Peter Kirby

I don't mean in a calendrical sense, but in terms of the epochs of history. When textbooks are written in 2100, when will they say that the twentieth century ended?

For example, it is standard now to regard the First World War (sparked in 1914) to be the end of an extended 19th century period.

At least three possibilities propose themselves:

The end of the Cold War / fall of the Berlin wall.

9/11/01, now a "War on Terror"

some future point?

I wonder whether 1991-2001 will be called the Interbellum, a period between the "cold war" attitudes of U.S. foreign relations.

I think this is history, but move as appropriate.

best,
Peter Kirby

Dryhad

It really depends on what else happens in this century. Will the twenty first century be more like the period following the cold war or the war on terror? At this point, it is impossible to say IMO. Who could have predicted the two world wars at the turn of the century. Maybe the first was just waiting to happen, but even then it wasn't expected to last long.

judge

Maybe the Chinese (or someone else)
will be writing history (in a dominant sense) by then and will see it it terms of something they do rather than something that happens in the "west".

S.C.Carlson

That's it.

Clivedurdle

Is it?

It was very dramatic and definitely caused a reaction, but historically it might be seen as quite small scale.

Assassinations and bombings are not new.

Might it be something else, like the Tsunami, a volcano or massive climate change, flooding and disease?

What is this concept of end?

S.C.Carlson

From this American's perspective, 9/11 has caused great changes in American foreign policy, especially with regard to the Middle East, but also to her relationship with Europe and other powers. We are now in the midst of a massive reconfiguration of the global power structures. What the result will be is anyone's guess, but I cannot imagine the world ever returning to its pre-9/11 status quo.

Clivedurdle

There are loads of things much bigger than 911 - hiroshima and nagasaki as starters? Rwanda? The Tsunami.

I'm not sure there was much change in foreign policy - all the ideas were there before.

There is a film out about this that you Americans are refusing to show....

Toto

This isn't Biblical History. It seem to be more PD, but I don't think it really belongs in PD, which is a place to avoid IMHO.

Would you like to connect it somehow? We talk about first century Christianity and second century Christianity, but the real dividing points are the fall of the Temple in Jerusalem and/or the Bar Kochba Rebellion. Is century even a useful concept in history?

World War II is much more of a dividing point in history than either 1900 or 2000 or any point in between, but it doesn't fit into a "century" marker.

Wallener

I'm going with either the fall of the Berlin Wall or the Yeltsin White House stand-off. 1917-1991 is a heck of a run and covers most of the calendar-century. As to when the the 21st started, I think it's too early too tell. If the execution of the War on Terror continues to be executed as proficiently as it has been to date, it'll be 9/11.

epepke

Wow! You are right! The 20th century must have ended in 1945. Thanks for clearing that up.