Includes bibliographical references and index.

Comparative theory and political practice : do we need a "state-nation" model as well as a "nation-state" model? -- India as a state-nation : shared political community amidst deep cultural diversity -- Four Indian cases that challenge state-nation theory? -- Tamils in India : how state-nation policies helped construct multiple but complementary identities -- Tamils in Sri Lanka : how nation-state policies helped construct polar and conflictual identities -- Ukraine : state-nation policies in a unitary state -- Federacy : a formula for democratically managing multinational societies in unitary states -- The U.S. federal model and multinational societies : some problems for democratic theory and practice.