Concepts of citizen, citizenship and civic

Abstract

This article states the differences and relationships between two conceptions of citizenship _one concerned with juridical aspects and the other with ethical aspects_ in relation to sovereign communities or countries. To define the ‘citizen’ according to the first conception, inhabitants may be 1) immigrants or 2) nationals; nationals are subclassified as 2.1) citizens or 2.2) subjects, i.e., nationals without political rights (children and citizens with suspended political rights). According to the second conception, inhabitants are classified as 1) children or people psychologically unable to fulfill political participation and 2) citizens in broad sense; citizens are subclassified in 2.1) passive or 2.2) active. Active citizens may be either union citizens or ideological citizens, which can be authoritarian or democratic. These classifications and definitions are drawn from comparing what has been said about the concepts of citizen, citizenship and civic-mindedness in three language dictionaries and eight lexicographical dictionaries and encyclopedias.