or Balkanise 'bɔ:lkənʌɪz , 'bɒl-
■ verb divide (a region or body) into smaller mutually hostile states or groups.
Derivatives
Balkanization -'zeɪʃ(ə)n noun
Origin
1920s: from the Balkan Peninsula (where this was done in the late 19th and early 20th cent.) + -ize .