The 2010s (pronounced "twenty-tens" or "two thousand [and] tens"), variously nicknamed "the '10s" ["the Tens"], "the Tenties", or more rarely "the Teens"), was a decade that began on January 1, 2010, and ended on December 31, 2019.
The decade began with an economic recovery from the Great Recession. Inflation and interest rates stayed low and steady throughout the decade, gross world product grew from 2010 to 2019. Global economic recovery accelerated during the latter half of the decade, fueled by strong economic growth in many countries, robust consumer spending, increased investment in infrastructure, and the emergence of new technologies. However, the recovery developed unevenly. Socioeconomic crises in some countries—particularly in the Arab world—triggered political revolutions in Tunisia, Egypt, and Bahrain as well as civil wars in Libya, Syria, and Yemen in a regional phenomenon that was commonly referred to as the Arab Spring. Meanwhile, Europe had to grapple with a debt crisis that was pronounced early in the decade. Shifting social attitudes saw LGBT rights make substantial progress throughout the decade, particularly in developed countries.
During the decade, the world population grew from 6.9 to 7.7 billion people. There were approximately 1.4 billion births during the decade (140 million per year), and about 560 million deaths (56 million per year).[3]
Nicknames
The decade has been variously termed "the '10s" ("The Tens"), occasionally "The Teens",[citation needed] and (especially in the UK) "the Tenties".[4][5][6]
Conflict between Jewish and Arab communities in Israel and the West Bank has been ongoing since 1948.[7] After Israel occupied the West Bank, it began making settlements there, which has been an obstacle to the peace process.[8] Tensions also remained high as Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, has been launching rockets and cross-border raids into Israeli territory, to which Israel has responded with force.[9]
In late 2013, a terrorist organisation called the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant began making rapid advances and territorial gains in Iraq and Syria. It captured Mosul in June[20] and made Raqqa its capital.[21] Various international coalitions led by the United States, France, Russia, and Muslim states and with aid from dozens of countries were formed to help fight the militants.[22][23] By December 2017, ISIL had lost all of its territory in Iraq and 95% of its territory in Syria,[24] and was militarily and territorially defeated on 23 March 2019.[25]
Low-intensity conflict between the Colombiangovernment, left-wing guerrillas, and paramilitary factions has been ongoing since 1964. However, at the start of the decade, only two major groups remained, FARC and ELN.[38] Since 2012, both have been in peace talks with the government, with FARC and the government signing a historic ceasefire in June 2016.[39] Though the deal was initially rejected by voters in October,[40] a revised deal was unanimously passed by the Congress in November 2016, bringing an end to much of the fighting.[41][42]
Since 2004, Pakistan has been fighting an insurgency by armed militant groups aligned with the Taliban or Islamic State along its border with Afghanistan.[43] The violence has killed at least 60,000 since[44] and over 6 million displaced.[45][46][47] By 2014, however, casualties from terrorist and militant attacks had dropped by around 40%.[48][49]
Since 2005, Paraguay has been fighting a low-level insurgency by Marxist–Leninist[50] armed militant groups.[51] The conflict is estimated to have caused a cumulative 111 deaths by 2020, most of which have been insurgents, local ranchers, and police officers.[51]
In 2009, Al-Shabaab, an Islamist militant group, began waging an insurgency against the newly formed Transitional Federal Government. In 2011, the federal government capturedMogadishu[62] and subsequently retook towns across the country.[63] Since then, the government has attempted to clean out the remaining Al-Shabaab strongholds with help from AMISOM soldiers[64] and military intervention on the part of the United States. Al-Shabaab made a resurgence in 2016, when AMISOM and Kenyan forces were subject to attacks and raids,[65] to which American and Somali forces responded with airstrikes,[66][67] weakening Al Shabaab's territorial prominence. The conflict has cost 300,000 to 500,000 lives and devastated Somalia's infrastructure and humanitarian resources.[68][69]
Sparked by long-standing conflict between Nigeria's Christian and Muslim communities, the Boko Haram insurgency began when the jihadistrebel group started a rebellion against the government.[70] In 2015, the group pledged alliance to ISIL,[71] becoming the world's deadliest terrorist group by 2015.[72][73] The conflict has killed over 37,500 people and displaced 2.5 million, driving 244,000 Nigerian refugees into neighbouring states.[74] Insurgents were weakened in 2015 when Nigerian forces drove them into Sambisa Forest,[75] causing bitter infighting.[76] However, they made a resurgence in 2018–19, with human rights violations; massacres; and mass child kidnappings, exploitation, and torture posing a threat to civilians.[77][78][79][80]
In 2012, a rebellion by Tuaregs in Northern Mali began. After Malian president Amadou Toumani Touré was ousted in a coup, Tuaregs captured Northern Mali,[81] and declared it to be the independent state of Azawad.[82] However, Islamists groups took over Northern Mali from the Tuaregs and imposed sharia law.[83]
The civil war began with the conquest of Fallujah, Mosul, Tikrit and areas of northern Iraq by Islamic State. Nations provided aid in the form of airstrikes, troops and intelligence.[86][87] In December 2017, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi announced victory over ISIL,[88] though others warned to expect ISIL to continue the fight by other means.[89]
Following the factional violence that engulfed Libya after the fall of Muammar Gaddafi, a second civil war broke out among factions seeking control of the territory and oil of Libya. The conflict was mostly between the House of Representatives (HoR) government that was controversially elected in 2014, also known as the "Tobruk government"; and the rival General National Congress (GNC) government, also called the "National Salvation Government". A permanent ceasefire agreement in all areas became effective from October 2020, ending the war.[90][91]
Preceded by a decade-long Houthi insurgency,[92] the Yemeni Civil War began between two factions: the then-incumbent Yemeni government and the Houthi militia, along with their supporters and allies. Both claim to constitute the Yemeni government.[93]
There was a rise in criminal violence as a result of drug trafficking, after Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte was inaugurated in 2016.[94] As of 2020, it has caused about 6000 deaths.[95]
Following the suppression of 2016–17 protests by Cameroonian authorities, Ambazonianseparatists in the Anglophone regions launched a guerrilla campaign against the Cameroon Armed Forces, and unilaterally proclaimed independence. In November 2017, the government of Cameroon declared war on the separatists and sent its army into the Anglophone regions.
The Catatumbo campaign has been an ongoing period of violence between militia faction groups in the Catatumbo region of Colombia and Venezuela since January 2018. It is an extension of the War on drugs and developed after the Colombian peace process of 2016.
A wave of demonstrations and civil unrest in Turkey began on 28 May 2013, initially to contest the urban development plan for Istanbul's Taksim Gezi Park.
In a quick turn of events, the president of the breakway republic, Alexander Ankvab, was ousted from power after the government building was stormed.[99]
A series of demonstrations and riots in Burkina Faso in October 2014. Demonstrations began in response to controversial attempts to introduce a constitutional amendment that would lift term limits and allow PresidentBlaise Compaoré to run for additional terms as president and extend his years in office. On October 30, Compaoré dissolved the government and fled to Côte d'Ivoire and was succeeded by Yacouba Isaac Zida.
In 2015 and 2016, a series of protests in Brazil denounced government corruption and the presidency of Dilma Rousseff, being the largest popular mobilisations in the country since the beginning of the "New Republic".
Various political and civil groups led by member of parliament Nikol Pashinyan staged anti-government protests in Armenia. Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan resigned on 23 April 2018. Nikol Pashinyan was elected Prime Minister on 8 May 2018.
France experiences its worst civil unrest since the protests of 1968 due to the yellow vests movement. Protests in Paris morph into riots, with hundreds of people injured and thousands arrested. Over 100 cars are burned and numerous tourist sites are closed.
