ABSTRACT

Of all the great tides of events that have shaped the affairs of humankind in recent centuries, none has affected more people and had more lasting consequences than the flood of European expansion over the rest of the world. European imperial rule, the direct administration of territories outside Europe, has now almost entirely ebbed. But the effects of European domination are profound and seemingly lasting. The Americas and Australasia are now largely settled by peoples of European stock. In Asia and Africa the educated minorities that govern and administer both the public and private sectors have almost all adopted European forms and technology and even European dress. In Asia the cultures are now a blend of their ancient civilizations and the practices and values of the Europeans; in Africa and Oceania Europeanization has been even more radical.