所谓国家建设(state-building),是有特定内涵与指向的概念,这里用来指现代国家的历史性生成,以及相关的经济建设、政治建设、社会建设与文化建设。提到现代国家,难免想到欧洲的民族国家(nation-state),其中蕴含的领土、主权意识、国民心理认同等特征貌似享有普适性。不过,对源远流长的中华文明而言,现代国家及其建设远不限于这些意味,而是既有对西方文明的吸纳与借鉴,又有对自身传统的调适与扬弃, The so-called state-building is a concept with specific connotation and orientation. It is used here to refer to the historic formation of the modern state and related economic, political, social and cultural constructions. When it comes to the modern state, it is inevitable to think of the nation-state in Europe, which is characterized by its universality of territoriality, sovereignty, and national psychology. However, for the long history of Chinese civilization, the modern state and its construction are far from confined to these meanings. Instead, they are not only absorbing and borrowing from Western civilization, but also adapting and sublating their own traditions.