Mass protests take place in Hong Kong against an extradition bill that many observed would subject Hong Kong residents and those passing through the city to de facto jurisdiction of Chinese courts. Despite Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam announcing the bill to be "dead" after weeks of mass protests, waves of localised demonstrations continued, some resulting in violent clashes between police, pro-democracy activists, local residents, and Triad members.
On 3 October 2019, taxi, bus and truck drivers came out in protest against the planned fuel subsidy abolition and austerity measures announced by President Lenín Moreno. The government seat was relocated from Quito to Guayaquil and a state of emergency was declared following violent protests.
On 18 October 2019, a period of mass protests and violent unrest began in Chile. The protests were initially in response to a fare hike on the Santiago Metro, but the scope of the protestors' demands has since expanded.
The Arab Spring was a series of anti-government protests, uprisings, and armed rebellions that spread across much of the Islamic world in the early 2010s. It began in response to oppressive regimes and a low standard of living, starting with protests in Tunisia.[115][116]Social media was heralded as the driving force behind the swift spread of revolution throughout the world, as new protests appeared in response to success stories shared from those taking place in other countries. Many governments began recognising the importance of social media for citizens to organise and began shutting down certain websites or blocking Internet service entirely, especially prior to major rallies.[117] Governments also scrutinised or suppressed discussion in online forums through accusing content creators of unrelated crimes or shutting down communication on specific sites or groups, such as through Facebook.[118]
Amidst anti-government protests, Tunisia's president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali dissolved the government, declared a state of emergency and resigned from office.
Facing protests against his 42-year rule, Muammar Gaddafi refused to step down and sent in the military to brutally quell protests.[121][122] As a result, many army units defected to the opposition and protests soon turned into an armed rebellion.[123] With international help, the rebels captured Tripoli,[124] and eventually Sirte, Gaddafi's hometown and last outpost, where he was killed.[125]
Protests erupted in Syria against President Bashar al-Assad's rule, with police and the army sent in to crack down on protesters.[126][127] They later morphed into war after army officers defected to the opposition, forming the Free Syrian Army (FSA).[128] It led to the Kurdish parties called the SDF to secede from Northeastern Syria, forming Rojava. The war also allowed for Islamic extremist groups like Al-Nusra Front and ISIL to temporarily take control of vast amounts of territory.
The Arab Spring saw mass unrest in the Arab world early in the decade: Government overthrown multiple times Government overthrown Civil war Protests and governmental changes Major protests Minor protests Other protests and militant action outside the Arab world
On 8 April 2010, the United States and Russia signed a treaty in Prague, Czech Republic agreed to reduce the stockpiles of their nuclear weapons by half. It is meant to replace the Strategic Offensive Reductions Treaty (SORT), which was set to expire.[129] The treaty went into force on 5 February 2011 after it was ratified by both nations.[130]
In 2015, Iran and other world powers agreed to trade sanctions relief for explicit constraints on Iran's contentious nuclear program, including allowing the inspections of nuclear facilities by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).[131] On 16 January 2016 the IAEA confirmed that Iran had complied with the agreement (the JCPOA), allowing the United Nations to lift sanctions immediately.[132][133] However, on 8 May 2018, United States President Donald Trump announced the United States was withdrawing from the deal.[134]
Throughout the decade, North Koreaexpanded its nuclear capabilities, performing alleged nuclear tests in 2013[138] and 2016,[139] which governments responded by placing international sanctions on the country.[140][141] In response North Korea has threatened the United States, South Korea and Japan with pre-emptive nuclear strikes.[142] However, in 2018, North Korea suggested that they may disarm their nuclear arsenal after negotiations with the United States.
On 1 February 2019, The US formally suspended the Russo-American Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF),[143] and Russia did the same on the following day in response. The US formally withdrew from the treaty on 2 August 2019.[144]
BRICS, a supranational economic cooperative comprising five major emerging national economies—Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa—grew to represent over 3.1 billion people, or about 41 percent of the world population by 2015.
China was increasingly called a superpower in the early 2010s, including at the 2011 meeting between President Hu Jintao and United States President Barack Obama. By the end of the decade, China overtook the U.S. as the world's largest trading nation and the country filing the most patents, dramatically expanded its military and landed its lunar rover Yutu on the moon, ending a four-decade hiatus of lunar exploration. In 2018, global military spending reached its highest level since 1988, late Cold War levels, largely fuelled by increased defence spending by the United States (4.6% increase to $649 billion) and China (5% increase to $250 billion). Together, their budgets accounted for half of the world's total military spending.[189] In 2019, the Lowy InstituteAsia Power Index, which measures the projections of power across eight indexes in the Indo-Pacific, ranked the United States at #1 with a score of 84.5 and China #2 with a score of 75.9.[190]
Socio-political polarisation increased as conservatives and social liberals clashed over the role and size of government and other social, economic and environmental issues in the West. In the United States, polls showed a divided electorate regarding healthcare reform, immigration, gun rights, taxation, job creation, and debt reduction.[191] In Europe, movements protesting increasing numbers of refugees and migrants from Islamic countries developed, such as the English Defence League and Pegida.[192][193]
The trend of polarisation in the West was partially influenced by the prevalence of identity politics, both left-wing and right-wing, among activist movements.[194] Beginning around 2011, far-left and progressive concepts such as combating social inequality and economic inequality, often via progressive stack tactics, proliferated in the Western world and elsewhere.[195][196][197] Around the middle of the decade, phenomenon such as white nationalism, identitarianism and emboldened feelings of nativism saw a marked reemergence in the West due to drastically increased migration and corresponding crime and amongst both the right and left general dissatisfaction with Western government and Media responses to certain issues.[198] There were also increased calls for egalitarianism, including between the sexes,[199] and some scholars assert that a fourth wave of feminism began around 2012, with a primary focus on intersectionality.[200][201]
Related to the rise of populism and protests movements was the decline of traditional political parties. In Europe, pasokification described the loss of vote share experienced by traditional centre-left or social democratic parties. In France, specifically, Emmanuel Macron's La République En Marche! party won a majority in its first election in 2017.
The political establishment was also challenged in many countries by protest movements, often organised through new social media platforms. These included the various Arab Spring protests, the Occupy movement, and the yellow vests movement.
A referendum was held in Southern Sudan on whether the region should remain part of Sudan. An overwhelming majority voted in favour of separation and formed the new country of South Sudan.
Beji Caid Essebsi won the first regular presidential election following the Tunisian Revolution against outgoing president Moncef Marzouki. He became Tunisia's fifth president and first freely elected head of state in the Arab world.
Security forces of the Transitional Military Council, the military junta ruling Sudan following the ousting of Omar al-Bashir, massacre over 100 people at a sit-in protest amid mass protests in Khartoum. The massacre prompts the African Union to suspend Sudan's participation until civilian rule is reestablished in the country.
Conservative academic Kais Saied wins more than 70% of the votes, defeating businessman Nabil Karoui. He became Tunisia's sixth president and second freely elected head of state in the Arab world.
On 21 June the Chamber of Deputies voted 76 to 1 to impeach Lugo, and the Senate removed him from office the following day, by 39 votes to 4, resulting in Vice President Federico Franco, who had broken with Lugo, becoming president.
Republican nominee Donald Trump was elected the 45th President of the United States, defeating former U.S. Secretary of State and Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. He became the first President without prior diplomatic or military experience.
The Supreme Tribunal of Justice of Venezuela took over legislative powers of the National Assembly and removed its members' immunity, most of whom belonged to the opposition. The decision was reversed a few days later following domestic and international condemnation of the court's actions.
Peruvian President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski was impeached and later resigned. His successor Martín Vizcarra was removed by congress and appointed Vice President Mercedes Aráoz as interim president, moves that were largely seen as illegitimate.
