Definition

1. Noun:
   • The action or process of a state withdrawing from a former colony, leaving it independent: "Decolonisation" refers to the historical and political process by which colonies achieve independence from colonial powers.
   • The process of undoing or dismantling colonial structures, ideologies, and influences: In a broader sense, it can also describe the ongoing intellectual, cultural, and social efforts to move beyond the legacy of colonialism.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • The decolonisation of Africa accelerated in the mid-20th century.
  • The museum's new exhibit focuses on the cultural aspects of decolonisation.
  • Scholars debate the best methods for achieving meaningful economic decolonisation.

Advanced Usage

• "to undergo decolonisation": to experience the process of becoming independent from colonial rule.
  • Many Caribbean islands underwent decolonisation in the 1960s.
• "the decolonisation of knowledge": a concept referring to the process of challenging and moving beyond the dominance of Western academic and intellectual traditions.
  • The university's curriculum reform is part of a larger project of the decolonisation of knowledge.

Variants and Related Words

• Decolonization (noun): The American English spelling of "decolonisation".
• Decolonise (verb): To withdraw from (a colony), leaving it independent; to free from colonial status or influence.
  • The country worked to decolonise its legal system.
• Decolonial (adjective): Relating to or advocating decolonisation.
  • Her research takes a decolonial approach to history.

Synonyms

• Independence: The fact or state of being independent, especially from colonial rule.
• Liberation: The act of setting someone free from imprisonment, slavery, or oppression; can be used in the context of freeing from colonial control.
• Self-determination: The process by which a country determines its own statehood and forms its own government, often associated with decolonisation.

Related Phrases

• Post-colonial: Referring to the period after decolonisation or the study of its cultural effects.
  • Post-colonial literature often explores themes of identity and hybridity.
• Neo-colonialism: The use of economic, political, or cultural pressures to control or influence other countries, especially former dependencies, which can be seen as an obstacle to full decolonisation.
  • Critics argue that foreign aid can sometimes be a form of neo-colonialism.

Noun

1. the action of changing from colonial to independent status