Imperialism

From Latin imperium — command, empire. The modern political term emerged in the 1870s-1880s during the height of European colonial expansion. Became a central term of Marxist and anti-colonial political theory in the 20th century.

Describes both formal empire (direct political control of territory) and informal empire (economic and political dominance without administration). Lenin's 1917 pamphlet Imperialism, the Highest Stage of Capitalism defined it as capitalism's inevitable global expansion — a definition that shaped anti-colonial movements worldwide. In contemporary use, it is applied to US foreign policy, Chinese Belt and Road investment, and other forms of great power influence. The word carries significant political charge.