism)	12,500,000	Europe	Germany	Bavaria	Bavarian nationalism, Bavaria Party	National devolution, further autonomy or total secession from Germany.
Kongo people		Kongo language, Lingala, Portuguese, French	Christianity (Catholicism and Protestantism), African Traditional Religion	10,000,000	Africa	Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Angola	Kongo	Kongo nationalism, Bundu dia Kongo	Historically occupied the independent Kingdom of Kongo.
Baloch people		Balochi	Islam	10,000,000[44]	Asia	Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan	Balochistan	Balochistan conflict, Baloch nationalism
Kabyle people		Kabyle language, Algerian Arabic	Islam	4,000,000[45]	Africa	Algeria	Kabylie	Movement for the Autonomy of Kabylie, Provisional Government of Kabylia
Ahwazi Arabs		Arabic	Islam	1,320,000[46]	Asia	Iran	Al Ahwaz	Arab separatism in Khuzestan Democratic Solidarity Party of Ahwaz	Ahwazi includes 30 tribes which see themselves as a distinct Arab nation.[47] Seek self-determination, greater autonomy or total secession from Iran.
Andalusians		Andalusian Spanish, English (in Gibraltar)	Christianity (Roman Catholicism)	9,500,000	Europe	Spain, Gibraltar	Andalusia	Andalusian nationalism	See also Nationalisms and regionalisms of Spain.
Puerto Rican people		Spanish, English	Christianity (primarily Roman Catholicism)	9,000,000	America	United States	Puerto Rico	Puerto Rican Nationalist Party, Fuerzas Armadas de Liberación Nacional Puertorriqueña, Boricua Popular Army, Puerto Rican Independence Party	Unincorporated territory of the United States.
Catalans		Catalan, Spanish, Occitan, French, Italian	Agnosticism	8,500,000[48]	Europe	Spain, Italy, Andorra and France	Catalan Countries	Catalan independence movement, Catalan nationalism	See also Nationalisms and regionalisms of Spain.
Québécois		French language	Christianity (Roman Catholicism)	8,215,000	America	Canada	Quebec	Quebec sovereignty movement	The total population of the Province of Quebec is 8.2 million, of which over 80% are French speakers.
Mon people		Mon language	Buddhism	8,145,500	Asia	Myanmar, Thailand	Mon State	Mon Nationalism, Mon National Party, All Mon Region Democracy Party	Historically occupied the Mon kingdoms
Circassians		Circassian language, Russian	Islam	8,000,000	Europe	Russia	Circassia	Russo-Circassian War, Circassian nationalism	Regional autonomy in Circassia.
Karen people		Karen language	Christianity, Theravada Buddhism	7,000,000	Asia	Myanmar, Thailand	Kawthoolei	Karen nationalism, Karen National Union, Karen National Liberation Army
Maya peoples		Mayan languages	Christianity (Catholicism), Maya religion	7,000,000	America	Guatemala, Mexico, Belize, Honduras, El Salvador	Mesoamerica	Pan-Maya movement, Rigoberta Menchú, Zapatista Army of National Liberation	Historically occupied the Maya civilization
Volga Tatars		Tatar language, Russian	Islam	7,000,000	Europe	Russia	Tatarstan	All-Tatar Public Center	Regional autonomy in Tatarstan.
Flemings		Dutch, West Flemish, East Flemish, Picard, French	Roman Catholicism, Protestant minority (in Northern Flanders)	7,000,000	Europe	France, Belgium, Netherlands	Flanders (French Flanders, Pale of Calais, West Flanders, East Flanders, Tournaisis, Zeelandic Flanders)	Nieuw-Vlaamse Alliantie, Vlaams Belang, Flemish Movement	Independence and reunification of Flanders or union with the Netherlands.
Tibetan people		Tibetan language	Buddhism	7,000,000[49]	Asia	China	Tibet	Tibetan independence movement	Limited autonomy in the Tibet Autonomous Region.
Indian Gorkhas		Nepali language	Hinduism	6,360,000[50]	Asia	India	Gorkhastan	Gorkha National Liberation Front, Gorkha Janmukti Morcha	Gorkhaland is a proposed state in India demanded by the people of the Darjeeling Hills and the people of Gorkha ethnic origin on the Northern part of West Bengal.
Riffian people		Riffian language	Islam	6,000,000[51]	Africa	Morocco and Spain	Rif	Rif War, Rif Republic	95% of the land is controlled by Morocco with the rest being controlled by the Spanish territories of Ceuta and Melilla as autonomous cities.
