2000s
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| Millennia: | 3rd millennium |
| Centuries: | 20th century - 21st century - 22nd century |
| Decades: | 1970s 1980s 1990s - 2000s - 2010s 2020s 2030s |
| Years: | 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 |
| Categories: | Births - Deaths - Architecture Establishments - Disestablishments |
The 2000s is the current decade, spanning from January 1, 2000 to December 31, 2009. The decade has been dominated by several wide-ranging topics, including international trade, concerns over energy supplies and global warming, the explosion in telecommunications, a growing concern with international terrorism and war, and an escalation of the social issues of the 1990s.
Economic developments have largely focused on the explosion of Asia's economic and political potential, with China experiencing immense economic growth, moving toward the status of a world power and billion-consumer market. India, along with many other developing countries, has seen a rapid increase in the size of its economy, accelerated by increased technological integration with the economies of more developed countries. A trend connecting economic and political events in North America, Asia, and the Middle East is the rapidly increasing demand for fossil fuels, which — along with fewer new petroleum finds, greater extraction costs, and political turmoil — forced two other trends: a soar in the price of petroleum products and a subsequent push by governments and businesses to promote the development of "green" technology.
Technological advancements are not as revolutionary or diversified compared to previous decades, but in the field of digital electronics, especially ones for the consumer, the advancements have been considerable. Computers continue to advance rapidly along with the widespread proliferation of broadband internet, in addition to mobile phones, digital cameras, and various digital music formats. Ownership of cell phones in the 2000s is as widespread in many countries as was ownership of televisions in the 1960s, and in developing countries, it is more common. Besides cell phones, email has become for many a communication necessity rather than a luxury that is was in the 1990s or the novelty that they would have been in the 1980s. The use of internet commerce has also become widely popular, with travel reservations, stock trading, and retail shopping not only taking place online, but also taking place without an intermediary agent; online commerce has become the era of self-service.
Many major political developments in the 2000s have revolved around the War on Terrorism, which was triggered by the September 11, 2001 attacks and led to the war in Afghanistan and the Iraq War. These and other events have dominated the news almost daily, including the many controversies regarding their justifications and consequences. The Iraq War, launched in 2003, has generated extreme controversy around the world, with many questioning its justification or the United States' motives. Tensions have escalated in the Middle East because of the War in Iraq and the 2006 Lebanon War. North Korea generated a nuclear crisis by withdrawing from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and conducting a successful nuclear test.
Social issues which became more pronounced included issues pertaining to homosexuality, in particular the issue of homosexual unions. Same-sex marriage was legalized by some major developed nations, including Canada, The Netherlands, Belgium and Spain, and in others, varying degrees of civil recognition were granted to gay relationships. However, such unions continued to meet resistance in many countries and in most U.S. states. Besides issues of homosexuality, other social issues of concern during the 2000s have been gender equality, human rights, and health care, the latter of particular conflict in the United States.
[edit] Names of the decade
In contrast to the decades from 1920 to 1999, which are called "the Twenties", "the Sixties", and the like, the 2000s have no universally-accepted name. Some refer to the decade as the "twenty hundreds" while others may refer to it as the "two thousands". In written form this could appear as "the '00s". But writing "the 2000s" or simply saying "the 2000s" can cause confusion, since this could refer to the entire 21st century—or even the entire millennium.
Determining a name for the decade has been problematic, especially in the United States. The term "Noughties" has been suggested by the BBC,[1][2] but this term has not gained general currency, except perhaps in the United Kingdom, Ireland and Australia.
Other proposed names include:
-
- aughts, aughties, and double-aughts, from 'aught',[3] which, like "naught" means "zero" (aughts was one of the more popular terms in the early 20th century)
- nils and nillies, from "nil", meaning "nothing"
- 2Ks, from the Greek term khilioi, meaning "thousand"
- ōzies, and the Twenty-O's, from the practice of calling the number zero 'O'
- zeroes, double zeroes, ohs, double ohs, oh-ohs, and twenty ohs.
The United Nations General Assembly has declared the decade of 2000–2009 the "International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-Violence for the Children of the World."[4]