Bolivian president Evo Morales resigns following 19 days of protests after the disputed 2019 Bolivian general election and following calls for his resignation by the military.
Donald Trump, a celebrity (filmography) and businessman, became president of the United States in 2017. Trump was the first U.S. president without prior military or government experience. Had Hillary Clinton been elected in 2016, she would have been the United States' first female president. Hillary Clinton won the popular vote in 2016, but did not win the electoral college.
The Bharatiya Janata Party, led by Narendra Modi, won a landslide victory in India's general election, the first time a single party gained a majority on its own since 1984.
An estimated 6 to 7 million attended the Concluding Eucharistic Celebration in Manila on the Feast Day of Santo Niño de Cebú, ending the 5-day apostolic and state visit of Pope Francis in the Philippines, the largest papal crowd in history.
Founding Prime Minister of Singapore who ruled from 1959 to 1990, highly regarded as the founding father of the nation, died from pneumonia at the age of 91.
South Korean President Park Geun-hye is impeached by the Constitutional Court of Korea in a unanimous decision, terminating Park's presidency. South Korean Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn assumes power following the ruling.
Moon Jae-in was elected the 12th President of South Korea, originally scheduled to take place later in the year, the election was moved to early May following the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye.
The Persian Gulf region saw tensions between the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran escalate in mid-2019. The crisis saw oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz sabotaged and seized, drone shootdowns, and efforts by the U.S. and United Kingdom to pursue military patrols to protect shipping in the gulf.
In 2013, China launched the ambitious Belt and Road infrastructure initiative, with over 150 countries announcing participation by the end of the decade.
The longest-serving Prime Minister of Italy, Silvio Berlusconi, resigned in November 2011, after a sexual allegation scandal, a financial crisis and public protests. The economist Mario Monti was appointed new Prime Minister, at the head of a technocratic cabinet.
Benedict XVI resigned as pope, the first to do so since Gregory XII in 1415, and the first to do so voluntarily since Celestine V in 1294. On 13 March, after a papal conclave, Jorge Mario Bergoglio is inaugurated as Pope Francis, the first Jesuit pope, the first pope from the Americas, and the first non-European Pope in over 500 years.
In a referendum called by the governing Scottish National Party, Scotland voted to remain in the United Kingdom, with 55.3% of votes against independence while 44.7% voted in favour.
A historic agreement aimed at keeping global warming below 2 °C compared to pre-industrial levels and reducing greenhouse gas emissions is adopted by all 195 UNFCCC member states.
In a referendum held in the United Kingdom on whether or not to continue being a member of the European Union, 52% of voters chose to leave it. Prime Minister David Cameron announced his resignation afterwards, being succeeded by Theresa May.
En Marche! candidate Emmanuel Macron was elected the President of France, replacing incumbent Hollande and defeating National Front candidate Marine Le Pen in the second round of voting. Macron is the youngest president in the history of the French Fifth Republic.
Political conflict sparks between the Spanish and the Catalan governments over the 2017 Catalan independence referendum. It still went ahead, with 91% of voters supporting independence within Catalonia, with unionists and Spain opposing the vote. On 27 October, Catalonia declares independence from Spain but it is not recognised by any sovereign nation, while Madrid imposes direct rule for 6 months.[323]
Finnish Presidential elections were held in Finland on 28 January 2018. Incumbent Sauli Niinistö won reelection for his second consecutive term in office with 62,6 % of the vote. for a term from 1 March 2018 until 2024.
The centre-right alliance, in which the right-wing populist League emerged as the main political force, won a plurality of seats in the Chamber of Deputies and in the Senate, while the anti-establishment Five Star Movement became the party with the largest number of votes. After months of negotiations, the two populist parties, M5S and League, formed a government.
Presidential elections were held in Russia on 18 March 2018. Incumbent Vladimir Putin won reelection for his second consecutive (fourth overall) term in office with 77% of the vote.
The Conservative Party of the United Kingdom voted for Boris Johnson to be the party's new leader and prime minister following the resignation of Theresa May on 24 May 2019, the party's first contested leadership election since 2005.
After an extended period of political deadlock over how to proceed with leaving the European Union an early general election took place in the United Kingdom in which the pro-withdrawal Conservative party won a sizeable majority of seats effectively guaranteeing Brexit would take place in January the following year.
28 February 2014: following the removal of pro-Russian Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych from office, Russia annexed the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine
Syrian and Iraqi refugees arriving in Greece. In the 2010s Europe had been severely affected by a huge migration from Africa and Middle East
Anwar al-Awlaki, a senior talent recruiter, planner and spiritual leader of al-Qaeda, was killed in a targeted killing in the northern al-Jawf province of Yemen, in a drone strike.[335]
Jo Cox, British MP, was shot and stabbed to death by a Neo-Naziwhite supremacist[344] in Birstall, England. She was the first British MP assassinated in over a quarter of a century and the first female politician in Britain to be assassinated.[345]
Antonio Halili, Mayor of Tanauan, Batangas, was assassinated by an unidentified gunman while attending a flag raising ceremony together with around 300 government employees and newly elected barangay officials.[351]
Jamal Khashoggi, Saudi Arabian dissident and journalist for The Washington Post, was assassinated in the Saudi Arabian consulate by the Saudi Government in Istanbul, Turkey in what is widely believed to have been ordered directly by Crown PrinceMohammed bin Salman.[353][354][355]
Polish President Lech Kaczyński and dozens of Polish government and military officials were among 96 people killed when their plane crashed near Smolensk, Russia.
Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 vanished en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. The bulk of the plane is still missing, with all 239 people on board presumed dead. The first remains of the aircraft were found on 29 July 2015, after they washed ashore on Réunion Island.
Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was shot down over Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine and crashed near the Ukrainian-Russian border, killing all 298 people on board, making it the deadliest airliner shoot down in history.
A Lockheed C-130 Hercules operated by the Indonesian Air Force crashed into a crowded residential neighbourhood in Medan shortly after take-off from Soewondo Air Force Base, killing 143 people including 22 on the ground, making it the deadliest crash in Indonesian Air Force peacetime history.
For over 15 months it was unclear what exactly happened to Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 until at the end of July 2015 a few remnants of the plane swept to the shores of the island of Réunion
Thirty-three miners near Copiapó, Chile, were trapped 700 metres (2,300 feet) underground in a mining accident in San José Mine, before being rescued after surviving for a record 69 days.
An eight-story factory building collapsed in the outskirts of Dhaka, Bangladesh, killing 1,129 people and injuring over 2,000 more, becoming the deadliest structural failure in history.
Two explosions occurred within 30 seconds of each other at a container storage station at the Port of Tianjin in the Binhai New Area of Tianjin, China, killing at least 173.
An iron oretailings dam in Bento Rodrigues, a subdistrict of Mariana, Brazil, suffered a catastrophic failure, causing flooding and at least 17 deaths. At least 16 people have been injured. This incident has been described as the worst environmental disaster in Brazil's history.
Twelve boys and their football coach are rescued from the flooded Tham Luang Nang Non cave in Thailand, following a 17-day ordeal that gained worldwide attention.
Part of the Morandi Bridge collapses after a violent storm in Genoa, Italy, causing 43 fatalities. Deputy Prime Minister Luigi Di Maio and transport minister Danilo Toninelli blame private company Autostrade per l'Italia.
A gasoline pipeline exploded in the town of Tlahuelilpan, in the Mexican state of Hidalgo. The blast killed at least 135 people and injured dozens more. Mexican authorities blamed fuel thieves, who had illegally tapped the pipeline.
A major explosion at a chemical plant in Xiangshui, Jiangsu, China, kills at least 64 people and injures more than 600 others. Its powerful impact registered as an artificial earthquake.
