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History vocabulary · Empires, States and Rulers

Colonialism

Meaning in history, with examples

/kəˈləʊniəlɪzəm/nounCore term

In history, colonialism means: The policy or practice of a state taking control of other territories and peoples, settling or ruling them, and using their land and resources for its own benefit.

In Turkish: sömürgecilik, kolonyalizm

How it is used

Most often used for European expansion from the fifteenth to the twentieth century. Historians study its economic, cultural and human effects. Related words are colony, colonial, colonist, colonize and postcolonial.

Example sentences

  1. The seminar examines the economic effects of colonialism in West Africa.

  2. Railways built in the age of colonialism were often designed to carry raw materials to the ports.

Common collocations

  • European colonialism
  • the legacy of colonialism
  • settler colonialism
  • resistance to colonialism
  • colonyA territory ruled by another, usually distant, state, or a settlement founded by people from another country who stay under its control.
  • imperialismThe policy or practice of a state extending its power over other territories and peoples, through conquest, colonies or economic and political influence.
  • decolonizationThe process by which colonies became independent states, especially in Asia and Africa in the decades after the Second World War.
  • empireA large state or group of territories and peoples ruled by a single supreme authority, often an emperor or sultan, and usually built through conquest.

More terms: Empires, States and Rulers

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