Decolonization (American and Oxford English) or decolonisation (other British English) is the undoing of colonialism, the latter being the process whereby a nation establishes and maintains its domination of foreign territories (often overseas territories). The concept particularly applies to the dismantlement, during the second half of the 20th century, of the colonial empires established prior to World War I throughout the world. Some scholars of decolonization focus especially on the movements in the colonies demanding independence, such as Creole nationalism.