A political or cultural ideology emphasizing continental unity or the importance of continental rather than global or local identity.
From 'continental' + '-ism' (suffix denoting a belief system or ideology). Often refers to 19th and 20th-century movements emphasizing Pan-American or Pan-European continental solidarity.
Continentalism was huge in North American history—the idea that Canada, Mexico, and the US should unite as a continental bloc—but it lost out to globalism; learning about 'continentalism' explains why trade agreements like NAFTA were such a big deal!
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