English language
By michemix
@michemix (22)
Mexico
December 21, 2006 11:24pm CST
What is the origin of the English expression third world country? It begs the question, what is a second world country and why do we not hear that expression?
1 response
@Ashida (1370)
• United States
22 Dec 06
It seems the term originated with a French demographer named Alfred Sauvy who used the term tiers monde, which is a reference to the tiers etat (third estate) which was coined during the French Revolution. The first and second worlds refer to the developed capitalist and Communist countries during the 1950s. The phrase "third world" was popularized in France and then made its way into English.
