Maoism

Maoism is a form of Marxism-Leninism associated with Mao Zedong and the Chinese Communist Party. It stresses that revolutionary change in a largely agrarian society depends on a protracted people's war and the mobilization of peasants, not only urban workers. The concept of 'new democracy' sought a broad united front of workers, peasants, and other anti-feudal groups to overthrow feudal and foreign domination while building socialism.

Central doctrines include protracted rural-based warfare, with revolutionary bases in the countryside and the encirclement of cities from the periphery; the mass line, a method of sourcing policy from the needs and judgments of the masses; and the idea of continuous revolution to prevent bureaucratic stagnation and preserve ideological vitality.

Historically, Maoism developed within the context of the Chinese Revolution and led to the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949. It enabled large-scale campaigns such as the Great Leap Forward (1958–1962) and the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976), whose outcomes remain controversial and are widely debated in assessments of radical mobilization and state power.

Outside China, Maoist-inspired movements have influenced insurgencies and parties in several countries. Notable examples include the Naxalite–Maoist movement in India, the Shining Path in Peru, and Nepal's Maoist insurgency and subsequent integration into government. Some groups promote Marxism-Leninism-Maoism (MLM) as a contemporary umbrella term for their ideology.