A fire ignited by a faulty refrigerator in a London council estate tower block spread to almost the entirety of the building causing 72 deaths and over 70 injuries.
A major fire at the Notre-Dame Cathedral destroyed most of its roof, and its upper walls were severely damaged; extensive damage to the interior was prevented by its stone vaulted ceiling, which largely contained the burning roof as it collapsed. 3 injuries were reported, but there were no confirmed deaths.
The river cruise ship Dongfang zhi Xing capsized in the Yangtze River after being hit by a waterspout, killing 442 people, making it the deadliest maritime disaster in China's peacetime history.
An explosion on BP's Deepwater Horizon offshore drilling rig, operating in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Louisiana, left eleven crewmen dead and resulted in a fire that sank the rig and caused a massive oil spill, becoming the worst environmental disaster in U.S. history.
A magnitude 9.0 earthquake off the coast of Sendai caused a tsunami that severely damaged the Fukushima Daiichi and Fukushima Daini nuclear power plants. The damage resulted in the worst nuclear disaster since the Chernobyl disaster, contaminating the entire area.
A 7.0 magnitude earthquake hit Haiti, causing widespread destruction in Port-au-Prince. Haitian authorities believe that the disaster killed between 200,000 and 250,000 people and over three million more were affected by the quake. The earthquake was the deadliest disaster in the decade.
A 7.2 magnitude earthquake hit Mexicali and Baja, killing three and injuring more than two hundred. US border towns in Imperial Valley, California were affected.
A 9.0 magnitude earthquake hit near Sendai, Japan. It created a 30 feet (9.1 m) high tsunami, leaving 15,893 dead, 2,565 missing and over 150,000 displaced. It was the largest earthquake to hit Japan in 140 years.
A massive 7.8 magnitude earthquake in Nepal killed at least 8,857 people and injured tens of thousands more. It is the worst disaster to hit Nepal in decades.
A 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck near the city of Puebla. Coincidentally, it was also the 32nd anniversary of the 1985 Mexico City earthquake, which was commemorated with a national seismic alert drill, just two hours before the real earthquake struck, which left 360 dead and over 6,000 injured.
caused devastation on various islands in the Caribbean and the East Coast of the United States,
killing 49 and causing almost $14.2 billion in damages.
Tropical Storm Washi, known in the Philippines as Tropical Storm Sendong, caused catastrophic damage on the Philippine island of Mindanao. More than 1,000 died and thousands were injured or missing.
Hurricane Sandy caused immense destruction in Cuba, Jamaica, Puerto Rico and the United States, leaving at least 233 dead. It became the largest Atlantic tropical storm ever.
Typhoon Haiyan, known as Super Typhoon Yolanda in the Philippines, hits the Philippines, killing at least 6,000 people, with a thousand more still missing, making it the deadliest typhoon to ever hit the Philippines.
Hurricane Matthew caused catastrophic damage and a humanitarian crisis in Haiti, as well as widespread devastation in the southeastern United States. The deadliest Atlantic hurricane since Hurricane Stan in 2005, it caused extensive damage to landmasses in the Greater Antilles, severe damage in several islands of the Bahamas and was responsible for 603 fatalities.
Hurricane Harvey slams into southeastern Texas after reorganising over the Gulf of Mexico, causing catastrophic flooding and billions in damages. It became the first major hurricane to make landfall in the United States since Hurricane Wilma in 2005. Total damage from the hurricane was estimated at $125 billion, making it the costliest natural disaster ever in the United States, tied with 2005's Hurricane Katrina.
Hurricane Maria is regarded as the worst natural disaster on record in Dominica, and caused catastrophic damage and a major humanitarian crisis in Puerto Rico. The third costliest Atlantic hurricane to date, it caused catastrophic damage and thousands of fatalities across the northeastern Caribbean, compounding recovery efforts in areas still damaged from Hurricane Irma just two weeks prior.
Hurricane Michael was the first Category 5 hurricane to strike the contiguous United States since Andrew in 1992. In addition, it was the third-most intense Atlantic hurricane to make landfall in the contiguous United States in terms of pressure, behind the 1935 Labor Day hurricane and Hurricane Camille of 1969. It was the first Category 5 hurricane on record to impact the Florida Panhandle, and was the fourth-strongest landfalling hurricane in the contiguous United States, in terms of wind speed. Michael was responsible for 74 deaths.
A tornado outbreak in the United States and Canada killed 324 people across six states. At 360 tornadoes, it was the largest and one of the deadliest tornado outbreaks in United States history.
Another U.S. tornado outbreak took place over six days. 178 people were killed, most of which occurred in Joplin, Missouri after an EF5 tornado swept through the city, killing 158 people and injuring at least 1,150.
A tornado struck the Bara and Parsa districts of Nepal, killing 28 and injuring 1,176 people. It is the first officially recorded tornado in Nepalese history.
Flooding occurred in Pakistan after record monsoon rains, killing at least 1,600 people, thousands were rendered homeless, and more than thirteen million people were affected. Estimates from rescue service officials suggest the death toll might have reached 3,000.
Between 13 and 18 May 2014 a low pressure cyclone designated "Tamara" and "Yvette" affected a large area of Southeastern and Central Europe, causing floods and landslides. Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina suffered the greatest damage as the rain was the heaviest in 120 years of recorded weather measurements. At least 86 people were killed and hundreds of thousands had been forced from their homes. Assessments of damage range up to 3.5 billion euros for Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Heavy rainfall generated by the annual northeast monsoon affected the Coromandel Coast region of the South Indian states of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. More than 500 people were killed and over 1.8 million people were displaced. With estimates of damages and losses ranging from nearly ₹200 billion (US$3 billion) to over ₹1 trillion (US$14 billion), the floods were the costliest to have occurred in 2015, and were among the costliest natural disasters of the year.
Mount Merapi erupted in Indonesia, killing 353 people and grounding flights across Southeast Asia, becoming the largest eruption from the mountain in a century.
The state of California suffered through a water drought for the most part of the decade, affecting the way how Californians showered, use their drinking water, and even some of their electricity.
A wildfire began southwest of Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada. On 3 May, it swept through the community, destroying more than 2,400 homes and buildings and forcing the largest wildfire evacuation in Alberta's history. The wildfire is the costliest disaster in Canadian history.
The 2019 wildfires season saw an unusual surge in the number of fires occurring in the Amazon rainforest and other parts of the Amazon biome contained within the countries of Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, and Peru during the 2019 Amazonian tropical dry season.
The 2019 Australian bushfire season arrived in the wake of heavy droughts across the country, with fires covering the east coast including the metropolitan confines of Sydney. There were 34 direct fatalities and hundreds of properties destroyed. Subsequent smoke covered the city of Sydney and Melbourne, causing toxic air pollution.
Greece and Eurozone's rise of debt in the early years of the decadeThe weighted capital city residential property price index, produced by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, since 2003A man and a delivery robot waiting at a pedestrian crossing in Redwood City, California, United States. E-commerce spurred advancements in drone delivery and transformed parts of the services and retail sectorsIn 2014 the One World Trade Center opened its doors in the Financial District of Manhattan, serving as a replacement to the original World Trade Center Twin Towers that were destroyed in 2001. On the 10th anniversary of 9/11 in 2011 (the same year Osama bin Laden was killed), the 9/11 Memorial was opened.
