The granting of nationality is one of the principal state devices to codify and regulate human mobility. It is a key element of the state production of population (Foucault), which is a dynamic and conflictive process, structured by class and gender values. This article explores the actions of four States in two situations, involving migrants from Bolivia in Argentina and Spain. The granting or not of nationality to immigrants and emigrants, and their offspring, impacts on citizenship practices and the enforcement of rights of current and future citizens. In contrast to what some authors have pointed out as forms of emancipation of citizenship in relation to nationality, the main contribution of this article is to expose interventions that reinforce the link between them. The empirical data result from multisite ethnographic fieldwork and review of secondary sources and institutional documents between 2005 and 2015.
Migrations; Nationality and Citizenship; States