Colonisation

Colonisation is the political practice of acquiring indigenous people’s land of a region by force. Since the ancient and medieval periods, colonialists have subjugated other lands, established control over the population, and exploited the region’s resources for trade purposes.

Colonialism has a lot of similarities with the concept of imperialism, and both practices include using power to influence the population of another nation or region forcefully. Till an initial couple of decades of the 20th century, the majority of the countries in the world were European colonies. The most active colonists of the era were the British, the Portuguese, and the Dutch.

Colonisation in the Ancient and Medieval Period

The Greeks, Turks, and Arabs practised colonialism in the ancient and medieval periods. These forces would invade the lands of indigenous people and exploit their resources for trading. The primary target of these invaders was to get as many resources as possible from a country and leave. Very few colonists would invade and turn a country into a colony to rule or expand territory.

Definition of Colonisation

When asked to define colonisation, we need to consider different aspects. Historically, a country’s colony was a region invaded by the country, and the colonialists exploited the colonies’ resources. 

Colonisation is the political practice of acquiring indigenous people’s land of a region by force.

Some Middle Eastern and European nations practiced colonialism in the ancient and medieval periods. They would create colonies and invade nations only to use and loot their resources. These colonists had no intention of settling in or living in their colonies. 

However, the modern age of colonialism started as the “age of discovery”. Forces like the British, Portuguese, and Dutch started to roam worldwide to find new lands. They would then establish business relationships with those regions and settle in the colonies. After infiltrating the colonies, the forces started to exploit the innocence of the indigenous people of the lands and acquire the power to rule the colonies. India was a British colony for 190 years, from 1757 to 1947.

Colonisation and Colonialism

Colonisation is the process of settling inland and exploiting its resources. On the other hand, Colonialism is acquiring the political power to rule the land and establish reign over the native people of that land. Colonialism was practiced by several European nations, including the British, the Portuguese, and the Dutch in the “age of discovery”.

Types of Colonialism

To define colonisation and colonialism of different kinds, it is essential to understand its types. There are four types of colonialism –

Settler colonialism: It involves the immigration of many people from the colonists into the colony. The colonists would settle in these countries with political, economic, or religious intentions, and they would then enjoy the citizenship benefits of the colonies. Countries like Australia and USA were initially the results of settler colonialism. 

Exploitation colonialism: Unlike settler colonialism, exploitative colonialists travelled to colonies in a small number. They would focus on the extraction and exploitation of resources in their colonies and move to other lands once the reservoirs were exhausted. British colonists used to use the Indian resources to produce goods they eventually sold in the Indian market, which drained their colonies faster.

Surrogate colonialism: In such colonialism practices, a colonist would allow non-native groups to settle in a region occupied by an indigenous group. For example, Settlement of Jewish in Israel was supported by the United States where indigenous Palestinians previously dwelled.

Internal colonialism: Unlike other types of colonialism, internal colonialism holds the source of exploitation within the state. In such cases, the colonist countries control and exploit a former colony (after independence) using the influence of immigrants in that country.

Apart from these types of colonialism, experts also argue the existence of national and trade colonialism. National colonialism is a hybrid process including both settler and internal colonialism. Here, the colonists are building the nation and exploiting its resources as immigrating citizens. Trade colonists would acquire colonies to create more trade opportunities for their merchants.

Residual Colonialism in Modern World

Residual colonialism refers to the practice of colonialism in the modern world. Even though the significant colonies of European nations are no longer under their reign, we can still notice the long-lasting effect of colonialism in the education system, political views, cultural elements, and other practices.

There are also island countries like Cayman, Falkland, and Bermuda still ruled by the British. The United Nations has marked seventeen territories as NSGTs (non-self-governing territories). These territories include nations like French Polynesia and Gibraltar. With little to no control over their political decisions, these countries are close to what the world previously knew as “colonies”.

Conclusion

Even though colonialism and colonisation are supposedly extinct concepts, they are crucial elements of history. The cultural and religious beliefs of the former colonies still show the prominent influence of their colonists. It is also vital to understand colonialism to identify the characteristics of a country like India that a considerable number of invaders have colonised for centuries.