The global economy during the 2010s was generally strong. It saw steady growth, low unemployment, and increasing consumer confidence recovering from the great recession. The decade ended with a strong finish, with 2019 seeing record highs in many areas. A sovereign-debt crisis in Europe began in early 2010, and the Greek government admitted that it was having difficulties servicing its large sovereign debt. In the summer and fall of 2011, bond yields for Italy and Spain spiked above 6 percent.[485] By 2015 bond rates had returned to normal ranges across Europe, save for Greece, which accepted another, even more stringent bailout package. The size of the European Financial Stability Facility was increased from €440 billion to €2 trillion.[486] Despite the Eurozone debt crisis, the American Dow Jones Industrial Average had its longest stretch of gains since the late 1990s tech boom.[487] However, economic issues, including inflation and an increase in commodity prices, sparked unrest in many lower-income countries. In some countries, particularly those in the Arab world, political unrest evolved into socioeconomic crises, resulting in the Arab Spring leading to political instability and civil wars.
In 2010, China became the second largest global economy, surpassing Japan.[493] Japan also saw a rating downgrade the following year due to debt burden.[494] In August 2011, the S&P downgraded the United States' credit rating from triple AAA to AA-plus following a debt ceiling crisis.[495] Also in 2011, a Gallup poll found that more than half of Americans believed the country was still in a recession.[496] In June 2015, the Shanghai Stock Exchange lost a third of the value of A-shares within one month, an event known as the 2015–16 Chinese stock market turbulence. India became the fastest growing major economy of the world in 2015, surpassing China.[497] In 2018, as the U.S. Federal Reserve raised interest rates, fears of a yield curve inversion preceding a potential U.S. recession sent inflation higher in several emerging markets, including Argentina, where interest rates hit 40% and an International Monetary Fund bail out was issued.[498] In 2019, Singapore supplanted the United States as the world's most competitive economy, with the U.S. dropping to third, behind Hong Kong.[499]
Global oil production in 2014 reached a historic peak, reaching 93 million barrels/day.[500] In 2018, partially due to a shale boom, the United States overcame Russia and Saudi Arabia in becoming the world's largest crude oil producer, the first time since 1973.[501] Around the year 2017 is a period seen by some economists as being the new peak of a "goldilocks economy".[502] The International Monetary Fund's April 2019 World Economic Outlook stated, "After peaking at close to 4 percent in 2017, global [economic] growth remained strong, at 3.8 percent in the first half of 2018, but dropped to 3.2 percent in the second half of the year."[503]
In 2018, United States President Donald Trump announced he would put into place new tariffs on some Chinese products, starting the 'US-China Trade War', an economic conflict involving the world's two largest economies. Trump said the reasoning for the trade war was to punish China for "unfair" trade practices, such as the appropriation of jobs and the theft of American intellectual property. China responded with tariffs of its own, and a cycle began, escalating the conflict. As part of his 'America First' policy, Trump also announced new tariffs were being placed on countries around the world for various products such as steel and aluminium, which also drew some economic retaliation from traditional U.S. trade partners.
In the same vein as cryptocurrency, the trend towards a cashless society continued as non-cash transactions and digital currency saw an increase in favourability in the 2010s. By 2016, only about 2 percent of the value transacted in Sweden was by cash, and only about 20 percent of retail transactions were in cash. Fewer than half of bank branches in the country conducted cash transactions.[507] A report published in 2019 suggested that the percentage of payments conducted in cash in the United Kingdom had fallen to 34% from 63% from 2009.[508] The 2016 United States User Consumer Survey Study claimed that 75 percent of respondents preferred a credit card or debit card as their payment method while only 11 percent of respondents preferred cash.[509]
In 2016, the number of people globally using mobile devices to access the internet overtook those using desktop computers for the first time, having been preceded by the U.S. two years prior in 2014.[521][522][523][524][525]3D printers also emerged in the 2010s and were referenced or used in pop culture during the decade.
In 2018, during the Falcon Heavy test flight, the first production car was launched into space. The car was attached to the Falcon Heavy rocket, the most powerful rocket in operation at the time.
The 2010s saw the release of smaller and earlier iPhone iterations, as during the 2010s newer smartphones began to replace clamshell phones (flip phones). Phones of the 2010s mostly saw the usage of 3G and 4G technologies.
Many earlier iPhones would be released bundled with wired earbuds.
DVDs continued to be used throughout the 2010s decade, as new DVD rental pop-ups like Redbox appeared.
Nintendo DS and 3DS cartridges as would be used to play handheld video games earlier in the decade, before the later release of the hybrid Nintendo Switch system in 2017.
Cyber security incidents, such as hacking, leaks or theft of sensitive information, gained increased attention of governments, corporations and individuals.
WikiLeaks published more than 90,000 internal U.S. military logs of the War in Afghanistan. The documents revealed numerous cover-ups and absence of trials for captured or killed Taliban members by the coalition.[526]
A maliciouscomputer worm was responsible for causing substantial damage to Iran's nuclear program. Although neither country has admitted responsibility, the worm is now generally acknowledged to be a jointly built U.S.-Israeli cyberweapon.[527]
WikiLeaks disclosed nearly 392,000 U.S. Army field reports of the Iraq War, the largest leak in the history of the U.S. military. It documented multiple cases of misconduct, abuse of power against civilians and other war crimes by U.S. authorities in the country.[528]
A report disclosed details of 130,000 offshore accounts, with some observers calling it one of the biggest hit against international tax fraud of all time. The report originated from the Washington D.C. investigative journalism nonprofit, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ).[529]
The Office of Personnel Management of the U.S. government announced that it was hacked, resulting in a massive data breach, stealing information of around 21.5 million people.[531] The attack was suspected to have originated from China but it remains unclear if it was or not.[532]
The Bangladesh Bank became a victim of theft after hackers attempted to steal US$951 Million from its account at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.[533] The hackers failed to steal the attempted amount but still got away with $81 million, which was diverted to the Philippines, making it one of the largest bank heists in history.[534]
11.5 million confidential documents were leaked from the Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca that detailed financial and attorney–client information of more than 214,488 offshore companies. The leaks revealed information of various prominent figures being involved in hidden financial dealings within tax havens and companies doing business with terrorist organisations and governments under international sanctions.[535]
Yahoo Inc. reported that account information for up to 500 million users in 2014 had been hacked, compromising personal data from the accounts, including names, addresses, passwords, telephone numbers and possibly encrypting other information.[536]
A set of 13.4 million confidential electronic documents relating to offshore investments. The documents originate from the offshore law firm Appleby, the corporate services providers Estera and Asiaciti Trust, and business registries in 19 tax jurisdictions. At 1.4 terabytes in size, this is second only to the Panama Papers, it is the second biggest data leak in history.[539]
AIDS, a pandemic responsible for killing over 30 million people since its discovery in the early 1980s, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, became a treatable condition, though by the end of the decade only two cases had been cured.[540] With good treatment patients can generally expect normal lives and lifespans. However, as of 2011[update] only some 5 million of the 12 million affected people had access to such treatment.[541]
During the 2010s, social changes included increases in life expectancy and falling birth rates leading to larger proportions of the population being elderly. This put pressure on pensions and other social security programs in developed nations. The environment became a topic of greater public concern around the world.[542] Many parts of the world moved towards greater acceptance of LGBT people often including the legalisation of same-sex marriage. The internet took an ever greater role in entertainment, communication, politics and commerce, especially for younger people and those living in wealthier countries. In 2011, the world populationreached seven billion people.[543]
The Big Bang Theory, which was popular in the 2010s, became the top sitcom throughout its airing on CBS. The show featured numerous pop-culture figures from science and tech, including Bill Gates, Buzz Aldrin, and Elon Musk.
A young child spinning a fidget spinner, one of the most popular toys of the decade from spring and summer of 2017, joining novelty toys of the 2010s such as the fidget cube.
The Nintendo 3DS, a portable 3D gaming device that contained glasses-free 3D and was released during the height of the 3D fad in the 2010s. Its flagship title was Super Mario 3D Land.
