demarcation

See also: démarcation

English

Alternative forms

• demarkation

Etymology

First recorded c.1752, from Spanish línea de demarcación and/or Portuguese linha de demarcação, the demarcation line laid down by the Pope on May 4, 1493, dividing the New World between Spain and Portugal on a line 100 leagues west of the Cape Verde Islands. Both derive from demarcar, from de- + marcar (“to mark”), from Italian marcare, from the same Germanic root as march.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˌdɛm.ɑːˈkeɪ.ʃən/, /ˌdiː.mɑːˈkeɪ.ʃən/

  • Audio (Southern England)

    (file)

• (US, Canada) IPA^(key): /ˌdɛm.ɑɹˈkeɪ.ʃən/, /ˌdi.mɑɹˈkeɪ.ʃən/
• (General Australian) IPA^(key): /ˌdiː.maːˈkæɪ.ʃən/
• Rhymes: -eɪʃən

Noun

demarcation (countable and uncountable, plural demarcations)

1. The act of marking off a boundary or setting a limit, notably by belligerents signing a treaty or ceasefire.
2. A limit thus fixed, in full demarcation line.
   • 1831, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], Romance and Reality. […], volume III, London: Henry Colburn and Richard Bentley, […], →OCLC, pages 48–49:

     About sunset, he was leaning on the remains of an old wall, which had once probably surrounded a Roman encampment, and now served as a line of demarcation between two villages, as jealous of each other's claims as near neighbours usually are.

3. Any strictly defined separation.

   There is an alleged, in fact somewhat artificial demarcation in the type of work done by members of different trade unions.

   • 1983, Richard Ellis, The Book of Sharks, Knopf, →ISBN, page 7:

     In the sea there is no demarcation between the hunter and the hunted, as there is on the African plains.

Derived terms

• demarcate (back-formation)
• demarcated

Related terms

• demarc
• demarcation line
• demarcation potential
• demark
• marcation

Translations

act of marking off a boundary or setting a limit

• Armenian: սահմանազատում (hy) (sahmanazatum)
• Bulgarian: разграничаване (bg) n (razgraničavane)
• Catalan: demarcació (ca) f
• Czech: vymezení n
• Danish: grænsedragning c, afgrænsning c
• Dutch: demarcatie (nl), demarkatie
• Finnish: rajanveto, rajaus (fi) (general); demarkaatio (fi) (by belligerents)
• French: démarcation (fr) f
• Greek: οροθεσία (el) f (orothesía), χάραξη ορίων f (cháraxi oríon)
• Italian: demarcazione (it) f
• Portuguese: demarcação (pt) f
• Russian: демарка́ция (ru) f (demarkácija), размежева́ние (ru) n (razmeževánije), разграниче́ние (ru) n (razgraničénije)
• Spanish: demarcación (es)

thus fixed limit

• Bulgarian: разграничение (bg) n (razgraničenie)
• Catalan: demarcació (ca) f
• Danish: demarkationslinje c
• Dutch: demarcatielijn (nl), demarkatielijn, grenslijn (nl)
• Finnish: raja (fi), rajalinja (fi) (general); tulitaukolinja, demarkaatiolinja (fi) (by belligerents)
• French: démarcation (fr) f
• Portuguese: demarcação (pt) f
• Russian: разграниче́ние (ru) n (razgraničénije), разделе́ние (ru) n (razdelénije)
• Spanish: demarcación (es) f, frontera (es) f
• Swedish: avgränsning (sv) c

strictly defined separation

• Bulgarian: разграничение (bg) n (razgraničenie)
• Danish: faggrænse c, grænse (da) c
• Dutch: afbakening (nl) f, aflijning (nl), afgrenzing (nl)
• Finnish: rajaus (fi)
• German: Abgrenzung (de) f
• Greek: διαχωρισμός (el) m (diachorismós)
• Portuguese: demarcação (pt) f
• Russian: разграниче́ние (ru) n (razgraničénije)
• Spanish: demarcación (es) f

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Latin: ^{(please verify)} demarcatio (New Latin)
• Swedish: ^{(please verify)} avgränsning (sv)

Further reading

• “demarcation”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “demarcation”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.

Anagrams

• Tremadocian