Libyan nationalism

Flag of Libya

Libyan nationalismrefers to thenationalismofLibyansandLibyan culture.Libyan nationalism began to arise with the creation of theSenussireligious orders in the 1830s that blended North African Sufism with orthodox Islam.Aftercolonization of Libyaby Italy, opponents of Italian colonial rule from Tripolitania and Cyrenaica combined forces in 1922, with Senussi leaderOmar Mukhtarleading therevolt against Italian forces in Libya.Libya becamean independent stateafterWorld War II.

Libya underMuammar Gaddafiinitially pursuedpan-Arabismbut later abandoned this, Gaddafi initiated anirredentistwar withChadover theAouzou strip.Gaddafiwas overthrown in 2011.

History

Mid 19th Century

During the 1840s theSenussireligious orders reached the borders of Libya with the help of Algerian sheikh El-Sayyid Mohammed bin Ali Al-Senussi,also known as Grand Sanusi.The Senussi orders created a spiritual unification, a sense of community, among the Libyan people.The Senussi orders were concerned with the spiritual aspect of the religion of Islam.Their presence was detectable among thetribesin Libya which provided the religion with more power and influence in the region.They played an important part in creating cohesion among tribes and keeping the tribes at peace, preventing conflict.Within politics, the Senussi orders were concerned with spreadingIslam's reach.They became more prominent in Libya to the point where we could eventually speak of a state within a state led by the Senussi order.

20th Century

Since the 19th century, Italy had had colonial ambitions in Libya.In 1912, the European power invaded and annexedTripolitaniaandCyrenaicaright after their recognition by the Turks through theTreaty of Lausanne.The power was shared between the Senussi orders and the Italian authorities in Libya. After the Senussi orders had sided with the Ottoman Empire during the war and lost,Muhammad Idristook the lead in the negotiations with the British.In 1922, the different nationalist groups in Tripoli decided to put their differences aside and recognized Idris as the legitimate leader of Libya.With his nomination, the war between the Senussi orders and the Italians started again.After another Italian victory, thousands of Italians immigrated to the Libyan soil.During World War II, Idris fled to Egypt where he was protected by the British. He finally rose to the throne when Libya was unified under aconstitutional monarchyafter the defeat of Italy and Germany.

King Muhammad Idris was overthrown in the 1969 coup led by CaptainMuammar Gaddafi.Inspired byNasserin Egypt, Gaddafi joined his project of regional unity, also calledpan-Arabism,aiming at creating a common Arab state.In this project, Gaddafi viewedIslamas an essential pillar, hence approaching ideas ofpan-Islamism.Islam worked as a unifying factor of universal relevance.Gaddafi wished to promote an alternative to the communism and capitalist philosophies in theThird International Theory.This theory, developed inThe Green Book,was addressing not only the Arab world but the entire globe and promoted direct democracy through theGeneral People's Committeeestablishing a direct dialogue between the population and the government.

21st Century

With the failure of the pan-Arabism movement, Gaddafi turned topan-Africanism.He was nominated president of theAfrican Unionin 2009 and exposed his ideas ofcontinentalism;Gaddafi did not believe in the possibility of individually strong African states.He claimed that, to find their strength and be able to challenge greater powers, the African states had to unite. He also defended the establishment of a continental army as he argued that no state could flourish and prosper without one.During theLibyan Resistance Movementof 2011 Gaddafi was overthrown.After this, there was a lack of leadership and unity filled by theNational Transitional CouncilandNon-State (Armed) Actors.The non-state (armed) actors played an important role in the state-building of Libya after 2011: they have provided the Libyan people with, among other things, security and social services.

Long-Distance Nationalism

After the revolution of 1969 many Libyan nationals fled from Libya, resulting in the establishment of aLibyan diasporaacross the world inNorth America,Europeand theMENAregion, In particular, Libyan immigration to Tunisia is a long-term phenomenon.During the2011 revolution,there was support for and part taking in the revolution by Libyan people across the world.The diaspora shared a common feeling of one nation, of connectedness and of belonging to one community.Social mediawas an important factor in making this possible.

See also

• African nationalism
• Arab nationalism
• Egyptian nationalism
• Tunisian nationalism

Bibliography

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