Constitutional Patriotism and the Spanish Constitutional Debate

Abstract

The constitutionalist parties in Spain have adopted the concept of constitutional patriotism into their political discourse. This assimilation has important consequences in the way they approach nationalist tensions and ethnic conflict. I present a general overview of the oncept of constitutional patriotism and its use in Spanish politics. The first section reviews the origin and formation of constitutional patriotism as a concept. The second section is an analysis of its fundamental characteristics. The third section is an attempt to show the reception and interpretation of constitutional patriotism by the Spanish constitutionalist parties, the debate and criticism that its use has evoked, and some of its implications in dealing with nationalist tensions in the country.