##Current research on ethnicity, ethnic revival and nationalism focuses on the present dimension of this phenomenon. This paper explicitly draws on the concept of longue durée, followed by an examination of some important suggestions formulated by Immanuel Wallerstein. The paper tries to clarify, by means of historical anthropological analysis, some essential components of the socio-historical framework of "ethnic discourses" in Italy. The central issues of the inquiry refer to the continuity of the conflict between legality and legitimacy respectively the perception of the gap between the North and the South of the country. In this context the question will be formulated: Isn't the construction of ethnicity in Italy, even though it is undoubtedly the expression of the "dark evil" of the end of the century, currently also a form of loyalty to tradition which has been going on since the formation of the unitary state?##
Keywords: ethnicity, ethnic revival, nationalism, nation state, longue durée, Wallerstein, I., legality and legitimacy, legitimacy in Italy
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