A personification of independence as represented by a statue in The American Adventure in the World Showcase pavilion of Walt Disney World's Epcot. Personification is an ontological metaphor in which a thing or abstraction is represented as a person A statue is a Sculpture in the round representing a person or persons an animal or an event normally full-length as opposed to a bust, and at least close to life-size The American Adventure is the host pavilion of the World Showcase within Epcot at the Walt Disney World Resort. Walt Disney World Resort is the most visited and largest recreational resort in the world containing four Theme parks two Water parks twenty-three themed hotels Epcot is a Theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort. The park is dedicated to international Culture and technological Innovation.

Independence is the self-government of a nation, country, or state by its residents and population, or some portion thereof, generally exercising sovereignty. Self-governance is an abstract concept that refers to several scales of Organization. A nation is a Human Cultural and Social Community. In as much as most members never meet each other yet feel a common bond it may be considered In Political geography and International politics, a country is a Political division of a geographical entity A state is a political association with effective Sovereignty over a geographic Area and representing a Population. Sovereignty is the exclusive Right to control a Government, a country, a people or oneself

The term independence is used in contrast to subjugation, which refers to a region as a "territory" —subject to the political and military control of an external government. The word is sometimes used in a weaker sense to contrast with hegemony, the indirect control of one nation by another, more powerful nation. Hegemony (hɨˈdʒɛməni (Amer /hɨˈɡɛməni/ (Brit (ἡγεμονία hēgemonía) is a concept that has been used to describe and explain the dominance of one social

Independence can be the initial status of an emerging nation (often filling a political void), but is often an emancipation from some dominating power. A nation is a Human Cultural and Social Community. In as much as most members never meet each other yet feel a common bond it may be considered It can be argued that independence is a negative definition: the state of not being controlled by another power through colonialism, expansionism or imperialism. A definition is a statement of the meaning of a Word or Phrase. See Colony and Colonization for examples of colonialism which do not refer to Western colonialism In general expansionism consists of expansionist policies While some have linked the term to promoting Economic growth (in contrast to no growth / Sustainable policies Imperialism has two meanings one describing an action and the other describing an attitude Independence may be obtained by decolonization, or by separation or dismemberment. Decolonization refers to the undoing of Colonialism, the establishment of governance or authority through the creation of settlements by another country or jurisdiction Dismemberment is the act of cutting tearing pulling wrenching or otherwise removing the limbs of a living thing

Although the last three can often coincide with it, they are not to be confused with revolution, which typically refers to the violent overthrow of a ruling authority. A revolution (from the Latin revolutio, "a turnaround" is a fundamental change in power or organizational structures that takes place in a relatively Violence is the exertion of force so as to injure or abuse The word is used broadly to describe the destructive action of natural phenomena like Storms and Earthquakes This sometimes only aims to redistribute power—with or without an element of emancipation, such as in democratization—within a state, which as such may remain unaltered. Democratization ( British English: Democratisation) is the transition to a more democratic Political regime. The Russian October Revolution, for example, was not intended to seek national independence; the United States Revolutionary War, however, was. The October Revolution (Октябрьская революция Oktyabrskaya revolyutsiya) also known as the Soviet Revolution In this article the inhabitants of the thirteen colonies that supported the American Revolution are primarily referred to as "Americans" with occasional references to "Patriots"

Autonomy (in slight contrast) refers to a kind of independence which has been granted by an overseeing authority that itself still retains ultimate authority over that territory (see Devolution). An autonomous area is an area of a Country that has a degree of Autonomy, or freedom from an external authority Devolution is the statutory granting of powers from the central government of a State to government at subnational level A protectorate refers to an autonomous region that depends upon a larger government for its protection as an autonomous region. In International law, a protectorate is a autonomous territory that is "protected" by a stronger state or entity hense the protector which engages to protect The dates of established independence (or, to a lesser degree, the commencement of revolution), are typically celebrated as a national holiday known as an independence day. Lists of holidays The words holiday or vacation have related meanings in different English-speaking countries and continents but will usually refer to one of An Independence Day is an annual celebration commemorating the Anniversary of a Nation 's assumption of independent Statehood, usually after ceasing

Sometimes, a state wishing to achieve independence from a dominating power will issue a declaration of independence, the earliest surviving example being Scotland's Declaration of Arbroath, and a famous example being the U.S. Declaration of Independence issued in 1776. This article is about declarations of independence in general Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. The Declaration of Arbroath was a declaration of Scottish independence, and set out to confirm Scotland 's status as an independent, sovereign The United States Declaration of Independence is a statement adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4 1776 announcing that the thirteen American colonies then

Causes for a country or province wishing to seek independence are many. Disillusionment rising from the establishment is a cause widely used in separatist movements, but it is usually severe economic difficulties that trigger these groups into action. The means can extend from peaceful demonstrations, like in the case of the Indian independence movement, to a violent civil war. The term " Indian independence movement " is diffuse incorporating various national and regional campaigns agitations and efforts of both Nonviolent and Militant A civil war is a War between a State and domestic political actors that are in control of some part of the territory claimed by the state

See also

• List of countries by date of independence
• Breakaway states
• Wars of independence
• Independence constitution
• Independence referendum

Article note

The dates of independence, as they have been ported into many articles from the CIA World Factbook are defined as follows:

For most countries, [the given date is that] when sovereignty was achieved. Below is a list of countries by formation dates, sorted by continent This is a list of currently active autonomist and Secessionist movements around the world Independence constitution is the name commonly given by African political scientists to originating Constitutions (many of which are extant of former British colonies Independence referendum is a type of Referendum in which citizens of one territory would decide whether this territory should become independent Country The World Factbook ( ISSN; also known as the CIA World Factbook) is an annual publication of the Central Intelligence Agency of the Sovereignty is the exclusive Right to control a Government, a country, a people or oneself . . For the other countries, the date given may not represent "independence" in the strict sense, but rather some significant nationhood event such as the traditional founding date or the date of unification, federation, confederation, establishment, or fundamental change in the form of government, such as state succession. In Mathematical logic, in particular as applied to Computer science, a unification of two terms is a join (in the lattice sense with respect A federation ( Latin: foedus, covenant is a union comprising a number of partially self-governing states or regions united by a central ("federal" A confederation is a group of empowered states or communities usually created by treaty but often later adopting a common constitution Succession of states is a theory in International relations regarding the recognition and acceptance of a newly created State by other states based on