Secularizing the ideology of nationalism and nationalizing the ideology of secularism: a refeudalization of discourse in Bosnia and Herzegovina

The paper argues that public discourses in Bosnia and Herzegovina have been ideologically and linguistically divided and remodelled – laden with ethnic connotations – so that they effectively disallow rational public discussion among individuals who identify themselves or are perceived as members of different ethnic groups in Bosnia and Herzegovina. While the process began during the disintegration of Yugoslavia, it has continued and expanded in the discourses and official policies of post-war Bosnian society. As a consequence, the discourse in Bosnia and Herzegovina has been significantly ‘refeudalized’. This refeudalization of discourse, however, has not been invoked by the commercialization of the media but, among other things, by ‘ethnic branding’ and polarization of ethnic identities.