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A socialist republic is a republic that according to its constitution or political doctrine operates under some form of a socialist economic system. Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Socialist state is the term used in official documents of some countries to describe their political system. ... It has been suggested that The republican form of government be merged into this article or section. ... The color red and particularly the red flag are traditional symbols of Socialism. ...

Many socialist republics operate under their own interpretation of Marxism, and sometimes claim to be implementing the dictatorship of the proletariat. In some socialist republics, an institutionalized party based on communist ideology is often in power. Marxism is the social theory and political practice based on the works of Karl Marx, a 19th century German philosopher, economist, journalist, and revolutionary, along with Friedrich Engels. ... The dictatorship of the proletariat is a term employed by Karl Marx in his 1875 Critique of the Gotha Program that refers to a transition period between capitalist and communist society in which the state can be nothing but the revolutionary dictatorship of the proletariat. The term refers to a... Communism refers to a conjectured future classless, stateless social organization based upon common ownership of the means of production, and can be classified as a branch of the broader socialist movement. ...

Some nations go so far as to actually use the words socialist republic in their official name, for example the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka or the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. The Soviet Union and Yugoslavia consisted of socialist republics, and the country's full names were the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, respectively. Other republics, such as the Co-operative Republic of Guyana and the Republic of India, may define themselves as socialist in their respective constitutions. National motto: None Official languages Sinhala, Tamil Other languages English Capital Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte Largest city Colombo (former capital) President Mahinda Rajapaksa Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickremanayake Government Democratic Socialist Republic Constitution Second Republican Constitution 1978 Area  - Total  - % water Ranked 119th 65,610 km² 1. ... Official language Croatian (after 1974), Macedonian, Serbo-Croatian, Croato-Serbian, Slovenian Capital Belgrade Largest city Belgrade Area (1991)  - Total  - % water Ranked xxst 255,804 km² Negligible Population  - Total (2004)  - Density Ranked xxth 20,522,972 80/km² Currency Yugoslav dinar Time zone  - in summer CET (UTC+1) CEST (UTC+2...

Other nations that have claimed to be socialist republics include the People's Republic of China, the Republic of Cuba, and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

Since there are several different definitions of "socialism", a country's claim to the label of "socialist republic" is almost always disputed. Indeed, there are many socialists who strongly oppose certain self-proclaimed socialist republics.

See also

• Communism
• Democratic socialism
• Socialism