Shan people		Shan language	Buddhism	6,000,000	Asia	Myanmar	Shan State	Shan State Army, Declaration of independence in 2005; see also Hso Khan Pha
Kashmiri people		Kashmiri language	Islam	5,600,000	Asia	India, Pakistan and China	Kashmir	Insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir	Administered by India (Kashmir Valley, Jammu, Ladakh), Pakistan (Azad Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan) and China (Aksai Chin).
Lozi people		Lozi	Christianity	5,153,000	Africa	Zambia	Barotseland	Barotse Patriotic Front[52]
Valencians		Valencian, Catalan, Spanish	Roman Catholicism[53]	5,111,706	Europe	Spain	Valencian Community	Valencian nationalism	See also Nationalisms and regionalisms of Spain.
Moro people		Filipino language, other Philippine languages	Islam	5,100,000	Asia	Philippines	Bangsamoro	National Liberation Front, Moro Islamic Liberation Front
Kuki-Mizo-Zo-Chin people		Kuki-Chin languages	Christianity	5,000,000	Asia	Myanmar, Bangladesh, India	Mizoram, Zogam and Chin State	Mizo National Front, Chin National Front, Kuki National Army, Zomi Revolutionary Army, Zomi nationalism	Kuki-Mizo-Zo-Chin are an ethnic group known by different names and speak different dialects.
Scottish people		Scottish Gaelic, Scots, English	Christianity (Protestantism, Catholic minority)	5,000,000 (only Scotland)[54]	Europe	United Kingdom	Scotland	Scottish independence	Regional autonomy in Scotland.
Sicilians[55]		Sicilian, Italian, Gallo-Italic of Sicily, Arbëresh	Christianity (Roman Catholicism)	5,000,000 (only Sicily)	Europe	Italy	Sicily	Sicilian nationalism	Regional autonomy in Sicily.
Mthwakazi people		IsiNdebele, Venda, Khalanga, Shona, Tonga, Xhosa, Sotho, Nambya, Tswana (a total of over 13 tribes and languages in addition to the ones listed here	Christianity with native	5,000,000	Africa	Zimbabwe	Southern party of Zimbabwe, today described as Matabeleland and the Midlands Province	Various political and revolutionary restoration movements	Mthwakazi was a Kingdom whose last King was King Lobhengula. Mthwakazi was colonised by the British independently as a State in 1893 after a war between the British and the natives of Mthwakazi. Mashonaland which neighbours Mthwakazi, had been colonized without resistance in 1890. Britain later amalgamated these two states.
Acehnese people		Acehnese language	Islam	4,200,000[56]	Asia	Indonesia	Aceh	Insurgency in Aceh	Regional autonomy in Aceh.
Hmong people		Hmong language	Buddhism with native	4,000,000	Asia	Laos, China, Vietnam and Thailand	Hmong ChaoFa Federated State	Insurgency in Laos
Rohingya people		Rohingya language	Islam	3,600,000	Asia	Myanmar	Rohang State	Rohingya conflict	The Rohingyas are not recognized as a native ethnic group by Burmese government.[57]
Afrikaners		Afrikaans	Christianity (mainly Protestantism)	3,500,000	Africa	South Africa and Namibia	Volkstaat	Afrikaner Nationalism, Freedom Front	Afrikaners are an Ethno-racial group. Demand autonomy or total secession from South Africa.
Walloons		Walloon, French, Picard	Christianity (Roman Catholicism)	3,500,000	Europe	Belgium, France	Wallonia	Partition of Belgium, Walloon Movement	Regional autonomy in Wallonia; seeks independence from Belgium or union with France.
Assyrian people		Assyrian Neo-Aramaic, Turoyo, Chaldean Neo-Aramaic	Christianity (Chaldean Catholicism Syriac Christianity)	3,300,000[58]	Asia	Syria, Iraq, Iran and Turkey	Assyria	Assyrian nationalism, Assyrian independence movement	Historically occupied the Assyrian empire.
Breton people		Breton, French, Gallo	Christianity (principally Roman Catholicism)	3,120,288	Europe	France	Brittany	Breton nationalism	Historically occupied the Kingdom of Brittany
Basque people		Basque, French, Spanish	Christianity (Roman Catholicism)	3,000,000[59]	Europe	France and Spain	Basque Country	Basque nationalism	See also Nationalisms and regionalisms of Spain.
