balkanization

Cultural  

1. 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.

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Example Sentences

The corporate balkanization of the internet into unusable-yet-unavoidable platforms full of garbage is a predictable foreshadowing of what the continued privatization of space is going to look like.

From Salon • Oct. 24, 2023

“It invites conflict and retaliation and threatens the balkanization of the national economic union.”

From Los Angeles Times • May 11, 2023

But our technology-driven balkanization requires extra effort and commitment to change now.

From Washington Post • Sep. 10, 2021

“I don’t think we should have a balkanization of our laws,” Mr. Schoenbeck said, adding that he thought retailers should be left alone to deal with pollution “innovatively.”

From Washington Times • Jan. 28, 2020

In contrast, Europe’s geographic balkanization resulted in dozens or hundreds of independent, competing statelets and centers of innovation.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond