self-exile
Chosen departure forever
Self-exile is the choice to leave one's homeland or community voluntarily, often to escape political pressure, social conflict, or personal circumstances.
Unlike exile imposed by authorities, self-exile is a decision made by the individual: After the controversy, he lived in self-exile in Switzerland for a decade.
The term carries connotations of both freedom and loss—the person could return but feels they cannot.
Complete separation from others
- seclusionVoluntary withdrawal from society
- reclusivenessState of avoiding society
- hermitPerson choosing total seclusion
- withdrawalAct of taking away
remoteness · recluse · hermitage · separateness · aloofness · detachment · privacy · solitary
Aerial journey by aircraft
- refugePlace of safety
- sanctuaryProtected sacred space
- asylumShelter from persecution
- hideawaySecluded place of refuge
fugitive · defection · desertion · absconding · disappearance · evasion · underground · clandestine
Compensation for wrongdoing
- penanceSelf-mortification for wrongdoing
- remorseGuilt for wrongdoing
- contritionRemorseful state over misdeeds
- repentanceRemorseful rejection of past wrongs
expiation · penitence · shame · redemption · reparation · mortification
Banishment from a group
- expulsionForced permanent removal
- excommunicationFormal barring from sacraments
- deportationLegal expulsion from country
- proscriptionFormal ban or condemnation
blackballing · disownment · exclusion · outcast · pariah · shunning · banishment · estrangement
Leaving homeland permanently
- relocationPermanent change of residence
- departureAct of going away
- reinventionComplete self-transformation
- choiceAct of selecting
Observing one's own mind
- soul-searchingProbing one's innermost feelings
- contemplationSustained reflective attention
- ruminationProlonged, repetitive thinking
- meditationFocused attention practice
reckoning · ashram · monastery · hermitage · sabbatical · walkabout · pilgrimage
isolation
Complete separation from others
- seclusionVoluntary withdrawal from society
- reclusivenessState of avoiding society
- hermitPerson choosing total seclusion
withdrawal · remoteness · recluse · hermitage · separateness · aloofness · detachment · privacy · solitary · anchorite
flight
Aerial journey by aircraft
hideaway · fugitive · defection · desertion · absconding · disappearance · evasion · underground · clandestine · vanishing
atonement
Compensation for wrongdoing
- penanceSelf-mortification for wrongdoing
- remorseGuilt for wrongdoing
- contritionRemorseful state over misdeeds
repentance · expiation · penitence · shame · redemption · reparation · mortification
ostracism
Banishment from a group
- expulsionForced permanent removal
- excommunicationFormal barring from sacraments
- deportationLegal expulsion from country
proscription · blackballing · disownment · exclusion · outcast · pariah · shunning · banishment · estrangement · rejection
emigration
Leaving homeland permanently
- relocationPermanent change of residence
- departureAct of going away
- reinventionComplete self-transformation
introspection
Observing one's own mind
- soul-searchingProbing one's innermost feelings
- contemplationSustained reflective attention
- ruminationProlonged, repetitive thinking
meditation · reckoning · ashram · monastery · hermitage · sabbatical · walkabout · pilgrimage
- alienationestrangement, social isolation, disconnection, exclusion, outsider
- emigrationemigrant, emigration, economic migrants, emigre, political refugees
- exilebanishment, banished, expulsion, deportation, deportee
- withdrawalwithdrawing, cash withdrawal, ATM withdrawal, early withdrawal, fund withdrawal
self-exilestay
Remain in position
remain · staying put · homecoming · rootedness · settling down
self-exiledeportation
Legal expulsion from country
banishment · forced exile · expulsion · exile · extradition
self-exilereturn
Go back again
repatriation · return home · homecoming · coming back · going back
self, selfish, exile, exiled, expatriate, exiles, selfhood, exiling, expatriates