Albert Einstein — "Nationalism is an infantile disease. It is the measles of mankind."
Nationalism is an infantile disease. It is the measles of mankind.
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Details
Reported statement, often cited in discussions of his political views.
Date: Undetermined
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Understanding this quote
What it means
Nationalism—the belief that loyalty to one's nation supersedes universal human bonds—is childish and dangerous, like a contagious disease that spreads irrationally and harms everyone it touches. Einstein argues humanity should outgrow tribal allegiances, recognizing that dividing the world into competing nations stunts moral and intellectual development, much as measles stunts a child's body.
Relevance to Albert Einstein
Einstein, a German-born Jew, fled Nazi Germany in 1933 after Hitler rose to power—a direct consequence of virulent German nationalism. Stateless by choice, he held Swiss and later American citizenship, deliberately rejecting national identity as a core value. His pacifism and internationalism were central to his worldview; he championed world government and saw borders as obstacles to scientific and humanitarian progress.
The era
Einstein lived through both World Wars, witnessing nationalism's catastrophic consequences: WWI's mass slaughter driven by imperial rivalries, then fascist nationalism in Germany, Italy, and Japan igniting WWII. The interwar period saw nationalism weaponized into genocidal ideology. Einstein spoke these words as Europe descended into ultranationalism, making his condemnation not abstract philosophy but urgent, lived warning from someone who lost colleagues, family, and homeland to its poison.
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