To divide (a region or territory) into small, often hostile units.
[From the political division of the Balkans in the early 20th century.]
Balkanization Bal'kan·i·za'tion n.
Balkanize
Dictionary:
Bal·kan·ize or bal·kan·ize (bôl'kə-nīz')  |
tr.v., -ized, or -ized, -iz·ing, or -iz·ing, -iz·es, or -iz·es.
To divide (a region or territory) into small, often hostile units.
To divide (a region or territory) into small, often hostile units.
| 5min Related Video: Balkanize |
| Political Dictionary: Balkanization |
The division of a state into smaller territorial units. The term tends to imply a policy of ‘divide and rule’, whereby the strength of a united country is diluted by the creation of internal division. The term came to prominance in the aftermath of the First World War, but has contemporary resonance in the light of recent Balkan politics.
— Alistair McMillan
| Politics: balkanization |
(bawl-kuh-nuh-zay-shuhn)
Division of a place or country into several small political units, often unfriendly to one another. The term balkanization comes from the name of the Balkan Peninsula, which was divided into several small nations in the early twentieth century.
| Wikipedia: Balkanization |
For the linguistic usage of this term, see Balkan sprachbund.
Balkanization or balkanisation is a geopolitical term originally used to describe the process of fragmentation or division of a region or state into smaller regions or states that are often hostile or non-cooperative with each other.[1][2]
The term has arisen from the conflicts in the 20th century Balkans. While what is now termed Balkanization has occurred throughout history, the term originally described the creation of smaller, ethnically diverse states following the breakup of the Ottoman Empire after World War I.[3]
The term is also used to describe other forms of disintegration, including, for instance, the subdivision of the Internet into separate enclaves,[4] the division of subfields and the creation of new fields from sociology, and the breakdown of cooperative arrangements due to the rise of independent competitive entities engaged in "beggar thy neighbour" bidding wars.
Balkanization is sometimes used to refer to the divergence over time of programming languages and data file formats (particularly XML). The term has been used in American urban planning to describe the process of creating gated communities.
There are also attempts to use the term balkanization in a positive way equating it with the need for sustenance of a group or society. Current research on the positive aspects of Balkanization is carried out by Srđan Jovanović Weiss with Centre for Research Architecture at Goldsmiths College.
In January 2007, regarding a rise in support for Scottish independence, Gordon Brown talked of a "Balkanisation of Britain".[5]
See also
Concepts:
- Protracted social conflict
- Multinational state
- Criticism of multiculturalism
- Sectarian violence
- Social polarization
References
- ^ Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary 1. to break up (as a region or group) into smaller and often hostile units.
- ^ "Officers Look Back For Clues To Future", Sudarsan Raghavan, Washington Post, Monday, January 15, 2007, page A01.
- ^ Encyclopedia Brittanica, "Balkanization"
- ^ Google lays out browser aims, Financial Times, September 4 2008
- ^ "BBC News | Politics | UK's existence is at risk - Brown". 13 January 2007. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/6258089.stm.
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| Translations: Balkanize |
Dansk (Danish)
v. tr. - balkanisere
Français (French)
v. tr. - (Pol) balkaniser
Deutsch (German)
v. - balkanisieren, (in kleine verfeindete Staaten aufteilen)
Ελληνική (Greek)
v. - βαλκανοποιώ
Italiano (Italian)
balcanizzare
Português (Portuguese)
v. - balcanizar
Русский (Russian)
балканизировать, разделить на враждебные части
Español (Spanish)
v. tr. - dividir en estados pequeños y hostiles
Svenska (Swedish)
v. - balkanisera
中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
分割成小国, 使割据
中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
v. tr. - 分割成小國, 使割據
한국어 (Korean)
v. tr. - ~을 분열시켜 다투게 하다
العربيه (Arabic)
(فعل) بلقن, قسم الى دويلات متعاديه
עברית (Hebrew)
v. tr. - פיצל למדינות קטנות, חילק למדינות עוינות
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 | Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. Read more |
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| Political Dictionary. The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Politics. Copyright © 1996, 2003 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. Read more |
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| Politics. The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Edited by E.D. Hirsch, Jr., Joseph F. Kett, and James Trefil. Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved. Read more |
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