Smartphones and tablets started to replace flip-phones and become mainstream. They could be used to play games, make telephone calls, download music, and check the Internet. The iPad was first introduced in 2010 by Steve Jobs, who later died in 2011.
The Wii (Wii Mini c. 2013 pictured) was a popular gaming console in the 2010s which influenced the Microsoft Kinect and PlayStation Move. One of the most critically acclaimed games of the decade, Super Mario Galaxy 2, released on the Wii.
A self-balancing scooter. These devices (also named hoverboards at the time) attracted much attention and curiosity around 2015 on the Internet from appearing on shows such as Jimmy Fallon and Conan.
Fedora hats were popular at the beginning of the 2010s, worn here by Bruno Mars in 2011, singer of "Uptown Funk" (the Billboard Hot 100's #1 song of the 2010s).
A public stop or "Pokéstop" for the game Pokémon Go. The game made use of AR, or augmented reality, and became huge in the summer of 2016.
A cosplayer dressed as the character Ramona Flowers from the 2010 movie Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, which helped popularize the e-girl aesthetic seen in the late 2010s.
In the late 2010s, vaping became popular. Fruit-flavored vape cartridges could be purchased as well, and became highly controversial.
Vaporwave was a 2010s music genre that attracted attention. Lofi hip hop was also new and grew a following. Floral Shoppe and Lofi Girl helped define these genres of the 2010s.
A group of teens dabbing, a popular fad and gesture of the youth around 2015–2016. Dabbing was the most prominent dance trend of the 2010s, which joined such dances as Flossing and the Harlem Shake.
A group of emojis. The 2010s saw the first usage of modern emoticons or "emojis" which were often on the operating systems of phones and computers.
The EDM scene obtained commercial success as seen with songs like "Party Rock Anthem" by LMFAO. The early 2010s had a unique party culture that was inspired by EDM.
In the 2010s indie artists gained much wider traction online. A few popular indie artists of the decade included talents such as Mitski (pictured), Gotye, Mac DeMarco, Tame Impala, and Foster the People.
Fashion of the 2010s became slimmer-fit and slightly more formal compared to previous decades. In addition, people's handheld devices such as cellphones (and their colorful cases), selfie sticks (for a brief period during the middle of the decade), tech-like Beats headphones, smart watches, wired and by the end of the decade wirelessear buds, as well as handheld gaming systems became more prevalent personal items.
The decade was also defined by new hipster fashion (hipster styles were marked by the wearing of knit beanies, checkered shirts, and clothes from thrift stores; as well as hobbies like horticulture, photography, and specialty coffee) athleisure, and a revival of austerity-era and other nostalgic alternative fashion trends (such as 1980s-style neon streetwear in the first part of the decade, and unisex 1990s-style elements influenced by grunge).
In 2018, a subculture of "e-kids" came into existence, whom took their style from Japanese street fashion, cosplay, skater aesthetic, and other pieces of pop culture. In contrast to the colorful subculture of "e-kids" later in the decade, the early 2010s saw the Emo revival.
In the United States, political fashion became a genre of fashion starting around 2016, as people wore hats like MAGA hats (popularized by political outsider, prior TV-star and businessman President Donald Trump), as well as the Pussyhat. These two pieces of fashion wear would be popularized in the 2010s in popular culture on television and further, but would become controversial in their own right.
The decade sparked many smaller fashion movements, notable examples including Cottagecore and Normcore (a notable icon of Normcore in the 2010s was Steve Jobs, whom represented the decade's casual clothing). Fad toys and accessories like the Fidget spinner, Silly Bandz, and Shutter shades each had waves of popularity among youth throughout the decade. Funko Pops were a collectible fad during the 2010s.
Internet
Internet users grew from covering 29% to 54% of the world population.[544]
Over the course of the 2010s, Baidu, Twitter and Instagram emerged to become among the top 10 most visited websites (becoming the 4th, 6th and 8th most popular websites by the end of the decade), while Wikipedia went the 9th to 5th most popular website, almost sextupling its monthly visits (from 1 to 5.7 billion). Meanwhile, Yahoo significantly declined in popularity, descending from being the 1st to 9th most popular site, with monthly visits declining by two-thirds (going from 11.6 to 3.9 billion). Google, Facebook, YouTube and Yandex maintained relatively consistent popularity and remained within the top 10 throughout the decade.[545]
Marvel's main competitor, DC Extended Universe also began to produce superhero films starting in 2013, with films such as Justice League releasing in 2017.
The science fictionUniversal franchise Jurassic Park also saw a resurgence and popularity with the release of Jurassic World and Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. Both of these films each garnered over $1 billion in revenue with the first film became the 3rd highest-grossing film of all time and the second film became the 12th highest-grossing film of all time. Critical reception of the first movie was positive while the second movie had mixed reviews from critics and negative reviews from fans.
The critically acclaimed movies of the 2010s mentioned above set new precedents. Movies like Boyhood (2014) were filmed over the span of a decade in real time to show the growth and childhood of a young boy, and Uncut Gems (2019) brought Adam Sandler back to a wide screen release and was critically acclaimed, while teenage movies like The Edge of Seventeen (2016), Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (2015), The Fault in Our Stars (2014), and The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012) gained large popularity. Her (2013) became Spike Jonze's highest grossing and most critically acclaimed movie, noted for its filming locations and art direction, Parasite (2019) became the first foreign film to win best picture, and movies like Ready Player One (2018) helped advance motion capture technologies (winning two Outstanding Achievement Awards from the Visuals Effects Society and a Saturn Award for Best Science Fiction Film), in addition to becoming one of Spielberg's highest-grossing films.
The 2010s decade is often said to be a part of the Golden Age of Television, due to the widespread quality of multiple shows, as well as advancements in technology leading to streaming, cable television, and online outlets bringing this quality and quantity of programming. Cable providers saw a decline in subscriber numbers as cord-cutting viewers switched to lower-cost online streaming services such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Hulu.[548] On cable television, as well as streaming services, a variety of shows gained popularity.
Live-action TV
The comedy sitcom The Big Bang Theory ran for the entirety of the decade, and was the number-one television sitcom for all of its airing prior to its finale in 2019. Other sitcoms like Curb Your Enthusiasm, Will & Grace, The Office, Scrubs: Med School, and Netflix's Trailer Park Boys and its Out Of The Park: USA and Out Of The Park: Europe specials were popular in the 2010s. How I Met Your Mother (narrated by Bob Saget) gained controversy for its 2014 finale, "Last Forever", which sparked an alternate finale to be created for the show, a television-first. Cult shows like the dark comedy sitcom It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia carried its popularity from the 2000s and lasted through the entirety of the 2010s. CBS's Two Broke Girls began its run in 2011 (ending in 2017), its pilot being the highest watched on the network in a decade. In 2011, Charlie Sheen was fired from Two and a Half Men, who made his last appearance in the show in Season 8 during February 2011. Sheen's 2011 outbursts and firing from the show were highly publicized.[549] Indian sitcom Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah became the world's longest-running sitcom, with over 2,500 episodes,[550][551]
Science fiction television gained a renewed sense of interest, thanks in part to Black Mirror was popularized on Netflix after being broadcast on British television.
A new era of family television and tween television existed in the 2010s, sitcoms of which were mainly spearheaded by Disney and Nickelodeon, but also appeared on cable channels such as ABC (The Middle on ABC for example) and on streaming services like Netflix. Shows such as Nickelodeon's iCarly and Victorious, and Disney's Girl Meets World were notable examples of popular shows among tween and youth throughout the 2010s. The short-lived 2018 revival of Roseanne (a family sitcom on ABC) gained attention for the firing of its main star Roseanne Barr and her outbursts.
