banana republic


an undeveloped, tropical country with a corrupt government

TRANSLATION

Bananenrepublik

STATISTICS

IN THE PRESS

"Britain on the eve of the Thatcher years was in a very sorry state. I remember flying from London to Hong Kong in January 1979. There were half a dozen strikes going on in Britain - baggage handlers, railroads, hospital workers, even grave-diggers. Inflation was at 13 per cent, and the economy was a wreck - the IMF had stepped in three years earlier to impose financial constraints, as if we were some Caribbean BANANA REPUBLIC."

(John Derbyshire in National Review, 28 March 2002)

Did you
know?

Did you know?

Banana Republic is a well-known US retail chain, but it has a more general, colloquial meaning:

"A small country, typically in central America, often run by a dictator, often corrupt, and where the economy is dependent upon fruit exports, tourism, etc."

This term has rather negative associations, so be careful when using it to describe your holiday resort!

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