Definition
The practice of acquiring and maintaining control over foreign territories and their peoples for economic, political, or cultural exploitation. A system where powerful nations establish settlements and extract resources from less powerful regions.
Etymology
From Latin 'colonia' meaning farm or settlement, from 'colere' (to cultivate). The term evolved from describing agricultural settlements to encompassing the broader system of territorial and economic domination.
Kelly Says
Think 'colony' + 'ism' - it's the ideology and practice of establishing colonies. Like a parent company setting up branch offices, but the branches are entire countries and the 'business' involves exploiting people and resources.
Translations
AMአማርኛ
ኮሎኒያልነት
koh-loh-nee-ahl-neh-t
ARالعربية
استعمار
is-tah-mah-r
BNবাংলা
ঔপনিবেশিকতা
oup-nee-besh-ee-koh-tah
CACatalà
colonialisme
koh-loh-nee-ah-lees-muh
CSČeština
kolonialismus
koh-loh-nee-ah-lees-mus
DADansk
kolonialisme
koh-loh-nee-ah-lees-muh
DEDeutsch
Kolonialismus
koh-loh-nee-ah-lees-mus
ELΕλληνικά
αποικιοκρατία
ah-poh-ee-kee-oh-krah-tee-ah
ESEspañol
colonialismo
koh-loh-nee-ah-lee-smoh
FAفارسی
استعمارگرایی
es-tah-mah-r-gah-ree
FISuomi
siirtokuntalaisuus
see-er-toh-koon-tah-lah-ee-soos
FRFrançais
colonialisme
koh-loh-nee-ah-lees-muh
GUGU
વસાહતીવાદ
vah-sah-ha-tee-vaad
HAHA
kolonialism
koh-loh-nee-ah-lees-m
HEעברית
קולוניאליזם
koh-loh-nee-ah-lee-zm
HIहिन्दी
उपनिवेशवाद
oop-nee-vaish-vaad
HUMagyar
gyarmatosítás
dyar-mah-toh-she-tahsh
IDBahasa Indonesia
kolonialisme
koh-loh-nee-ah-lees-muh
IGIG
kolonialism
koh-loh-nee-ah-lees-m
ITItaliano
colonialismo
koh-loh-nee-ah-lee-smoh
KKKK
колониализм
koh-loh-nee-ah-lees-m
KMKM
អាណានិគមនិយម
ah-nah-nikom-nee-yahm
MRMR
वसाहतवाद
vah-sah-haht-vaad
MSBahasa Melayu
kolonialisme
koh-loh-nee-ah-lees-muh
MYမြန်မာ
ကိုလိုနီစနစ်
koh-loh-nee-zah-nit
NLNederlands
kolonialisme
koh-loh-nee-ah-lees-muh
NONorsk
kolonialisme
koh-loh-nee-ah-lees-muh
PAPA
ਬਸਤੀਵਾਦ
bah-stee-vaad
PLPolski
kolonializm
koh-loh-nee-ah-lees-m
PTPortuguês
colonialismo
koh-loh-nee-ah-lee-smoh
RORomână
colonialism
koh-loh-nee-ah-lees-m
RUРусский
колониализм
kah-loh-nee-ah-lees-m
SVSvenska
kolonialism
koh-loh-nee-ah-lees-m
SWKiswahili
ukoloni
oo-koh-loh-nee
TAதமிழ்
காலனித்துவம்
kah-lah-nee-thuv-ahm
TEతెలుగు
వలసవాదం
va-lah-sah-vaad-ahm
THไทย
ลัทธิล่าอาณานิคม
lah-tah-lee-ah-nah-nikom
TLTL
kolonyalismo
koh-loh-nee-ah-lees-moh
TRTürkçe
sömürgecilik
suh-mur-jeh-jee-lee-k
UKУкраїнська
колоніалізм
kah-loh-nee-ah-lees-m
URاردو
نوآبادیاتی نظام
noh-ah-bah-dee-ah-tee nizam
VITiếng Việt
chủ nghĩa thực dân
choo-nee thuc-dan
YOYO
kolonialism
koh-loh-nee-ah-lees-m
ZUZU
wa-koloni
wah-koh-loh-nee
Ethical Language Guidance
Gender History
Colonialism operated through gendered structures—colonizers exercised control partly via sexual violence, control of women's reproduction, and erasure of women's authority in colonized societies.
Inclusive Usage
When analyzing colonial history or ongoing colonial dynamics, center how women and gender minorities were specifically targeted and displaced, not just generic 'populations.'
Empowerment Note
Postcolonial feminists like Gayatri Spivak and Audre Lorde exposed how decolonization frameworks often erased women's resistance; women led independence movements but were sidelined in nation-building.