Rescuing history from the nation. A history of Spanish historiography on nationalism

This article addresses the historiographical research on nationalism in Spain by giving an historical overview of the academic debate during the last four decades. It is argued here that Spanish historiography was scarcely autonomous from the (state and peripheral) nationalist narratives until the end of 20th century. It was a cultural change (and partially a generational one) reflected in new theoretical influences (mostly from Cultural history and constructivist social theory) which accelerated a new historical overview on the issue in the 21th century more focused on Spanish nationalism. A former generation rooted on Marxist and Positivist methodologies and more interested in peripheral nationalism was then partially replaced by a new generation less seduced by nationalist narratives. The historical approach to these different stages also gives the possibility of objectifying the interaction between historical discourse and political debates on the nation. It also permits to highlight current research debates and new historical proposals.