19341996

1934–1996 is a broad historical span that covers roughly six decades from the mid-1930s to the mid-1990s. It encompasses the tail end of the Great Depression, the Second World War and its aftermath, and the long-term transformations of the late 20th century, including decolonization, the Cold War, and the rise of globalization and the information age.

Politically, the period includes the consolidation of authoritarian regimes in some regions during the 1930s, the Allied victory in World War II, and the long division and eventual dissolution of the Soviet-led bloc. The postwar era established international institutions such as the United Nations, while decolonization reshaped many states in Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean during the 1950s–1970s. The late 1980s to early 1990s brought political liberalization and the collapse of several communist governments, culminating in the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. Economically, the era moved from wartime economies to postwar reconstruction, followed by a long expansion, then stagflation in the 1970s, and the rapid globalization and liberalization of the 1980s and 1990s.

Technological and scientific advances defined the period as well: space exploration, advances in computing beginning with ARPANET in the late 1960s, and the public advent of the World Wide Web in 1991. In life sciences, breakthroughs such as PCR in 1983 and Dolly the sheep in 1996 marked important milestones. Cultural shifts included civil rights, feminist and environmental movements, and the emergence of global media-driven culture. 1934–1996 thus represents a long arc of change rather than a single era.