1 Political Personas and the Fundaments of Democratic Society – On the Ethical Ontology of María Zambrano Karolina Enquist Källgren Abstract This study analyses the political thinking of the Spanish philosopher María Zambrano (1904– 1991). By focusing on the notions persona and individuo it argues that Zambrano’s entire thought must be interpreted in the light of the ethical ontology present in her political writings. The study contextualizes Zambrano’s political writings and shows that the circumstances of Zambrano’s exile can explain why she opted for a discussion on politics that emphasizes personal responsibility rather than the political organization of society. The study further shows that it is as ethical ontology that her thinking has influenced later thinkers, and in particular the political and philosophical discussion in Italy. The Spanish philosopher María Zambrano is one of those thinkers about whom one can say that her works encompass the better part of the historical changes of the twentieth century. Her life was severely affected by the politics of the century, with the Spanish Civil War and the Second World War forcing her into a forty-seven year exile from Spain. This article traces the background to the development of an ethical ontology – Zambrano calls it the ethics of history – and it is her contribution to the post-modern discussion of political community. A comprehensive analysis of Zambrano’s works can be found in my book Subjectivity from Exile – Place and Sign in the Works of María Zambrano (Enquist Källgren 2015). The last fifteen years have seen increasing publication of Zambrano’s works in Spanish, not to mention a growing interest in the USA. In London a recent conference on María Zambrano has paved the way for the publication and translation of her works into English. In Italy – where Zambrano lived for ten years – several contemporary philosophers, such as Adriana Cavarero and Roberto Esposito, draw explicitly on Zambrano’s political thinking in their elaborations on political notions such as community (Esposito and Nancy 2010, 75–76; Esposito 2012) and universality (Cavarero 2000; Cavarero 2002; Cavarero, 2005). Nevertheless, Zambrano suffers the curious condition of having influenced contemporary political philosophy while remaining fairly unknown to a larger public. The analysis of