devolution

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

• noun A passing down or descent through successive stages of time or a process.
• noun Transference, as of rights or qualities, to a successor.
• noun Delegation of authority or duties to a subordinate or substitute.
• noun A transfer of powers from a central government to local units.
• noun Biology Degeneration.

from The Century Dictionary.

• noun The act of rolling down.
• noun The act of devolving, transferring, or handing over; transmission from one person to another; a passing or falling to a successor, as of office, authority, or real estate.
• noun In Scots law: The reference made by two or more arbiters who differ in opinion to an oversman or umpire to determine the difference.
• noun The falling of a purchase made under articles of roup to the next highest offerer, on the failure of the highest bidder to find caution for payment of the price within the time limited by the articles.
• noun The opposite of evolution; degeneration.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

• noun rare The act of rolling down.
• noun Transference from one person to another; a passing or devolving upon a successor.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

• noun A rolling down.
• noun A descent, especially one that passes through a series of revolutions, or by succession
• noun The transference of a right to a successor, or of a power from one body to another.
• noun pejorative Degeneration (as opposed to evolution).
• noun UK The transfer of some powers, and the delegation of some functions, from a central sovereign government to local government; eg. from Westminster to Scottish parliament and Welsh assembly.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

• noun the delegation of authority (especially from a central to a regional government)
• noun the process of declining from a higher to a lower level of effective power or vitality or essential quality