What would you call, for the lack of a better way to put it, “benign nationalism”?
The word for "benign nationalism" is nationalism.
Also, the word for "malignant nationalism" is nationalism.
How can this be? Because Nationalism simply pertains to being oriented towards the Nation.
It's true that, like all group-identity-oriented philosophies, Nationalism focuses on markers which differentiate the in-group from the out-group.
But, of itself, Nationalism contains no implicit misanthropy or philanthropy towards the out-group.
Any given expression of nationalism can be either:
- exclusive and hostile towards the out-group
- inclusive, sharing and welcoming towards the out-group
or neither.
If a nationalist expression adopts a welcoming perspective towards the out-group, it should be regarded as no less Nationalist.
The terms 'nationalist' or 'nationalism' bring back memories of things
like Nazi Germany
This is Far-right Nationalism - which is both exclusive and hostile towards (some or all) members of the out-group. What makes it malignant is not that it is nationalist, but that it is far-right.
Nationalism may be expressed in ways which are highly tolerant of, if not entirely inclusive and welcoming to members of the out-group:
The Velvet Divorce on Jan 1st 1993 was the culmination of successful nationalist movements in the Czech Republic and Slovakia which wanted to take their countries forward separately rather than as a joined-up federation. These nationalist movements were benign - and yet they were, indisputably, nationalist.
The Faroese Independence movement which seeks to establish the Faroe Islands as an independent national state no longer governed by Denmark is a benign movement. But it remains, nevertheless, nationalist.
The London 2012 Olympics Opening Ceremony was a dramatic piece of nationalist pageantry, celebrating world-famous British literary characters (James Bond, Harry Potter), British automotive engineering, British pop music, the NHS... and doing its best to paint a Union Flag on both the invention of the World Wide Web and the Industrial Revolution. In parading these national markers, the show did not seek to exclude the international community, but rather welcome everyone in, saying: "This is what Britain is all about - look at what we've done! We want to share all this with you. We are a country of progress and innovation. Come and be our welcome guests!"
A number of other respondents have suggested that patriotism is the benign counterpart to a malignant nationalism.
This is a common misnomer and it isn't correct because patriotism and nationalism are actually two different things.
- Nationalism pertains to the Nation
- Patriotism pertains to la Patrie (or the homeland, the motherland, the fatherland)
The first is primarily focused on the in-group as it exists and defines itself today, its current needs and future ambitions, always influenced by the philosophical perspective that what is best for the in-group is of the in-group, by the in-group, for the in-group.
The latter is a quasi-religious, romanticisation of the homeland in which long-standing, half-remembered (or semi-imagined) culture, customs and traditions are venerated.
Nationalism may invoke Patriotism (and far-right nationalism almost always does), but it has no requirement to do so.
Importantly, depending on how it is expressed, Patriotism can be malignant and lean towards excluding others, no less than Nationalism.
In Summary:
Nationalism and Patriotism are both philosophical perspectives but they are not equivalent.
Crucially, both philosophies can be found on both sides of the competitive / collaborative dynamic.
While each centres on markers which differentiate their target demographics from the world outside that demographic, both philosophies may express themselves with hostile or with welcoming intent.
The word for benign nationalism is nationalism.
Best Answer
Informally, a lot of people will use the word/phrase subsubcategory (or sub-sub-category).
I would advise against using it in formal writing (for formal writing use further subcategory as @Chenmunka suggested) but the meaning is completely clear and would not sound unnatural as it is used by many native speakers.