Eurocentricity

Eurocentrism (also "Western-centrism") is a political term coined in the 1980s, referring to the notion of European exceptionalism, a worldview centered on Western civilization, as it had developed during the height of the European colonial empires since the Early Modern period.

The term Eurocentrism itself dates back to the late 1970s and became prevalent during the 1990s, especially in the context of decolonization and development aid and humanitarian aid offered by industrialised countries ("First World") to developing countries ("Third World").

The adjective Eurocentric, or Europe-centric, has been in use, in various contexts, since at least the 1920s. The term is popularised (in French as européocentrique) in the context of decolonization and internationalism in the mid 20th century. English usage of Eurocentric as an ideological term in identity politics is current by the mid-1980s.

The abstract noun Eurocentrism (French eurocentrisme, earlier europocentrisme) as the term for an ideology was coined in the 1970s by the Egyptian Marxian economist Samir Amin, then director of the "African Institute for Economic Development and Planning" of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa. Amin used the term in the context of a global, core-periphery or dependency model of capitalist development. English usage of Eurocentrism is recorded by 1979.

The coinage of "Western-centrism" is younger, attested in the late 1990s, and specific to English.

During European colonial era, encyclopedias under "Europe", often sought to give a rationale for the predominance of European rule during the colonial period by referring to a special position taken by Europe compared to the other continents.

...
Wikipedia