Definition

1. Noun:
   • The action or process of establishing control over a territory and its indigenous people, often involving settlement by people from another country: "Colonization" refers to the act of colonizing, which typically includes establishing colonies, imposing political and economic systems, and often displacing or subjugating the native population.
   • The establishment of a colony or colonies: This meaning focuses on the act of settling a new territory with people who maintain ties to their parent country.

Examples of Usage

• Noun:
  • The colonization of the Americas by European powers had profound and lasting effects.
  • Historians study the methods and impacts of European colonization in Africa.
  • The process of colonization often involved the exploitation of natural resources.

Advanced Usage

• "Internal colonization": A metaphorical or sociological term describing the domination and economic exploitation of one region or group within a country by another, more powerful region or group.
  • Some scholars argue that the economic policies amounted to a form of internal colonization.
• "Space colonization": The theoretical concept of establishing permanent human communities beyond Earth.
  • Science fiction often explores the challenges of space colonization.

Variants and Related Words

• Colonize (verb): To establish a colony in or on (a place).
  • Several European nations sought to colonize parts of Asia.
• Colonial (adjective): Relating to or characteristic of a colony or colonization.
  • The country gained independence after a long colonial period.
• Colonialism (noun): The policy or practice of acquiring full or partial political control over another country, occupying it with settlers, and exploiting it economically. This is the broader system of which colonization is a part.
  • The legacy of colonialism continues to shape global politics.
• Colonist (noun): A settler in or inhabitant of a colony.
  • The early colonists faced many hardships.
• Decolonization (noun): The action or process of a state withdrawing from a former colony, leaving it independent.
  • The mid-20th century was a major period of decolonization.

Synonyms

• Settlement: The process of establishing a community of people in a new region.
• Occupation: The control of a country or territory by a foreign military force.
• Imperial expansion: The extension of a nation's authority by territorial acquisition or by establishing economic and political dominance over other nations.

Related Phrases

• "Wave of colonization": Refers to a period of intense colonial activity.
  • The 19th century saw a new wave of colonization in Africa.
• "Post-colonization": Referring to the period after colonial rule has ended.
  • Post-colonization literature often deals with themes of identity and cultural conflict.

Related Idioms

• "To plant the flag": An idiom symbolizing the act of claiming territory, often associated with colonization.
  • Explorers would plant their nation's flag to symbolize colonization of new lands.

Noun

1. the act of colonizing; the establishment of colonies
   • the British colonization of America