colonised
Established foreign rule
Colonised is the British spelling of colonized, the past tense of colonize.
To colonize is to establish control over a territory and its people, typically by a foreign power: India was colonised by the British for nearly two centuries.
The word extends to any takeover or spread: bacteria colonise a wound, invasive species colonise new habitats.
In contemporary discourse, colonised often carries critical weight, highlighting exploitation and cultural erasure.
Forcibly took valuables
- extractedRemoved from source
- depletedSeverely reduced or emptied
- strippedHad coverings removed
- pillagedRobbed through violence
drained · appropriated · dispossessed · enslaved · resources · labour · commodities · raw materials
Resolved dispute or colony
- pioneersFirst to explore territory
- homesteadFamily farm and dwelling
- frontierEdge of settlement
- plantationLarge-scale farming operation
outpost · enclave · inhabitants · migration · colonists · establishment · cultivation · territory
Domain under unified control
- dominionAuthority to rule
- conquestDefeating and seizing control
- annexationAbsorbing territory into jurisdiction
- territoryLand under jurisdiction
protectorate · sovereignty · colonialism · imperialism · viceroy · governorship · mandate · hegemony
Controlled or overpowered
- oppressedTreated with cruel control
- repressedHeld back from expression
- suppressedForcibly held down
- subordinatedPlaced below in rank
marginalized · silenced · disenfranchised · persecuted · coerced · disempowered · deprived · victimised
Stationed military force
- seizedTook suddenly, forcefully
- annexedIncorporated into one's domain
- conqueredDefeated and took control
- controlledKept within limits
patrolled · fortified · besieged · overrun · entrenched · held · claimed · guarded
Adapted to new culture
- assimilationAbsorbing into a whole
- integrationCombining into a whole
- enculturationAcquiring cultural norms unconsciously
- syncretismFusion of different beliefs
adaptation · indoctrination · language loss · cultural erasure · missionaries · boarding schools · anglicisation · creolisation
plundered
Forcibly took valuables
pillaged · drained · appropriated · dispossessed · enslaved · resources · labour · commodities · raw materials · cash crops
settlement
Resolved dispute or colony
plantation · outpost · enclave · inhabitants · migration · colonists · establishment · cultivation · territory · habitation
empire
Domain under unified control
- dominionAuthority to rule
- conquestDefeating and seizing control
- annexationAbsorbing territory into jurisdiction
territory · protectorate · sovereignty · colonialism · imperialism · viceroy · governorship · mandate · hegemony · administration
dominated
Controlled or overpowered
- oppressedTreated with cruel control
- repressedHeld back from expression
- suppressedForcibly held down
subordinated · marginalized · silenced · disenfranchised · persecuted · coerced · disempowered · deprived · victimised · indigenous
garrison
Stationed military force
- seizedTook suddenly, forcefully
- annexedIncorporated into one's domain
- conqueredDefeated and took control
controlled · patrolled · fortified · besieged · overrun · entrenched · held · claimed · guarded · encamped
acculturated
Adapted to new culture
- assimilationAbsorbing into a whole
- integrationCombining into a whole
- enculturationAcquiring cultural norms unconsciously
syncretism · adaptation · indoctrination · language loss · cultural erasure · missionaries · boarding schools · anglicisation · creolisation · hybridity
colonisedindependent
Free from external control
liberated · sovereign · free · self-governing · autonomous
coloniseduninhabited
Having no occupants
unsettled · unpopulated · empty · virgin · pristine
coloniseddecolonise
End foreign domination
decolonize · liberate · free · emancipate · repatriate
colonist, colonise, colonising, colonisation, colonises, coloniser, colonisers, decolonise, decolonised