Religion, Nationalism, and Identity Politics in Southeast Asia: Legitimacy, Pluralism, and Regional Order

Abstract

Religion has regained political significance in Southeast Asia as identity contestation, public morality, and national legitimacy increasingly intersect in state and societal life. Across the region, religious nationalism has become a major force shaping inclusion, exclusion, and the symbolic boundaries of political community. This article examines how identity politics and religious nationalism structure political order and regional stability in Southeast Asia. It adopts a qualitative and theory-driven approach grounded in constructivism and the sociology of religion in politics. The analysis draws on comparative regional literature, policy discourse, and historical debates on state formation, legitimacy, and pluralism in selected Southeast Asian settings. Attention is directed to the ways religious identity is mobilized in relation to nationalism, governance, and social hierarchy, while also tracing how these processes affect wider understandings of citizenship and belonging. A comparative reading is used to identify recurring patterns as well as context-specific political expressions across the region. Religion emerges as a constitutive element of legitimacy and nationhood rather than a secondary cultural variable. Religious nationalism therefore operates as both a source of political cohesion and a mechanism of boundary-making that can constrain pluralism and deepen exclusion. The article contributes to the field by offering a regionally grounded framework for understanding how religion and nationalism interact in the production of political order in Southeast Asia.