One approach sociologists take to colonialism and neocolonialism is a Marxist perspective. In the late 19 th century, many European powers were involved in the so-called Scramble for Africa, in which many African colonies were established.Ĭolonialism and Neocolonialism in the World System However, many new colonies were established after this period, including the German colonial empire and Belgian colonial empire. The spread of colonial empires diminished in the late 18 th and early 19 th centuries, largely due to the American Revolutionary War and Latin American wars for independence. It also saw the establishment of some Swedish overseas colonies and a Danish colonial empire. The 17 th century saw the creation of the French colonial empire, the Dutch Empire, and the English colonial empire, which later became the British Empire.

These new lands were first divided between the Portuguese Empire and Spanish Empire, though the British, French, and Dutch soon acquired vast territory as well.

According to some scholars, building these colonies across oceans differentiates colonialism from other types of expansionism. Modern colonialism started with the Age of Discovery, during which Portugal and Spain discovered new lands across the oceans (including the Americas and Atlantic/South Pacific islands) and built trading posts. At present, much of South and Central America is still economically dependent on foreign nations for capital and export markets. Map of Empires and Colonies: 1800: By the end of the 19th century, most of the Americas were under the control of European colonial empires. Colonialism is a set of unequal relationships between the metropole and the colony, and between the colonists and the indigenous, or native, population. It is a process whereby the metropole, or parent state, claims sovereignty over the colony, and the social structure, government, and economy of the colony are changed by colonizers from the metropole.

colonialism: the establishment, exploitation, maintenance, acquisition and expansion of territories (or colonies) in one geographic area by people from another areaĬolonialism is the establishment, maintenance, acquisition, and expansion of colonies in one territory, imposed by people from another territory.

Scramble for Africa: A process of invasion, occupation, colonization and annexation of African territory by European powers during the New Imperialism period, between 1881 and World War I in 1914.

Age of Discovery: A period in history starting in the early 15th century and continuing into the early 17th century during which Europeans engaged in intensive exploration of the world, establishing direct contact with Africa, the Americas, Asia, and Oceania and mapping the planet.

decolonization: The freeing of a colony or territory from dependent status by granting it sovereignty.

Colonialism and Neocolonialism in the World SystemĬolonialism is the establishment, maintenance, acquisition, and expansion of colonies in one territory by people from another territory.

Neo colonialism