What is transnationalism in simple terms?

Migrants keeping family, money, political and religious ties with home while living in a new country.

What are the critiques?

That it is not new and that states still play a large role.

Transnationalism

👥 Sociology By CampusDown Wiki Editorial Team Last updated October 27, 2026

Transnationalism is the view that migrants, after settling in a new country, maintain family, economic, political and religious ties with their country of origin and live in both societies at once. Anthropologist Nina Glick Schiller and colleagues proposed it as a new framework in the early 1990s.

Contents

1. Concept
2. Development
3. Critiques
4. FAQ
5. References

Concept

Glick Schiller, Basch and Blanc-Szanton (1992; 1994) challenged the view of migrants as uprooted and absorbed, highlighting 'transmigrants' who link two societies through remittances, politics and religion, in step with globalisation and cultural diffusion.

Development

Portes, Guarnizo and Landolt (1999) proposed limiting the concept to regular, sustained cross-border activities. Vertovec (1999) mapped its meanings, Wimmer and Glick Schiller (2002) criticised methodological nationalism, and Levitt and Glick Schiller (2004) introduced transnational social fields. Such networks also act as social capital.

Critiques

Waldinger and Fitzgerald (2004) argued earlier migrants also kept home ties and that states' border controls still matter. The debate connects to multiculturalism.

FAQ

What is transnationalism in simple terms?: Migrants keeping family, money, political and religious ties with home while living in a new country.
What are the critiques?: That it is not new and that states still play a large role.

Sources reviewed: 2026-10-26

References

Glick Schiller, N., Basch, L., & Blanc-Szanton, C. (1992). Transnationalism: A new analytic framework for understanding migration. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 645(1), 1–24. The founding framework for migration research.
Basch, L., Glick Schiller, N., & Szanton Blanc, C. (1994). Nations unbound: Transnational projects, postcolonial predicaments, and deterritorialized nation-states. Gordon and Breach. Develops the concept with case studies.
Portes, A., Guarnizo, L. E., & Landolt, P. (1999). The study of transnationalism: Pitfalls and promise of an emergent research field. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 22(2), 217–237. Calls for conceptual precision.
Vertovec, S. (1999). Conceiving and researching transnationalism. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 22(2), 447–462. Maps the meanings of transnationalism.
Wimmer, A., & Glick Schiller, N. (2002). Methodological nationalism and beyond: Nation-state building, migration and the social sciences. Global Networks, 2(4), 301–334. Critiques methodological nationalism.
Levitt, P., & Glick Schiller, N. (2004). Conceptualizing simultaneity: A transnational social field perspective on society. International Migration Review, 38(3), 1002–1039. Transnational social fields and simultaneity.
Waldinger, R., & Fitzgerald, D. (2004). Transnationalism in question. American Journal of Sociology, 109(5), 1177–1195. Questions its novelty.

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This article was last updated on October 27, 2026. It is based on widely recognized original works and textbooks; when citing it in a paper, please check the original sources listed in the references.