CoHASS Launches Professor Jon Wilson’s New Book on the Global History of the Nation State

The modern nation-state may be far more recent and less inevitable than we think. This was the central argument explored at the launch of Out of Chaos: A Global History of the Nation State, a new book by Professor Jon Wilson, Dean of the College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, on 30 September 2026. Hosted by CoHASS, the event brought together scholars to examine how the political order we know today emerged from the upheavals following the Second World War. Moderated by Dr Swapna Kona Nayudu (NTU Global Asia Research Centre), the panel featured Professor Tan Tai Yong (SUSS), Associate Professor Kei Koga (NTU SSS), and Professor Srinath Raghavan (NUS).

Professor Wilson argued that the nation-state rose to prominence amid widespread political instability and the collapse of established authority after the war. Through examples from Indonesia, Britain and Singapore, he illustrated how historical circumstances and successive crises shaped the emergence of modern nationhood, rather than a predetermined political vision. The panellists examined whether the roots of nationhood could be traced to earlier periods, while audience questions explored nationalism, national identity and the challenges of accommodating diverse communities within national borders. The discussion highlighted how revisiting the history of the nation-state can deepen our understanding of contemporary political developments and challenge assumptions about the world’s current political order.