Iraqi Turkmen people		Turkish language, Azerbaijani language	Islam	3,000,000	Asia	Iraq	Turkmeneli	Iraqi Turkmen Front	Not to be confused with Syrian Turkmen of Latakia or Central Asian Turkmens of Turkmenistan who share only their ethnonym.[60]
Welsh people		Welsh, English	Christianity (Protestantism, Catholic minority)	3,000,000	Europe	United Kingdom	Wales	Welsh independence, Welsh nationalism, Meibion Glyndŵr, Plaid Cymru	Regional autonomy in Wales.
Galician people		Galician language, Spanish, Portuguese	Christianity (Roman Catholicism)	2,800,000	Europe	Spain	Galicia	Galician nationalism	See also Nationalisms and regionalisms of Spain. Historically occupied the Kingdom of Galicia.
Kachin people		Jingpo, Zaiwa, Maru, Lashi, Azi	Buddhism, Christianity, Animism	2,750,000 (2002)[61]	Asia	Myanmar	Kachin State	Kachin Independence Army, Kachin Independence Organisation, Kachin conflict	The tribes of Kachin Hills form the Kachin Nation.
Aragonese people		Aragonese language, Spanish	Christianity (Roman Catholicism)	2,278,000 (Spain only)[62]	Europe	Spain	Aragon	Aragonese nationalism	See also Nationalisms and regionalisms of Spain. Historically occupied the Kingdom of Aragon.
Meitei people		Meitei language	Hinduism	2,500,000	Asia	India	Manipur	UNLF, PLA, Insurgency in Manipur, Anglo-Manipur War	Historically occupied the Kingdom of Manipur.
Chechen people		Chechen language, Russian	Islam	2,000,000	Europe	Russia	Chechnya	Chechen insurgency, Chechen Republic of Ichkeria	Regional autonomy in Chechnya.
Naga people		Tibeto-Burman dialects / Nagamese creole	Christianity	2,000,000	Asia	India	Nagaland	Naga National Council, Insurgency in Northeast India	Regional autonomy in Nagaland.
Alsatians		Alsatian, French, German	Christianity (primarily Roman Catholicism, but also Protestantism)	~1,800,000	Europe	France	Alsace	Alsace independence movement, Alsace First,[63] Unser Land[64]	National devolution, further autonomy or total secession from France.[65][66][67]
Sardinian people[68][69][70][71]		Sardinian, Corso-Sardinian, Italian, Catalan, Ligurian	Christianity (Roman Catholicism)	1,661,521	Europe	Italy	Sardinia	Sardinian nationalism	National devolution, further autonomy or total secession from Italy.
Canarian people		Guanche language (extinct), Spanish	Christianity (Roman Catholicism)	1,600,000	Africa	Spain	Canary Islands	Canarian nationalism	National devolution, further autonomy or total secession from Mainland Spain.
Ryukyuan people		Ryukyuan, Japanese	Buddhism	1,600,000[72]	Asia	Japan	Ryukyu Islands	Ryukyu independence movement	Historically occupied the Ryukyu Kingdom.
Frisians		Frisian, Dutch, German, Danish	Christianity (Protestantism and Roman Catholicism)	1,500,000	Europe	Netherlands, Denmark, and Germany	Frisia	Frisian National Party, Groep fan Auwerk	The creation of a new Frisian state.
Tripuri people		Kokborok	Hinduism	1,520,000 (2002)[73]	Asia	India	Tripura	Tripuri nationalism, All Tripura Tiger Force, National Liberation Front of Tripura	Historically occupied the Twipra Kingdom. 1949, Tripuris had a population of 85% in Tripura, 2002 they make up 29% and became a minority in their own homeland.[73]
Bodo people		Bodo language	Bathouism	1,300,000	Asia	India	Bodoland	Bodo nationalism, National Democratic Front of Bodoland	National devolution or further autonomy from the India.
Tuareg people		Tuareg language	Islam	1,200,000	Africa	Mali and Niger	Azawad	National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad, Tuareg rebellion (2012), Northern Mali conflict	National devolution, further autonomy or total secession from Mali.
Mapuche		Mapudungun	Christianity (Roman Catholicism)	1,000,000[74]	America	Argentina and Chile	Araucanía	Mapuche conflict
Asturian people		Asturian language, Spanish	Christianity (Roman Catholicism)	925,000 (2002)[75]	Europe	Spain	Asturias	Asturian nationalism	See also Nationalisms and regionalisms of Spain.
Silesians		Silesian, Polish, German, Czech	Christianity (Roman Catholicism)	900,000	Europe	Poland, Czech Republic and Germany	Silesia	Silesian Autonomy Movement	Divided into Upper Silesia and Lower Silesia.
