2026/02/03 by Inês Gusman, Rubén Camilo Lois-González, José Alberto Rio Fernandes · 1 voice
Social Sciences · Arts and Humanities · #Political Systems and Governance #History, Culture, and Diplomacy #Cross-Border Cooperation and Integration
paper · doi:10.1080/1070289x.2026.2614229
openalex publication_date 2026/02/03 · openalex created_date 2026/02/04 · openalex updated_date 2026/06/15
As European regions gain importance in development planning, regional identities have become increasingly significant for territorial governance and legitimacy. In centralized unitary states, however, their formation and mobilization remain poorly understood. This study examines how regional identities are framed in Northern Portugal, a planning region in Portugal – one of the most centralized countries in the European Union. Through geo-historical analysis and narrative examination of interviews and strategic documents, we found that regional identities can emerge and persist independently of formal regional structures through two mechanisms: maintaining unofficial territorial references in social consciousness and embedding historical regional elements into current official narratives. However, the effectiveness of regional identities as tools for development and decision-making legitimacy is highly dependent on the institutional framework.