Editing Eurocentrism (section)

{{Short description|Worldview centred on or biased towards Western civilization}}
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{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2020}}

[[File:Adams Synchronological Chart, 1881 (cropped).jpg|thumb|right|300px|A map of the [[Eastern Hemisphere]] from ''[[Adams Synchronological Chart or Map of History]]''. "The bright colors denote those countries that are the Subjects of history, previous to the discovery of America".]]

'''Eurocentrism''' (also '''Eurocentricity''' or '''Western-centrism''')<ref name=hobson>{{cite book | last = Hobson | first = John | title = The Eurocentric conception of world politics : western international theory, 1760–2010 | publisher = Cambridge University Press | location = New York | year = 2012 | page = 185 | isbn = 978-1107020207}}
</ref> refers to viewing [[Western world|the West]] as the center of world events or superior to other cultures. The exact scope of Eurocentrism varies from the entire Western world to just the continent of Europe or even more narrowly, to [[Western Europe#Cold War|Western Europe]] (especially during the [[Cold War]]). When the term is applied historically, it may be used in reference to the presentation of the European perspective on history as [[Subjectivity and objectivity (philosophy)#In history and historiography|objective]] or absolute, or to an [[Apologia#Modern analysis|apologetic stance]] toward European [[colonialism]] and other forms of [[imperialism]].<ref>[https://www.historians.org/publications-and-directories/perspectives-on-history/january-2001/eurocentrism-and-its-discontents Eurocentrism and its discontents], ''[[American Historical Association]]''</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Hoskins |first=Linus |title=Eurocentrism Vs. Afrocentrism. A Geopolitical Linkage Analysis |journal=[[Journal of Black Studies]]|volume=23 |issue=2 |year=1992 |pages=247–257 |publisher=SAGE Publishing |doi=10.1177/002193479202300208 |url=https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/002193479202300208|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Schipper |first=Mineke |title=Eurocentrism and criticism: Reflections on the study of literature in past and present |journal=[[Journal of Postcolonial Writing]]|volume=24 |issue=1 |pages=16–27 |year=2008 |publisher=Routledge |doi=10.1080/17449858408588866 |hdl=1887/7778 |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/17449858408588866|hdl-access=free }}</ref>

The term "Eurocentrism" dates back to the late 1970s but it did not become prevalent until the 1990s, when it was frequently applied in the context of [[decolonization]] and [[development aid|development]] and [[humanitarian aid]] that industrialised countries offered to developing countries. The term has since been used to critique Western narratives of [[progress]], Western scholars who have downplayed and ignored non-Western contributions, and to contrast Western epistemologies with [[Indigenous knowledge|indigenous epistemologies]].<ref name=":5" /><ref name=":6" /><ref name=":122">{{Cite book|last=Youngblood Henderson|first=James (Sákéj)|title=Reclaiming Indigenous Voice and Vision|publisher=UBC Press|year=2011|isbn=9780774842471|editor-last=Battiste|editor-first=Marie|pages=259–261|chapter=Ayukpachi: Empowering Aboriginal Thought}}</ref>