What does colonialism mean as a literary term?

The term
colonialism as used in literary studies on the most basic level means the same thing it does in
standard English. It refers to one nation establishing colonies in a region outside its borders.
This is different from the types of conquest that expand a nation's borders in that it may only
involve establishing limited enclaves or bureaucracies. 

Literary critics are
interested in the way colonialism affects the literatures of both imperial and subjugated
nations. One particular area of interest is hybridity, in which literary works take elements
from both traditions. Another area of interest is how literature and the other arts can act as
part of imperial ideology or as sites of resistance to imperialism. 

Many
literary critics also work in the field of postcolonialism, examining how the literatures of
former colonies have been shaped by the experience of colonialism and how they struggle to
reinvent themselves as culturally and politically independent.