Territory

The third assumption is that nations identify with a particular territory. Sharing a common past and living together on a particular piece of land over a long stretch of time gives people a sense of collective identity, and helps them imagine themselves as one people. It is therefore unsurprising that people who see themselves as a nation speak of a "homeland." The land they have occupied, and on which they have lived, takes on a special significance for them, and they come to claim it as their own. …