Eurocentrism is the practice of viewing the world from a
European perspective, with an implied belief, either consciously or subconsciously, in the preeminence of European (and, more generally, of
Western) culture. The term Eurocentrism implies criticism of the concerns and values at the expense of non-Europeans and is not used by those who consider it factually justified.
The Eurocentrism prevalent in international affairs in the 19th to 20th centuries has its historical roots in European colonialism and imperialism from the Early Modern period (16th to 18th centuries). Many international standards (such as the Prime Meridian, or the worldwide spread of the Dionysian Era and Latin alphabet) have their roots in this period.
Early Eurocentrism can be traced to the European Renaissance, in which the revival of learning based on classical sources were focused on the ancient Greek and Roman civilizations, due to their being a significant source of contemporary European civilization.
The effects of these assumptions of European superiority increased during the period of European imperialism, which started slowly in the 15th century, accelerated in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, and reached its zenith in the 19th century. The progressively mechanised character of European culture was contrasted with traditional hunting, farming and herding societies in many of the areas of the world being newly conquered & colonised by Europeans, such as the Americas, most of Africa, and later the Pacific and Australasia. Even the complex civilizations of Arabia, Persia, India, China, Mexico, Peru, Japan, Korea and Indochina were counted as underdeveloped when compared to Europe, and were often characterised as static.[citation needed] Many European writers of this time construed the history of Europe as paradigmatic for the rest of the world. Other cultures were identified as having reached a stage through which Europe itself had already passed – primitive hunter-gatherer; farming; early civilisation; feudalism;and modern liberal-capitalism. Only Europe was considered to have achieved the last stage.
