Learn English – Must genocide involve killing

meaningpolitical-correctness

Recently I've been seeing a lot of articles regarding the genocide of the North American indigenous people by the European settlers. I've also heard claims that this genocide continues to this day due to institutionalized colonialism.

All morals aside, can the word "genocide" correctly be used to refer to something that doesn't involve killing?

Google defines it as

the deliberate killing of a large group of people, especially those of
a particular ethnic group or nation.

however the UN defines genocide as

any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole
or in part, a national , ethnical , racial or religious group, as
such:

killing members of the group;

causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group;

deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to
bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part;

imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group; [and]

forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.

I am unclear with this definition if these different criteria have "AND" or "OR" between them; for example must all the terms be met or any single one of them?

Sorry for the unpleasant topic.

Best Answer

caedere = to kill.

However, terms can have specialized meanings/ definitions for specific purposes. The UN's definition is relevant to the context and not for general use.

See also:
genocide

2 (by extension) The systematic suppression of ideas on the basis of cultural or ethnic origin; culturicide.

Usage notes
Genocide was coined to mean, and is generally used in law to mean, the destruction of an ethnic group qua group, whether killing of all members of the group or other means, such as dispersing the group. In common usage, “genocide” is often used to mean “systematic mass killing”, whether or not the purpose is the destruction of a group or something else, such as terrorizing the group or killing a population without regard to group membership (democide).

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