Global political history is punctuated by state entities that, after vanishing from the international stage, have reemerged in new forms—sometimes radically transformed, sometimes strikingly faithful to their origins. These revived states—polities that have undergone phases of dissolution, fragmentation, or annexation before regaining effective sovereignty—offer a privileged lens to examine the intermittent nature of statehood. Far from being a permanent attribute, sovereignty reveals itself as a fluctuating condition, subject to temporary suspensions, territorial redefinitions, and identity reactivations.

I co-developed a digital mapping tool called Phersu Atlas between 2020 and 2025, which enables navigation through tens of thousands of states spanning from 3499 BCE to 2025 CE. Its use allows for the possibility of identifying recurring patterns and dynamics that illuminate the problem of intermittent statehood with precision.

To illustrate, I’ve chosen the cases of Armenia, Vietnam, and Poland. These existing states share a history marked by porous borders, subjugation to external powers, and a resilient identity. Through the analysis of time series data on population and territorial extent, as well as the infographics and interactive maps provided by Phersu Atlas, the aim is to explore the dynamics of state suspension and reemergence, highlighting the conditions under which latent sovereignty can once again materialize as a recognized political entity.

These cases do not merely represent a return to sovereignty, but rather full processes of identity and institutional reactivation. The rebirth of the state entails the reconstruction of borders, symbols, and shared narratives—often in contexts of deep geopolitical instability. The ability of people to transform historical memory into a political project is what distinguishes mere cultural survival from true state revival.

In approaching these three historical cases, one can already identify recurring factors that have played a crucial role in preserving identity. Notably, the early development of a national language (accompanied by a robust literary tradition), the adoption of a distinct religion, and the frequent recourse to acts of explicit rebellion are common traits found among all states that have experienced a historical “revival.”

Despite centuries of foreign domination and political fragmentation, Armenia, Vietnam, and Poland have preserved their national identities through a strong continuity of culture. Language played a central role in this process: Armenian, with its unique alphabet created in the fifth century, cemented the cohesion of the people even during its diaspora; Vietnamese, though influenced by Chinese, retained its own phonetic structure and an autonomous writing system—first through Sino-Vietnamese characters, later through an adapted Latin alphabet; Polish, having survived the partitions and even after being banned in certain regions, remained the vehicle of literature.

Writers such as Juliusz Słowacki and Zygmunt Krasiński composed works that not only preserved the Polish language but also nourished the national imagination. Polish Romantic poetry became a tool of resistance, capable of keeping the idea of a homeland alive even in the absence of a state.

Literary and philosophical production served as a guardian of memory: from Armenian epic poems to Polish patriotic verse to Vietnamese Confucian texts, each culture found refuge and a form of resistance in the written word. In all three cases, religion further reinforced identity: Apostolic Christianity in Armenia, Buddhism and ancestor worship in Vietnam, and Catholicism in Poland. These elements functioned as invisible pillars, capable of sustaining the nation even when the state itself had ceased to exist.

In the process of cultural survival that accompanied the disappearance and reappearance of the state in Armenia, Vietnam, and Poland, certain literary works acted as true bastions of ethnic identity, capable of preserving memory and reinforcing a sense of belonging. In Armenia, The History of the Armenians by Movses Khorenatsi, composed around the mid-fifth century (circa 440–470 CE), provided an organic narrative of the Armenian people’s origins, weaving together myth, genealogy, and history in a text that withstood Persian, Arab, and Ottoman dominations. In Vietnam, the poem

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