Lezgins		Lezgian	Islam	800,000+	Europe	Russia, Azerbaijan	Lezgistan	Lezgin Nationalism	Unification of the Lezgin people in Azerbaijan and Dagestan (Russia).
Fur people		Fur, Arabic	Islam	800,000[76]	Africa	Sudan	Dafur	War in Darfur, SLM/A	Historically occupied the Sultanate of Darfur.
Māori people		Māori, English	Christianity with native	750,000	Oceania	New Zealand	New Zealand	Māori protest movement
Aboriginal Australians		Aboriginal languages	Christianity (principally Anglicanism and Roman Catholicism) with native	680,000	Oceania	Australia	Australia	Movement is fragmented or focused on specific aboriginal groups
Karakalpaks		Karakalpak language	Islam	620,000	Asia	Uzbekistan	Karakalpakstan	Karakalpak Nationalism	Regional autonomy in Karakalpakstan
Cornish people		Cornish, Cornish English, English	Christianity (principally Protestantism)	534,300 (only Cornwall)	Europe	United Kingdom	Cornwall	Cornish nationalism, Mebyon Kernow, Cornish Nationalist Party	National devolution or further autonomy from the United Kingdom.
Hawaiian people		Hawaiian language	Christianity (Catholicism and Protestantism) with native	527,000	Oceania	United States	Hawaii	Hawaiian sovereignty movement	Historically occupied the Kingdom of Hawaii.
Moravians		Czech (Moravian), Slovak	Traditionally Roman Catholicism presently Irreligion	525,000[77][78]	Europe	Czech Republic and Slovakia	Moravia	Moravians	Historically occupied the Moravian Empire
Kashubians		Kashubian	Christianity (Roman Catholicism)	~0.5 million (2002–07)[79][80] of which 233,000 as ethnic-national identity (2011)	Europe	Poland	Pomerania	Kaszëbskô Jednota	Kashubians with Slovincians (extinct) formed the West Slavic tribes of Pomeranians.
Ogoni people		Ogoni language	Christianity with native	500,000	Africa	Nigeria	Ogoniland	Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People
Crimean Tatars		Crimean Tatar, Russian, Ukrainian	Islam	500,000	Europe	Ukraine	Crimea	Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People Tatars in Republic of Crimea Deportation of the Crimean Tatars	Previously an autonomous republic within Ukraine, after being invaded and annexed by Russia in 2014 the Crimean Tatars are currently seeking autonomy[81]
Sahrawi people[82]		Hassaniya Arabic (native), Berber languages (native), Modern Standard Arabic (written only), and Spanish (lingua franca)	Islam (Sunni Islam (Maliki), Sufism)	500,000[83]	Africa	Morocco, Algeria, Mauretania	Western Sahara	Western Sahara conflict, Polisario Front, Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic	partially controlled by the self-proclaimed Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic and partially Moroccan-occupied
Yakuts		Yakut language, Russian language	Christianity, Shamanism, Tengrism	480,000–510,000	Asia	Russia	Yakutia	Yakut revolt (1918)	Regional autonomy in Sakha Republic, Yakut leaders declared Yakutia's sovereignty in 1991 in an attempt to take advantage of the fall of the Soviet Union, though this was unsuccessful[84]
Chams		Cham language	Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism	400,000	Asia	Vietnam	South Central Coast	United Front for the Liberation of Oppressed Races, Cham rights movement[85]	Historically occupied the Champa state. The Cham in Vietnam are only recognized as a minority, and not as an indigenous people by the Vietnamese government despite being indigenous to the region. Vietnamese continue to destroy evidence of Cham culture and artifacts left behind.
Corsican people		Corsican, French, Ligurian, Italian	Christianity (Roman Catholicism	322,120	Europe	France	Corsica	Corsica Libera	Territorial collectivity in France.
Navajo		Navajo language, Navajo language, Navajo Sign Language	Navajo Traditional, Christianity (principally Roman Catholicism)	300,460	America	United States	Navajo Nation	Navajo Wars	Regional autonomy in the Navajo Nation.
Tuvans		Tuvan language, Russian language, Mongolian language, Chinese language	Tibetan Buddhism, Tengrism	300,000	Asia	Russia, Mongolia, China	Tuva	People's Front "Free Tuva", People's Party of Sovereign Tuva[86]	Regional autonomy in Tuva.
