ˈ ̷ ̷ ̷ ̷ˌnīz transitive verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Usage: often capitalized
Etymology: Balkan peninsula + English -ize; from the way in which this territory has been broken up into many small states
: to break up (as a region) into smaller ineffectual and frequently conflicting units
opposes the partition of Germany, and holds that the economic consequences of Balkanizing the country would be serious — Times Literary Supplement