Westernization

Westernization (US) or Westernisation (UK), also Europeanization/Europeanisation or occidentalization/occidentalisation (from the Occident), is a process whereby societies come under or adopt Western culture in areas such as industry, technology, law, politics, economics, lifestyle, diet, clothing, language, alphabet, religion, philosophy, and values.…the 5.6 billion people who live outside the West no longer believe in the innate or inherent superiority of Western civilization. Instead, many are beginning to question whether the West remains the most civilized part of the world. What we are witnessing today…is the progressive unwrapping of these many layers of Western influences.An example of Westernization: Meiji period, Japan, Prince Yorihito Higashifushimi in typical Western naval dress uniform with white gloves, epaulettes, medals and hat.Similarity with U.S. General John C. Bates's uniform.Another example of Westernization: Adil Pasha, an admiral in the Imperial Ottoman Navy in typical Western naval dress uniform.Similarity with David E. Twiggs's uniform. Westernization (US) or Westernisation (UK), also Europeanization/Europeanisation or occidentalization/occidentalisation (from the Occident), is a process whereby societies come under or adopt Western culture in areas such as industry, technology, law, politics, economics, lifestyle, diet, clothing, language, alphabet, religion, philosophy, and values. Westernization has been a growing influence across the world in the last few centuries, with some thinkers assuming Westernization to be the equivalent of modernization, a way of thought that is often debated. The overall process of Westernization is often two-sided in that Western influences and interests themselves are joined with parts of the affected society, at minimum, to change towards a more Westernized society, with the putative goal of attaining a Western life or some aspects of it, while Western societies are themselves affected by this process and interaction with non-Western groups. Westernization traces it roots back to Ancient Greece. Later, the Roman Empire would take on the first process of Westernization as it was heavily influenced by Greece and created a new culture based on the principles and values of the Ancient Greek society. The Romans emerged with a culture that would lay the new foundations of Europe and grow into a new Western identity based on the Greco-Roman society. Westernization can also be compared to acculturation and enculturation. Acculturation is 'the process of cultural and psychological change that takes place as a result of contact between cultural groups and their individual members.' After contact, changes in cultural patterns are evident within one or both cultures. Specific to Westernization and the non-Western culture, foreign societies tend to adopt changes in their own social systems relative to Western ideology, lifestyle, and physical appearance, along with numerous other aspects, and shifts in culture patterns can be seen to take root as a community becomes acculturated to Western customs and characteristics – in other words, Westernized. Westernization can include Christianization, Americanization and Europeanization, with historical versions including Romanization, Hellenization, Francization, and Germanization. The phenomenon of Westernization does not follow any one specific pattern across societies as the degree of adaption and fusion with Western customs will occur at varying magnitudes within different communities. Specifically, the extent to which domination, destruction, resistance, survival, adaptation or modification affect a native culture may differ following inter-ethnic contact. The 'West' was originally defined as the Western world. Ancient Romans distinguished between Oriental (Eastern, or Asian) cultures that inhabited present-day Egypt and Occidental cultures that lived in the West. A thousand years later, the East-West Schism separated the Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodox Church from each other. The definition of Western changed as the West was influenced by and spread to other nations. Islamic and Byzantine scholars added to the Western canon when their stores of Greek and Roman literature jump-started the Renaissance. Although Russia converted to Christianity in the 10th century, the West expanded to include it fully when Peter the Great deeply reformed the country's government, the church and modernised the society thanks to the ideas brought from the Netherlands. Today, most modern uses of the term refer to the societies in the West and their close genealogical, linguistic, and philosophical descendants, typically included are those countries whose ethnic identity and dominant culture are derived from European culture. However, though sharing in similar historical background, it would be incorrect to regard the Western world as a monolithic bloc, as many cultural, linguistic, religious, political, and economical differences exist between Western countries and populations. Western civilization is commonly said to include the United Kingdom, United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, European Union (and at least the EFTA countries, European microstates).