Sikkimese people		Sikkimese language	Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity	290,000	Asia	India	Sikkim	Sikkim Bhutia Lepcha Apex Committee[87]	Formerly the Kingdom of Sikkim. The Sikkimese people are split among the Lepcha, Limbu and Bhutias In 1990 Sikkimese Nationalist leaders declared the annexation of Sikkim by India to be illegal[88]
Lakota people		Lakota, English	Christianity with native	170,000[89]	America	United States	Lakotah	Sioux Wars, Lakota Freedom Movement	Native American reservation politics.
Sami people		Sami languages, Norwegian, Swedish, Finnish, Russian	Christianity (principally Lutheran), Animism	163,400	Europe	Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia	Sapmi	Sámi politics	Have their own Parliaments in Norway, Sweden & Finland but Sami groups seek more territorial autonomy.
Inuit		Inuit languages, Danish	Christianity with native	135,991	America	Canada, United States and Denmark	Siberia, Alaska, Northern Canada and Greenland	Greenland Referendum, Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami	Semi-autonomous rule in Greenland with autonomy in Denmark.
Pamiris		Pamir languages	Islam	135,000[90]	Asia	Tajikistan	Badakhshan	Pamiri nationalism, Lali Badakhshan party, Tajikistani Civil War	Regional autonomy in Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region
Acadians		Acadian French, American English, French, English	Catholicism, minority irreligious	102,250 (Maine and Atlantic Canada only)	America	United States and Canada	Acadia	There have been several attempts at splitting Aroostook County off of Maine,[91] and the short lived Republic of Madawaska in the 1800s[92]
Manx people		Manx language, Manx English, English	Christianity	89,000 (2002)[93]	Europe	United Kingdom	Isle of Man	Mec Vannin	Isle of Man is a self-governing British Crown dependency.
Karelians		Karelian, Russian, Finnish	Christianity	77,000	Europe	Finland, Russia	Karelia	East Karelian uprising	Divided into East Karelia and West Karelia.
Rusyns[94][95]		Rusyn, Ukrainian, Slovak, Serbian	Christianity	68,000 (official; the actual population may be 1.2 million)	Europe	Ukraine, Slovakia, Serbia, Poland, Hungary and Romania	Carpathian Ruthenia	World Congress of Rusyns, Rusyn separatist movement[96][97][98][99]	The Rusyn ethnicity is not recognised by Ukraine and does not appear in the Ukrainian census. Many speakers of the Lemko and Hutsul dialects identify primarily as Lemkos and Hutsuls, rather than Rusyns or Ukrainians. A separate population, the Pannonian Rusyns, are a minority in Serbia and Croatia.
Faroese people		Faroese language, Danish	Christianity (principally Lutheran)	66,000	Europe	Denmark	Faroe Islands	Faroese independence movement	Regional autonomy in Faroe Islands.
Sorbs		Sorbian language, Czech, German	Christianity (Roman Catholicism)	60,000–70,000 (est.)	Europe	Germany and Czech Republic	Lusatia	Domowina	Divided into Upper Sorbs and Lower Sorbs.
Ainu people		Ainu languages, Japanese people, Russian language	Animism, Shintoism, Buddhism, Christianity	25,000 – 200,000 (est.)	Asia	Japan, Russia	Hokkaido	Ainu Movement	Seek greater independence in Japan[100][101][102]
Rapa Nui people		Rapa Nui language, Spanish language	Christianity (Catholicism)	5,682	Oceania	Chile	Easter Island	Rapa Nui independence movement[103][104]	The Rapa Nui Parliament is a pro-independence organisation[105]

See also

• Ethnic nationalism
• European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages
• Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities
• List of active autonomist and secessionist movements
• List of federally recognized tribes
• List of First Nations peoples
• List of unrecognized tribes in the United States
• Multinational state
• Non-FIFA international football
• Self-determination
• Sovereignty
• Stateless person
• Stateless society
• Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization

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Sources

• Keating, Michael (2001), Nations Against the State: The New Politics of Nationalism in Quebec, Catalonia and Scotland (Second ed.), Palgrave
• Levinson, David, ed. (1998), Ethnic Groups Worldwide: A Ready Reference Handbook, Phoenix, AZ: The Oryx Press, ISBN 978-1-57356-019-1
• Minahan, James, ed. (2002), Encyclopedia of the Stateless Nations: Ethnic and National Groups Around the World, Westport: Greenwood Press, ISBN 978-0-313-31617-3
• Bodlore-Penlaez, Mikael, ed. (2011), Atlas of Stateless Nations in Europe, minority peoples in search of recognition, Ceredigion: Y Lolfa, ISBN 978-1-84771-379-7

External links

• Map of European Stateless Nations, published by the advocacy group Eurominority
• United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities