repatriation

noun

re·​pa·​tri·​a·​tion (ˌ)rē-ˌpā-trē-ˈā-shən 

-ˌpa-

plural repatriations

: the act or process of restoring or returning someone or something to the country of origin, allegiance, or citizenship : the act of repatriating or the state of being repatriated

While officials privately acknowledge there is scant legal basis for repatriation, their public statements suggest that they would use lawsuits, diplomatic pressure and shame to bring home looted objects—not unlike Italy, Greece and Egypt, which have sought, with some success, to recover antiquities in European and American museums.

—Andrew Jacobs

They say they have that right under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, which requires that human remains and artifacts be returned to Indian tribes that can show a cultural link.

—Timothy Egan

This left him an illegal immigrant in Hong Kong, subject to arrest and repatriation at any time.

—Nicholas D. Kristof

Examples of repatriation in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The 5th-century BC vase was a thank you gift for another act of mandatory repatriation, though on a much larger scale: After losing WWII, De Gasperi ceded the Dodecanese islands to Greece, an area Italy had captured from the Ottoman Empire in 1912. —The Editors Of Artnews, ARTnews.com, 23 Sep. 2024

Expired passports and identity cards will now also be accepted as travel documents to facilitate repatriation. —Sophie Tanno, CNN, 14 Sep. 2024

Advantages Of Repatriation One of the most significant advantages of database repatriation is the potential for substantial cost savings. —Eero Teerikorpi, Forbes, 9 Sep. 2024

The new interim government leader, Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, has pledged to defend their rights as refugees and work to secure their eventual repatriation. —Nasir Uddin, The Conversation, 3 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1592, in the meaning defined above