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balkanization

balkanization

3 8.9
The division of a larger group or area into smaller hostile parts
  • noun
  • /ˌbɔl.kə.nəˈzeɪ.ʃən/
  • Literature
translation icon : balcanización
  • The balkanization of the region has made it difficult for countries to cooperate on trade agreements.
  • the balkanization of Europe

So what you will have is an increasing balkanization of the Internet, of audiences and of niches.

Examples

  • Like Washington, Tehran opposes Iraq's Balkanization, partly for fear that such fragmentation could incite secessionist movements within Iran's own ethnically rich population.

    Academic text (2009)
  • The company's balkanization into smaller, competing factions has hindered its overall success.

  • Surely the most important task for U.S. foreign policy in the 1990s is to prevent the balkanization of Europe.

    Academic text (1992)
  • The worst aspect of balkanization is forum shopping.

    Academic text (1995)
  • No one knows when the United States will reach the point when Balkanization becomes an inevitability.

    Academic text (2003)
  • Does it portend the beginning of the Balkanization of Europe, east and possibly west?

    Academic text (1992)
  • The first is the increasing fragmentation of power and balkanization of the political system.

    Academic text (1992)
  • Competition among NGOs has led to a balkanization of the landscape.

    Academic text (1998)
  • So what you will have is an increasing balkanization of the Internet, of audiences and of niches.

  • Putting together theory, doctrine, and practice yields a clear framework for preventing Balkanization.

    Academic text (2017)

Synonyms

division
vsbalkanization
138 4.2

A strong disagreement that separates people in a group

stresses formal or territorial breakup rather than only interpersonal hostility
partition
vsbalkanization
20 4.3

Dividing something into separate parts, often with a border

implies political or hostile separation rather than mere boundary creation
disintegration
vsbalkanization
11 6.7

A group, system, or organization loses order and stops working well

is more about deliberate division into hostile pieces than gradual decay
split
vsbalkanization
9 4.2

Divided into opposing parts within a group

implies the divisions are often hostile and mutually uncooperative
fragmentation
vsbalkanization
  • Specialized
9 6.8

When a group or society breaks into smaller parts and loses shared values

focuses on deliberate hostile separation of regions or groups rather than decay
partitioning
vsbalkanization
3 6.0

Dividing something into parts or groups

is usually neutral and administrative, unlike hostile, mutually opposed division
factionalism
vsbalkanization
2 8.8

Small groups inside a larger group compete and disagree, causing conflict

produces hostile, often territorial breakups rather than only internal rivalry
compartmentalization
vsbalkanization
1 8.0

Dividing something into separate parts to keep things organized

is more focused on organization than on hostile or uncooperative separation
regionalization
vsbalkanization
  • Formal
1 6.8

A way of dividing an area into regions for local government or services

can be neutral planning but here implies antagonistic splitting into regions
fractionalization
vsbalkanization
  • Specialized
9.0

The breaking of a group or society into smaller, competing groups

adds a strong element of hostility and political separation to that process
splitting
vsbalkanization
3.4

The act of dividing something into parts or groups

refers specifically to divisions that lead to hostile or uncooperative parts
dividedness
vsbalkanization
7.5

A situation where groups are split and do not work together

specifies active, often hostile partitioning rather than general lack of unity
sectionalization
vsbalkanization
8.8

A process of dividing something into separate parts to make it easier to manage

is more neutral and structural than hostile, fragmenting division
territorialization
vsbalkanization
  • Specialized
9.9

Organizing and marking an area as an official region for administration

carries stronger sense of political separation and hostile division here
departmentalization
vsbalkanization
  • Specialized
7.2

Dividing a company into parts that do different jobs

is organizational and cooperative rather than hostile regional breakup
disagglomeration
vsbalkanization
  • Formal
9.9

Moving people and businesses out of a crowded city area so they spread out

involves spatial dispersal rather than hostile division into small parts

Antonyms

47 4.0

Putting two or more parts together so they work as one

31 4.3

A process that brings separate people or groups together to form one unit

How Divided

balkanization
  • Literature
3 8.9
division
138 4.2
unity
217 2.8

Surface Forms

balkanization singular

Morphology

balkanization = balkanize (semi-transparent) = Balkan + ize + ation

Formally derived by adding the productive nominalizing suffix '-ation' to the verb 'balkanize', so the morphological step is regular and clear.

Etymology

The word balkanization comes from the Balkans, a region in southeast Europe that was often split into many small, unfriendly states. So balkanization means 'breaking a larger area, group, or market into smaller, separate, and often unfriendly parts'.