This paper challenges any notion of a successive Europeanization of political identities on a broader scale. In contrast, it makes the argument that even within the European multi-level system, national identities are reaffirmed at least in public discourses. Besides a structural nationalism that interferes with EU issues anyway, peoples reaffirm their national identities by telling stories of the nation. If the nation – as Renan famously stated – can be considered “a daily plebiscite”, it seems to make particular sense to study nationalism in direct democratic situations, especially when sovereignty is challenged. I apply a discourse analytical methodology – the Sociology of Knowledge Approach to Discourse (SKAD, Keller) – to EU treaty referendums in order to identify so-called nationalizing narratives. Narrative nationalism is very prominent in EU referendum debates. The study will help to understand identity-conflicts within the EU and might be transferred to secession referendums as well.