Reality television grew an increased following during the decade. Kitchen Nightmares, Hell's Kitchen (UK), and Hotel Hell gained popularity on cable television, as well as getting millions of views on YouTube, making Gordon Ramsay a prominent celebrity chef. America's Got Talent drew in viewers when radio personality Howard Stern announced his joining of the show in late 2011, staying as host until 2015. Meanwhile, popular reality programming on ABC included What Would You Do?, Shark Tank and The Bachelor. Corinne Olympios also gained recognition on the 2017 season of The Bachelor for her behavior on set. American Idol remained popular into the beginning of the decade, as did The Voice. Impractical Jokers flourished throughout the 2010s, gaining exposure on YouTube and elsewhere. TMZ became a popular television show and news source in the 2010s on cable television and YouTube respectively. A genre of pawn shows emerged like Pawn Stars and Hardcore Pawn.
The Apprentice was a reality television show that starred media personality and businessman Donald Trump as host until 2015, at which time he resigned as host. Trump would use the success he gained on The Apprentice to run for President of the United States; which he was elected to in 2016. Additionally, programs such as The Celebrity Apprentice, Comedy Central's The Roast Of Donald Trump, and Donald Trump's November 2015 hosting of Saturday Night Live, would send the reality TV star and businessman into the spotlight to help win the U.S. presidency. Governor in the early 2010s and movie star Arnold Schwarzenegger took Trump's place on The Celebrity Apprentice.
Initially (early in the decade) channels like Fred Figglehorn (FRED), The Annoying Orange, Ray William Johnson, CollegeHumor, Smosh, PewDiePie and the Angry Video Game Nerd attracted millions of views, channels and videos becoming viral on the site. The popularity of YouTubers even ended up spawning films based on popular YouTubers, including Angry Video Game Nerd: The Movie (2014), Smosh: The Movie (2015), and the Fred Trilogy (2010–2012) starting with Fred: The Movie. These YouTubers became well known through comedic skits, video game reviews, and "Let's Play" videos, as Angry Video Game Nerd reviewed games like Sonic The Hedgehog for the Xbox 360, and Life of Black Tiger for the PlayStation 4, which AVGN reviewed in a video featuring Gilbert Gottfried, Smosh would upload skits like "FOOD BATTLE" and Pewdiepie would play games such as Five Nights at Freddy's.[552][553]
YouTube would make an annual video series called YouTube Rewind where it would be a recap of each year's YouTubers, viral videos, trends, events, music and memes starting from 2010 to 2019. The 2018 and 2019 installments was heavily criticized by YouTubers, critics, and viewers alike, receiving millions of dislikes. Rewind did not return for 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and YouTube announced the following year that the series would be discontinued leading to other YouTubers to make their own YouTube Rewind videos.
Adele (left) and Taylor Swift were two of the highest-selling musical artists of the decade, pictured here in 2016 and 2019 respectively.
Globalism and an increased demand for variety and personalisation in the face of music streaming services such as Spotify and Apple Music created many new subgenres. US digital music sales topped CD sales in 2012.[554]Dance, hip-hop, and pop music surged in the 2010s,[555] with hip-hop and R&B surpassing rock as the biggest US music genre in 2018.[556]
The popularity of video games increased across the world, as the Nintendo Wii influenced gaming in the early part of the decade,[564] and the Nintendo 3DS provided 3D gaming through autostereoscopy.[565] The successful Wii was followed by the Wii U in 2012, a commercial failure.[564] Ports and sequels to Wii U games on the Nintendo Switch would sell considerably better than their Wii U counterparts, and even though well-received games like Super Mario 3D World and Nintendo Land released on Wii U, the console still ultimately failed due to poor marketing and public confusion.[566] The Nintendo Wii would be responsible for the most critically acclaimed game of the 2010s decade, Super Mario Galaxy 2 (which is also often considered one of the greatest video games of all time by game critics).
The Wii (and later to a lesser extent the Wii U) would singlehandedly cause the increased use of motion controls in gaming with its Wii line up of games such as Wii Play: Motion, Wii Fit U, Wii Sports Club, Wii Party and Wii Party U, all released in the 2010s. Motion controls would carry over to Nintendo Switch's Joy-Con in 2017, and would form the foundation of 2010's motion-based PlayStation Move and Xbox Kinect, counterparts and competitors to the Wii. In addition to Super Mario Galaxy 2, it is notable in mentioning that Nintendo Wii released a large group of critically acclaimed games in the early 2010s with popular titles such as Kirby's Epic Yarn, Donkey Kong Country Returns (both games later in the decade released on 3DS), The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, and Sonic Colors; as well Portal 2 was a critical success on Xbox and PlayStation early in the decade.[567][568]
The 2010s marked the growth, release, and large expansion of the "Toys To Life" category. Brands such as Nintendo's Amiibo became massively popular, and allowed figurines to be bought which were scanned into games to level up, train your figurine, or receive goods for your figurine. The Amiibo skyrocketed in success due to the roster of figurines available for Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U, with many posting videos of them online going "amiibo hunting" mostly around late 2014 and 2015. Skylanders and Disney Infinity also remained popular at the time, as fads. The Nintendo Labo released in 2018, was also a part of the "Toys To Life" brand of video games, using cardboard to create objects such as a fishing pole, a crank, and a race-car wheel to be played with games.
By the early 2010s, online gaming had become a mainstay of console platforms such as Xbox and PlayStation. During the 2010s, as the number of Internet users increased, two new video game genres rapidly gained worldwide popularity – battle royales and multiplayer online battle arenas (MOBA). Both designed exclusively for multiplayer gameplay over on the Internet. First-person shooters genre were also popular genre before and during the decade. These genres are commonly played in Esports.
Professional gaming, also known as Esports, although was well known in the 2000s, it became tremendously big incurring a large increase in both viewership and prize money. By the late 2010s, it was estimated that the total audience of esports would grow to 454 million viewers, with revenue increasing to more than US$1 billion, with China accounting for 35% of the global esports revenue in 2020. The increasing availability of online streaming media platforms, particularly YouTube and Twitch, have become central to the growth and promotion of esports competitions.
Since the 2010s, a common trend among online games has been operating them as games as a service, using monetization schemes such as loot boxes and battle passes as purchasable items atop freely-offered games. Unlike purchased retail games, online games have the problem of not being permanently playable, as they require special servers in order to function.
"Let's Players" were even referenced in greater pop culture such as the 2014 episode Rehash on South Park, where Pewdiepie would be featured onto the show. Jimmy Kimmel would make a sketch parody on his YouTube channel where he would ridicule the "let's plays" culture which led to backlash from the gaming community.
Video games and movies
In the 2010s movies based on video game franchises became popular, grossing more and being talked about in the media and among fans more than ever before. Movies like Detective Pikachu starringRyan Reynolds (which starred additional actors like Kathryn Newton as Lucy Stevens and Bill Nighy as Howard Clifford) broke box office records for movies based on game series at the time, while movies like Jim Carrey's debut in Sonic The Hedgehog created buzz in the media and on shows like Conan (where the film and its fans were satirized) in 2019 for the movie's depiction of a more realistic looking hedgehog character, which by demand of the fans, was changed into a more cartoon version of the titular character to much like and approval upon the November 2019 trailer and movie's release.[citation needed]
In early 2018 Nintendo and Illumination jointly announced (after the 2015 reveal of Nintendo's planned Universal theme parks) that they were working on a Super Mario Bros. movie. The announcement by Nintendo and Illumination was met with internet speculation; the new Illumination Super Mario film replaced the Sony-Nintendo Super Mario film that was leaked during the 2014 Sony Pictures hack.
