Blackwell Reference Online

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Just as interest in immigration history has increased tremendously over the past 20 years, so too has interest in the history of anti-immigrant sentiment, or “nativism.” Once rarely used outside of academia, the term “nativism” became a staple of editorials and op-ed columns in the 1990s, its use increasing nearly 10 times from the previous decade according to the LexisNexis Academic newspaper database. Scholars also devote far more attention to nativism than they did in the past, when they focused primarily upon the physical, psychological, and economic adjustments made by those who immigrated. Some recent interest in anti-immigrant sentiment has undoubtedly resulted from the perception that contemporary nativism is on the rise, but the study of nativism has increased primarily because of a heightened awareness that anti-immigrant prejudice has for centuries played an important role in shaping the experiences of the American immigrant and the history of the United States.Because the term “nativism” has only recently entered the popular vocabulary, there is no consensus as to the precise meaning of the term. Some use the word to describe the movement to restrict the flow of immigrants into the United States. But this definition is inadequate, especially for the period before 1880, when even the most die-hard nativists opposed limiting the flow of newcomers to the relatively underpopulated ... log in or subscribe to read full text