Pronunciation: [sˈɛkənd wˈɜːld] (IPA) 
The term "second world" is written with the same sound as the number 2 at the beginning of the word, /sɛkənd wɔrld/. The first syllable is stressed, and the letter "o" is pronounced as the "a" in "ball". This term was coined during the Cold War to describe communist states that were allied with the Soviet Union. Its spelling is straightforward and phonetic, making it easy to both understand and pronounce.
The term "second world" is a geopolitical classification that emerged during the Cold War era. It refers to countries or regions that fell under the influence or alliance of the Soviet Union and its Communist governments. While the first world represented the capitalist and developed nations allied with the United States, and the third world denoted the less economically advanced and non-aligned countries, the second world comprised the socialist or Communist nations.
Traditionally, the second world denoted Eastern European countries, including the Soviet Union itself, as well as other nations like Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania, and East Germany. These countries, although differing in degrees of Communist control, shared similar political, economic, and ideological systems with the Soviet Union.
Moreover, the second world also encompassed countries that existed behind the Iron Curtain, those outside the Soviet Union but still under Communist governments, such as China, North Korea, and Cuba. These nations maintained close political and economic ties with the Soviet Union and often subscribed to similar socialist policies.
However, with the end of the Cold War in the late 20th century and the subsequent collapse of the Soviet Union, the term "second world" has lost much of its significance. Today, it is less commonly used compared to its original context, and its definition has become less prominent in contemporary geopolitical discussions.
The term "Second World" was originally used during the Cold War era to categorize countries that were allies of the communist Soviet Union and its Eastern Bloc. The concept of dividing nations into three categories—First World, Second World, and Third World—was coined by the French demographer Alfred Sauvy in the 1950s. He derived the terms from the French Revolution's Estates General, where the First Estate represented the clergy, the Second Estate represented the nobility, and the Third Estate represented the common people.
Sauvy used this analogy to create a modern classification system for nations based on their political and socio-economic alignment. The First World referred to capitalist, industrialized democracies, primarily including Western European countries and the United States. The Second World denoted the socialist, centrally planned economies of the communist bloc, led by the Soviet Union and including countries such as China, Cuba, and Eastern European nations.
