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The Origins of Common Identity: Evidence from Alsace-Lorraine

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  • Sirus Dehdari
  • Kai Gehring

Abstract

The quasi-exogenous division of the French regions Alsace and Lorraine after the Franco-Prussian War allows us to provide evidence about group identity formation within historically homogeneous regions. Using several measures of stated and revealed preferences spanning over half a century, we show that being exposed to occupation and repression for many decades caused a persistently stronger regional identity. The geographical RDD results are robust across all specifications. We document two mechanisms using data on regional newspapers and regionalist parties. The differences are strongest for the first two age cohorts after WWII and associated with preferences for more regional decision-making.

Suggested Citation

  • Sirus Dehdari & Kai Gehring, 2018. "The Origins of Common Identity: Evidence from Alsace-Lorraine," CESifo Working Paper Series 7410, CESifo.
    • Handle: RePEc:ces:ceswps:_7410
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    1. Alberto Alesina & Enrico Spolaore, 1997. "On the Number and Size of Nations," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 112(4), pages 1027-1056.
    2. Stephanos Vlachos, 2019. "On war and political radicalization," Vienna Economics Papers 1904, University of Vienna, Department of Economics.
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    Cited by:

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    2. Nicolas Berman & Mathieu Couttenier & Victoire Girard, 2023. "Mineral Resources and the Salience of Ethnic Identities," The Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 133(653), pages 1705-1737.
    3. Klein, Miriam & Wiens, Marcus & Schultmann, Frank, 2022. "Borderland resilience, willingness to help and trust–An empirical study of the French-German border area," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 99(C).
    4. Felipe Carozzi & Edward Pinchbeck & Luca Repetto, 2023. "Scars of War: The Legacy of WW1 Deaths on Civic Capital and Combat Motivation," CESifo Working Paper Series 10298, CESifo.
    5. Tao, Yunqing & Wang, Dianjie & Ye, Yongwei & Wu, Haitao & Zhang, Yao, 2023. "The role of public environmental concern on corporate social responsibility: Evidence from search index of web users," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 126(C).
    6. Kukić, Leonard, 2023. "The last Yugoslavs: Ethnic diversity and national identity," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    7. Andrea Bonoldi & Chiara Dalle Nogare & Martin Mosler & Niklas Potrafke, 2020. "Do inheritance rules affect voter turnout? Evidence from an Alpine region," Constitutional Political Economy, Springer, vol. 31(4), pages 395-445, December.
    8. Vlachos, Stephanos, 2022. "On war and political radicalization: Evidence from forced conscription into the Wehrmacht," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 144(C).
    9. Gehring, Kai & Kaplan, Lennart C. & Wong, Melvin H.L., 2022. "China and the World Bank—How contrasting development approaches affect the stability of African states," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 158(C).
    10. Kersting, Felix & Wolf, Nikolaus, 2024. "On the origins of national identity. German nation-building after Napoleon," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 52(2), pages 463-477.
    11. Fontana, Nicola & Nannicini, Tommaso & Tabellini, Guido, 2023. "Historical roots of political extremism: The effects of Nazi occupation of Italy," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 51(3), pages 723-743.
    12. Kukic, Leonard & Arslantas, Yasin, 2022. "Religious change and persistence in Bosnia: Poverty, conversions, and nationalism, 1468-2013," IFCS - Working Papers in Economic History.WH 35286, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. Instituto Figuerola.
    13. Kai Gehring, 2019. "Overcoming History through International Organizations - Historical Roots of EU Support and Euroscepticism," CESifo Working Paper Series 7831, CESifo.
    14. Kai Gehring & Joop Adema & Panu Poutvaara & Joop Age Harm Adema, 2022. "Immigrant Narratives," CESifo Working Paper Series 10026, CESifo.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    group identity; regional identity; identity formation; persistence of preferences; homogenization policies; assimilation; Alsace-Lorraine;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D91 - Microeconomics - - Micro-Based Behavioral Economics - - - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making
    • H70 - Public Economics - - State and Local Government; Intergovernmental Relations - - - General
    • N40 - Economic History - - Government, War, Law, International Relations, and Regulation - - - General, International, or Comparative
    • Z19 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Other

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