Home › Political Science & Governance › Secession & Separatism › self-determination

self-determination

self-dih-ter-mih-NAY-shun /ˌself.dɪˌtɜː.mɪˈneɪ.ʃən/

nounC1GREUPSCIELTS

formalacademiclegal

The principle that a nation or distinct group of people has the right to choose its own political status and form of governance.

Recognized under international law as a foundational right of peoples to decide their allegiance.

The story behind the word. A translation of the German term 'Selbstbestimmungsrecht' popular in 19th-century German philosophy. It entered global political discourse through Vladimir Lenin and Woodrow Wilson during World War I.

Word relationships

sovereignty: Self-determination is the process or right to choose governance, while sovereignty is the resulting state of supreme power.
autonomy: Self-determination may result in full independence or autonomy within an existing state structure.

imperialism: Imperialism imposes external rule over nations without their consent.
colonialism: Colonialism deprives populations of the right to determine their own government.

Commonly confused with

autonomy: Self-determination is the underlying right of a group to decide its political fate; autonomy is one possible political outcome.

Collocations

right to self-determination
principle of self-determination
struggle for self-determination

Example sentences

"President Woodrow Wilson championed national self-determination as a core guiding principle for post-WWI Europe." Diplomacy

Memory hook

SELF + DETERMINATION = deciding for oneself what political future to follow. A nation's right to choose its destiny.

When not to use

Do not use to describe individual personal choices, as in political science it refers to collective groups.

Fun facts

The UN Charter explicitly lists self-determination of peoples in Article 1, Clause 2.