devolution
nounUK /diːvəˈluːʃən/
Etymology Borrowed from Middle French dévolution, from Medieval Latin devolutio, devolutionis, from Latin devolvo.
1
A rolling down.
2
A descent, especially one that passes through a series of revolutions, or by succession.
3
The transference of a right to a successor, or of a power from one body to another.
4
Derogatory Degeneration.
- It is quite disheartening to witness the devolution of our nation's political discourse over the past several years.
- He is the place where the devolution from Heaven and the evolution from earth meet.1981, William Irwin Thompson, The Time Falling Bodies Take to Light: Mythology, Sexuality and the Origins of Culture, London: Rider/Hutchinson & Co., page 186:
5
Government The transfer of some powers and the delegation of some functions from a central government to local government (e.g. from the U.K. parliament to Scottish parliament and Welsh assembly).
- The question of whether England should receive devolution like Scotland and Wales have has dogged British politics for years.
- Governments like devolution because it gives ministers someone else to blame for problems.2020 November 4, Philip Haigh, “Cracks and divisions over funding for public transport”, in Rail, page 55:
1 more example
- By the 1974 general election, the Scottish National Party (SNP) were polling at 30% and there were growing calls for devolution.2021, Otto English, Fake History, page 179:
- Synonyms
- devolvement
- Derived terms
- antidevolution, devolutional, devolutionary, devolutionist
- Related terms
- devolve