A nation is a community of people formed on the basis of a common language, history, ethnicity, or a common culture, and, in many cases, a shared territory. A nation is more overtly political than an ethnic group; it has been described as "a fully mobilized or institutionalized ethnic group". Some nations are equated with ethnic groups and some are equated with an affiliation with a social and political constitution. A nation has also been defined as a cultural-political community that has become conscious of its autonomy, unity and particular interests. In international law nation is the term for a sovereign state.
