Question

A ______ was one in which the majority of its citizens came to develop a common sense of identity and shared history of descent.
A) City-state
B) Nation-state
C) Multinational state
D) Totalitarian state

Answer 1

Hint: A state is a polity governed by a system of government that has a monopoly on the use of force. There is no universally agreed-upon definition of a state. A "state" is a polity that maintains a monopoly on the legitimate use of violence, according to a widely used definition by German sociologist Max Weber, however alternate definitions are not uncommon.

Complete answer:
Let us analyze the given options:
Option A) City-State: This is not the correct option because a city-state is a self-governing metropolis that acts as the political, economic, and cultural hub for its surrounding territory. They have existed in various regions of the world from the dawn of history, including cities such as Rome, Athens, Sparta, and Carthage, as well as Italian city-states such as Florence, Venice, Genoa, and Milan during the Middle Ages and Renaissance.

Option B) Nation-State: This is the correct option because a nation-state was defined as one in which the majority of its population developed a shared sense of identity and descent history. A nation-state is a political unit in which the state and the country are one and the same. Because a country does not have to have a dominating ethnic group, it is a more exact concept than a "country".

Option C) Multinational state: This is not the correct option because a sovereign state that consists of two or more nations or states is known as a multinational state. In contrast, in a nation-state, the majority of the population is accounted for by a single nation. A multinational state may be multicultural or multilingual, depending on the concept of "country".

Option D) Totalitarian state: This is not the correct option because Totalitarianism is a term used to describe a type of governance or political system that forbids opposition parties, limits individual dissent to the state and its claims, and exerts severe control over both public and private life. It is thought to be the most comprehensive and ultimate form of authoritarianism.

Therefore the correct answer is option ‘B’. A nation-state was one in which the majority of its citizens came to develop a common sense of identity and shared history of descent.

Note: A state's connection with a nation (in the ethnic sense) can be complicated. A state's presence can stimulate ethnogenesis, and a group with a pre-existing ethnic identity might influence territorial boundary drawing or fight for political legitimacy.