Final answer:
Balkanization describes the division of a region into smaller, conflicting states, exemplified by the Balkan Peninsula's history where ethnic and nationalistic tensions led to the collapse of Yugoslavia and the rise of independent nation-states.
Step-by-step explanation:
Balkanization refers to the process of fragmentation that occurs in a region resulting in the establishment of smaller, often hostile, micro-national states. This term is derived from the historical and political developments in the Balkans, where the breakdown of states often followed ethnic and national lines, leading to heightened nationalism and frequent conflicts. When the Ottoman Empire began to lose its grip over the Balkans, coupled with the Austro-Hungarian Empire's interests in the region, a complex web of ethnic and nationalistic tensions emerged, ultimately leading to the outbreak of wars and the disintegration of the multi-ethnic states.
For example, the collapse of Yugoslavia during the early 1990s illustrates Balkanization, where regions such as Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, and later Kosovo, declared independence following the death of Josip Broz Tito and the subsequent rise in ethnic tensions. The vacuum left by a weakening centralized power led to nations within Yugoslavia seeking separation based on national identities, resulting in severe civil strife and ethnic conflicts.
Thus, historical instances in the Balkan Peninsula have shaped the geopolitical term 'Balkanization', symbolizing a patchwork of national identities and the devolution of a larger entity into smaller nation-states, often at the cost of peace and stability.