penal colony
Definition
Noun: A penal colony is a specific type of penal institution, typically a remote settlement, used to exile and imprison convicts. Historically, these colonies were often established on isolated islands or in distant territories to make escape difficult and to remove criminals from mainstream society.
Usage
The term is used to describe a historical or geographical concept related to punishment and incarceration. It refers to the place itself, not the act of sending someone there. - Australia was originally established as a penal colony by the British Empire. - The infamous Devil's Island functioned as a French penal colony.
Advanced Usage
- Historical Context: The concept is strongly associated with 18th and 19th-century European empires (notably British and French), which used distant colonies for penal transportation.
- Figurative Use: The term can be used metaphorically to describe a place perceived as extremely unpleasant, isolating, or punitive.
- After the corporate restructuring, the old office felt like a penal colony for unwanted employees.
Variants and Related Words
- Penal transportation (n): The practice of sending convicts to a penal colony.
- The sentence of penal transportation was feared by many criminals.
- Penal settlement (n): A synonym often used interchangeably with penal colony.
Synonyms
- Penal settlement
- Prison colony
- Exile colony
Related Phrases
- To be sentenced to transportation: The historical legal phrase for being sent to a penal colony.
- He was sentenced to transportation to Botany Bay for seven years.
Noun
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a penal institution where prisoners are exiled (often located on an island from which escape is difficult or impossible)
