Editing Three Principles of the People (section)

===''Mínzú'' or Nationalism===
Because "[[Minzu (anthropology)|Mínzú]]" or "People" describes a nation rather than a group of persons united by a purpose, the 'Principle of Mínzú' ({{Lang-zh|t=民族主義|p=Mínzú Zhǔyì}}) is commonly rendered as "[[nationalism]]".

==== National Independence ====
Sun saw the Chinese Nation as under threat of annihilation by the imperialist powers.<ref>{{Cite wikisource|title=三民主义|wslanguage=zh|chapter=民族主義第五講}}</ref> To reverse the trajectory of such decline, China needed to become nationally independent both externally and internally.

Internally, national independence meant independence from the [[Qing dynasty|Qing]] [[Manchu people|Manchus]] who ruled China for centuries.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=三民主义与五权分立——在东京《民报》创刊周年庆祝大会的演说 – 主要著述 – 孙中山故居纪念馆_伟人孙中山 |url=http://www.sunyat-sen.org/index.php?m=content&c=index&a=show&catid=46&id=6675 |access-date=9 April 2022 |website=www.sunyat-sen.org |archive-date=2 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220502230704/http://www.sunyat-sen.org/index.php?m=content&c=index&a=show&catid=46&id=6675 |url-status=live }}</ref> Sun thought that the Han Chinese people were a people without their own nation and thus strove for national revolution against Qing authorities.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite journal |last=Ling |first=Yu-long |date=2012 |title=Dr. Sun Yat-sen's Doctrine and Impact on the Modern World |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/44288973 |journal=American Journal of Chinese Studies |volume=19 |issue=1 |pages=1–11 |jstor=44288973 |issn=2166-0042 |access-date=9 April 2022 |archive-date=9 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220409185400/https://www.jstor.org/stable/44288973 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Externally, national independence meant independence from imperialist foreign powers. Sun believed China to be threatened by imperialism in three ways: by economic oppression, by political aggression, and by slow population growth.<ref name=":2">{{Cite journal |last=Weaver |first=William C. |date=1939 |title=The Social, Economic, and Political Philosophy of Dr. Sun Yat-Sen |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/24435880 |journal=The Historian |volume=1 |issue=2 |pages=132–141 |doi=10.1111/j.1540-6563.1939.tb00469.x |jstor=24435880 |issn=0018-2370 |access-date=9 April 2022 |archive-date=9 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220409185402/https://www.jstor.org/stable/24435880 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription }}</ref> Economically, Sun held the [[Mercantilism|mercantilist]] position that China was being economically exploited by [[Balance of trade|unbalanced trade]] and [[tariff]]s.<ref name=":2" /> Politically, he looked toward the [[Unequal treaty|unequal treaties]] signed by China as the reason of China's decline. Sun envisioned a future China that was strong and capable of fighting imperialists and standing on the same stage as western powers.<ref name=":1" />

==== Five Races Under One Union ====
{{Main|Five Races Under One Union}}
Although Sun initially believed in a form of [[Han nationalism]] to oppose the rule of the Qing dynasty, he later came to accept [[Liang Qichao]]’s multi-ethnic nationalist idea of a unified Chinese nation. To achieve "national independence", Sun believed that China must first develop a "[[Chinese nationalism|China-nationalism]]," ''[[Zhonghua Minzu]]'', as opposed to an [[Ethnic nationalism|mono-ethnic nationalism]]. Sun developed the principles of [[Five Races Under One Union]] to unite the five major ethnic groups of China—[[Han Chinese|Han]], [[Mongols in China|Mongols]], [[Tibetans]], [[Manchus]], and the [[Islam in China|Muslims]] (such as the [[Uyghurs]])—under one "Chinese Nation". This principle is symbolized by the [[Five Races Under One Union|Five Color Flag]] of the [[Beiyang government|First Republic of China (1911–1928)]]. He believed that China must develop a "national consciousness" so as to unite the Chinese people in the face of imperialist aggression. He argued that "minzu", which can be translated as "people", "nationality", or "race", was defined by sharing common blood, livelihood, religion, language, and customs. Sun also believed in a form of [[interculturalism]] that assimilated ethnic minorities into the dominant Han culture by a process of naturalization, rather than through brute force.

==== Cultural conservatism ====
The Three Principles of the People were partly related to [[cultural conservatism]] (文化保守主義) to defend the virtues of Chinese culture against Western imperialism, while embracing some of the modern elements. Sun Yat-sen defended socialism, but distanced himself from dogmatic [[Marxism]]. He criticized young people's obsession with Western-style Marxism and saw that similar ideas could be found in Chinese classics. Also, Sun embraced modernism, but at the same time highlighted a positive part of [[Chinese tradition]].