decolonize

[ dee-kol-uh-nahyz ]

verb (used with object)

, de·col·o·nized, de·col·o·niz·ing.

1. to release (a country or region) from the status of a colony, or to allow (a colony) to become self-governing or independent.
2. to reexamine and make changes in (a subject field, tradition, etc.) so as to counter the belief that the culture of a colonizing power is more worthy or important than the culture of a colonized people: decoloniality ( def ).

   From seed cataloguing to sustainable fishing, Indigenous people are decolonizing their diets and preserving their folkways.

   There is a movement to decolonize the curriculum, urging Western academics to change their courses to better reflect the ideas and experiences of peoples from all parts of the globe.

verb (used without object)

, de·col·o·nized, de·col·o·niz·ing.

1. to free a colony to become self-governing or independent.

decolonize

/ diːˈkɒləˌnaɪz /

verb

1. tr to grant independence to (a colony)

Derived Forms

• deˌcoloniˈzation, noun

Other Words From

• de·col·o·ni·za·tion [dee-kol-, uh, -nahy-, zey, -sh, uh, n], noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of decolonize¹

First recorded in 1850–55; de- ( def ) + colonize ( def )

Example Sentences

Certainly, America’s government has never articulated an intention to decolonize.

From Time

It’s one action in a larger mission to decolonize science, which aims, in part, to create a more diverse and inclusive atmosphere in science.

From Science News

It’s an exciting moment to decolonize and write our own history in a place where I call home.

From Time

For “Other Leopards,” set in decolonizing Africa, you will have to follow what Emily Hyde describes as Denis Williams’ “jittery stream-of-consciousness style.”

From Washington Post

Indeed, that would be a collective effort to decolonize chocolate and acknowledge the ancestral pathways critical to making the industry whole.

From Eater

Pakistan, born in the scrabble to decolonize after World War II, has suffered from endless American and British meddling.

From The Daily Beast