The term "Second World" is a phrase that was used to describe the Communist states within the Soviet Union's sphere of influence or those countries that had centrally-planned economies.[1] Along with "First World" and "Third World", the term was used to divide the nations of Earth into three broad categories. The term has largely fallen out of use since the end of the Cold War. The other two 'worlds' are more talked about, although "First World" countries are now typically referred to as "developed country" and "Third World" has been replaced with "developing country".[1] Since the 1990s, "Second World" countries situated in Central Europe are considered part of the "First World", while their Asian counterparts (and Cuba) are regarded as "Third World" countries.
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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 1952 French demographer Alfred Sauvy coined the term "Third World" to describe these countries; retroactively, the first two groups came to be known as the "First World" and "Second World".
The term was used to refer to nations within the Soviet Union's sphere of influence, e.g. the Warsaw Pact countries, as well as farther-flung Soviet Allies such as Cuba and North Vietnam.[1] Besides the Soviet Union proper, most of Eastern Europe was run by satellite governments working closely with Moscow. The term "Second World" may or may not also refer to Communist countries whose leadership were at odds with Moscow after the Sino-Soviet split, such as Albania. The term is still sometimes used to refer to these countries, though they now have largely capitalist-oriented systems.
Alternatively, First World countries may be defined as having developed market economies, Second World as having developed planned economies, and Third World as having developing economies that may follow either the market or the planned model. The fall of communism and the end of most planned economics has also made this distinction largely moot.
Additionally, the term is sometimes used incorrectly, to describe a moderately developed country. This is most likely based on the misconception that the First World refers to the developed world, the Third World the developing world, and thus the Second World is an intermediate level between the two. To help with this problem, a newer term, Fourth World, was coined to refer to only the most impoverished nations, to distinguish more developed "third world" nations from completely undeveloped "third world" nations. However, the "Fourth World" is also used as a term for nations without their own countries, such as the Kurds and the Palestinians.
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