18901970

1890–1970 is a historical span that covers the transition from late nineteenth‑century industrial society to the late twentieth century. The period saw rapid technological change, urbanization, and the expansion of global networks that transformed economies and everyday life. Cultural and intellectual currents, including modernism and other avant-garde movements, challenged established norms and helped redefine art, science, and society.

Industrial and scientific advances underpinned the era. Electricity, internal combustion engines, aviation, radio, and later television reshaped production and communication. The two world wars in 1914–1918 and 1939–1945 redrew maps, accelerated technological development, and fostered the creation of international institutions. The interwar years featured economic volatility and the rise of new political ideologies, while the postwar era saw decolonization, rebuilding, and the emergence of the United States and the Soviet Union as superpowers within a growing Cold War framework.

Social change accompanied political and economic shifts. Movements for expanded suffrage, labor rights, civil rights, and gender equality broadened participation in public life. Advances in medicine, public health, and education increased life expectancy and literacy. The period also saw rapid changes in media, culture, and consumption, along with growing globalization that linked economies and societies more closely than before.

Overall, 1890–1970 shaped the foundation for much of the modern world, leaving enduring legacies in institutions, governance, technology, and social norms.