The third civilization: sociocultural super-systems in postmodernism discourse

The article deals with the multi-semantics of civilization concept. The author distinguishes three main semantic fields of the phenomenon. At first, civilization means super-ethnic phenomenon. At second, it is understood as a super-nation. At third, civilization plays the role of a post-national project. The author emphasizes the derivative nature of the super-ethnic and super-national meanings related to ethnos and nation respectively, while civilization as a post-nation is primary and original.