A map of countries often considered to make up the "First World".

The terms First World, Second World, and Third World were used to divide the nations of Earth into three broad categories. The three terms did not arise simultaneously. After World War II, people began to speak of the NATO and Warsaw Pact countries as two major blocs, often using such terms as the "Western bloc" and the "Eastern bloc." The two "worlds" were not numbered. It was eventually pointed out that there were a great many countries that fit into neither category, and in the 1950s this latter group came to be called the Third World. It then began to seem that there ought to be a "First World" and a "Second World" (see Third World for a fuller treatment of the history of the terms). Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1357x628, 27 KB) Projected on current world map, but before the meaning od first world and second world ended (end of Cold of War)l. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1357x628, 27 KB) Projected on current world map, but before the meaning od first world and second world ended (end of Cold of War)l. ... Error creating thumbnail: convert: unable to open image `/mnt/upload3/wikipedia/commons/9/9f/Secondworld-extended. ... For the Jamaican reggae band, see Third World (band). ... Earth is the third planet in the solar system. ... Combatants Allies: Poland, British Commonwealth, France/Free France, Soviet Union, United States, China, and others Axis Powers: Germany, Italy, Japan, and others Casualties Military dead: 17 million Civilian dead: 33 million Total dead: 50 million Military dead: 8 million Civilian dead: 4 million Total dead: 12 million World War II... NATO 2002 Summit in Prague The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, the Atlantic Alliance or the Western Alliance, is an international organisation for collective security established in 1949, in support of the North Atlantic Treaty signed in Washington, DC, on 4 April 1949. ... Unofficial Seal of the Warsaw Pact Distinguish from the Warsaw Convention, which is an agreement among airlines about financial liability. ... NATO 2002 Summit in Prague The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, the Atlantic Alliance or the Western Alliance, is an international organisation for collective security established in 1949, in support of the North Atlantic Treaty signed in Washington, DC, on 4 April 1949. ... A map of the Eastern Bloc. ... For the Jamaican reggae band, see Third World (band). ...

Eventually, it became common practice to refer to nations within the Western European and United States' sphere of influence (e.g., the NATO countries) as the First World. Besides North America (USA and Canada) and Western Europe, the First World also included other industrialized capitalist countries such as Japan and some of the former British colonies, particularly Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. NATO 2002 Summit in Prague The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, the Atlantic Alliance or the Western Alliance, is an international organisation for collective security established in 1949, in support of the North Atlantic Treaty signed in Washington, DC, on 4 April 1949. ... World map showing North America A satellite composite image of North America. ... A common understanding of Western Europe in modern times. ... Capitalism has been defined in various, but similar, ways by different theorists. ...

There were a number of countries that did not fit comfortably into this neat definition of partition, including Switzerland, Sweden, and the Republic of Ireland, who chose to be neutral. Finland was under the Soviet Union's sphere of influence but was not communist, nor was it a member of the Warsaw Pact. Austria was under the United States' sphere of influence, but in 1955, when the country became a fully independent republic, it did so under the condition that it remain neutral. Turkey, which joined NATO in 1952, was not predominantly in Western Europe and was not industrialized. Spain did not join NATO until 1982, towards the end of the Cold War and after the death of the authoritarian dictator Francisco Franco. Communism - Wikipedia /**/ @import /w/skins-1. ... Unofficial Seal of the Warsaw Pact Distinguish from the Warsaw Convention, which is an agreement among airlines about financial liability. ... In a broad definition a republic is a state or country that is led by people who do not base their political power on any principle beyond the control of the people of that state or country. ... The Cold War was the protracted geopolitical, ideological, and economic struggle that emerged after World War II between the global superpowers of the Soviet Union and the United States, supported by their alliance partners. ... Francisco Franco Francisco Paulino Hermenegildo Teódulo Franco y Bahamonde (pron. ...

In modern usage, after the end of the Cold War, the term First World has come to denote the 'developed' Industrialized-Capitalistic nations that in 2000 had a higher GDP per capita than $15,000, as stated by the World Bank. This would include the United States, Canada, Japan, the countries of the European Union (in 2000), Taiwan, Israel, Australia, New Zealand, and South Korea. Additionally, Singapore and Hong Kong may be described in these terms but they are exceptions as these have particular characteristics not representative of a country. The World Bank also denotes these as "High Income Economies."[1] The Cold War was the protracted geopolitical, ideological, and economic struggle that emerged after World War II between the global superpowers of the Soviet Union and the United States, supported by their alliance partners. ... Logo of the World Bank The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD, in Romance languages: BIRD), better known as the World Bank, is an international organization whose original mission was to finance the reconstruction of nations devastated by WWII. Now, its mission has expanded to fight poverty by means... Logo of the World Bank The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD, in Romance languages: BIRD), better known as the World Bank, is an international organization whose original mission was to finance the reconstruction of nations devastated by WWII. Now, its mission has expanded to fight poverty by means...

In recent years, as many "developing" countries have industrialized, the term Fourth World has been coined to refer to countries that have lagged behind and still lack industrial infrastructure. Fourth World may mean: Fourth World, a term most commonly used to collectively describe notably marginalised or oppressed groups, in particular indigenous peoples, living in Third or First World countries. ...

See also

• Second World
• Third World