The best-selling book of the decade was Fifty Shades of Grey, having sold 15.2 million copies in the United States.[571]
The following is a list of the 10 best-selling books of the decade. Note that global data is unavailable and this is limited to the United States:[571]
2011 IIHF World Championship gold medal celebrations in FinlandLeBron James, a sports icon of the decade, is the only NBA player to have won four championships with three separate franchises.
On 14 October 2012, skydiver Felix Baumgartner completed a jump from the stratosphere and set world records for the highest skydive (39 km or 24 mi), fastest freefall speed (1,357.64 km/h or 843.6 mph, or Mach 1.25), and became the first person in history to break the sound barrier without vehicular power.
In November 2016, the Chicago Cubs won the World Series for the first time since 1908, over the then-Cleveland Indians. Their win, along with Game 7 and the entire 2016 Series, was heavily noted in the sports and baseball community. It is often considered one of the best World Series ever played, due to the underdog nature of both teams, how close the games were and especially the final game, and how it ultimately ended the over 100-year drought of the Cubs not winning a series.
In June 2017, rock climber Alex Honnold became the first person in history to free solo climb El Capitan in Yosemite National Park, an accomplishment that one commentator described as "one of the great athletic feats of any kind, ever."
In International Football, there were three World Cups, with European sides winning all three, Spain in 2010, Germany in 2014, and France in 2018. Of the finalists, only one was not European, Argentina in 2014. The other finalists were Croatia in 2018 and the Netherlands in 2010. South Africa hosted the first World Cup of the decade, followed by Brazil and then controversially, Russia in 2018. The Euros were the next biggest footballing tournaments of the decade, with Spain winning the 2012 edition held in Poland and Ukraine, retaining there title from 2008. Iberian dominance persisted in 2016 with Christiano Ronaldo and Portugal winning their first Major Tournament against France in France. In the Copa America, Uruguay (2011), Chile (2015, 2016) and Brazil (2019) registered tournament wins. In terms of African Cup of Nations, the winners were Egypt in 2010, Zambia in 2012, Nigeria in 2013, Cote D'Ivoire in 2015, Cameroon in 2017, and Algeria in 2019.
Individual accolades were dominated by two Players in particular, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Lionel Messi, this inspired renewed focus on who the "goat" was especially in an increasingly online population, with both players winning Ballon D'Ors, Messi with 5, and Ronaldo with 4. The only other player to win a Ballon D'Or this decade was Luka Modric. The dominance of Ronaldo and Messi was a key feature of the decade, especially because the two players played in the same League for the majority of the decade, with Ronaldo at Real Madrid, and Messi at Barcelona. The two often met in the famous El Classico fixture. This individual rivalry is unique even in sport, let alone football, no other decade has had such a tight fought and regular competition between two world class players.
The era was characterised by an increased player prices and increased ownership by states and mega money owners who could endlessly bankroll their clubs, often these were owners who had illicit practices or supported regimes not deemed acceptable by the European public, i.e. Roman Abramovich, or Sheikh Mansour. Notable clubs with such policies were Manchester City, Chelsea, and PSG. These clubs gained a lot of scrutiny and were often described as having bought their titles. Another noticeable change was a growth in system priority under coaches like Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp, with the former executing a heavy possession and passing style, an evolution of tici-taca football, and the latter employing a style of press called gegenpressing. Both coaches earned a lot of success with these tactics and therefore they became even more widespread. These styles have since influenced coaching and tactics with evolutions on top of the established principles.
International rugby saw the emergence of several new elite sides, with teams like Ireland as a new major player in the European sphere, and on a larger global sphere, where they peaked at Number 1 in 2019, Wales also saw significant improvement and wins, with their overall achievements leading to a stint at Number 1 in 2019. The All Blacks of New Zealand were the powerhouse of rugby, they were number one for the large majority of the period 2011-2019. Japan grew into a Tier One nation after famously beating the South Africa national side in 2015. Wales, England, and Ireland dominated the Six Nations, though France did win in 2010. In the Rugby Championship, Argentina were admitted in during the 2011 season, in a general surge in South American rugby, with Uruguay becoming an established Tier Two side qualifying for two successive Rugby World Cups, 2015 and 2019. New Zealand dominated the Rugby Championship, winning all but 2 of the tournaments, losing out in Rugby World Cup years. Italy got better as this decade progressed, earning wins versus France and Ireland as well as a shock win against South Africa alongside semi-regular wins against Scotland.
The Rugby World Cup was held three times in the 2010s, firstly in New Zealand in 2011, where hosts New Zealand beat France 8-7 in the final. New Zealand beat Australia in 2015, 34-17 to become the most successful world cup team and the first team to win Back-to-Back titles. This world cup was hosted in England, with England being infamously dumped out at their own World Cup, when many had tipped them to go far and even win it outright. Kiwi dominance ended in 2019, when Japan hosted the World Cup and South Africa, led by their first Black Captain, Siya Kolisi, won against England in the final 32-12. This was a World Cup of firsts, being the first in Asia, and because Japan progressed as top of their Group after famous wins versus Ireland and Scotland and were beaten only by the eventual winners in the Quarter final. It also saw Uruguay get their first World Cup win against Fiji. This world cup was the first one in which a team who had lost a group game won the tournament, with South Africa previously losing to New Zealand in pool play.
Two British and Irish Lions tours occurred in this decade; one to Australia in 2013, and the other to New Zealand in 2017. The British and Irish Lions won the first of these tours 2-1, they were led by Warren Gatland and captained by Sam Warburton. The following tour saw the same partnership between Coach and Captain, however the series was controversially drawn 1-1, with the final game a 15 -15 draw, with a controversial offside decision made in the 78th minute.
As the decade drew to a close, some commentators looked back on it as a politically unstable period. An article in the New York Times stated: "With the rise of nationalist movements and a backlash against globalisation on both sides of the Atlantic, the liberal post-World War II order – based on economic integration and international institutions – began to unravel." It heavily discussed the US presidency of Donald Trump (a reality TV Star and businessman with no political experience at the time of taking office, succeeding Barack Obama) whilst also commenting, "Echoes of Mr. Trump's nationalist populism can be found in Prime Minister Boris Johnson of Britain's recent electoral victory and the Brexit referendum of 2016, and in the ascent of the far-right President Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil and Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India. Democracy is under threat in Hungary and Poland. Once fringe right-wing parties with openly racist agendas are rebranding themselves in Sweden and Belgium. And far-right groups in Germany and Spain are now the third-largest parties in those nations' parliaments."[572] A December 2019 piece in The Guardian argued that the 2010s would be remembered "as a time of crises", elaborating "there have been crises of democracy and the economy; of the climate and poverty; of international relations and national identity; of privacy and technology". The article also noted that, in Britain, "politics since 2010 has often been manic. Parties have hastily changed their leaders and policies; sometimes their entire guiding philosophies. Last week's general election was the fourth of the decade; the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s had two apiece."[573] Similar trends of political unrest were felt beyond the Western world, as suggested in The Asian Review, which described the 2010s as a "tumultuous time for Asia, sometimes tragic, sometimes triumphant and never dull".[574]
^Safi, Michael; Farooq, Azhar (15 February 2019), "Dozens of Indian paramilitaries killed in Kashmir car bombing", The Guardian, archived from the original on 4 April 2019, retrieved 4 April 2019 Quote: "'We will give a befitting reply, our neighbour will not be allowed to de-stabilise us,' Modi said ..."
^Sullivan, Mark P., ed. (18 December 2008). "Mexico – U.S. Relations: Issues for Congress"(PDF). CRS Report for Congress: Mexico and the 112th Congress. Congressional Research Service. pp. 2, 13, 14. Archived(PDF) from the original on 9 October 2022.
^"Global Terrorism Index 2015"(PDF). Institute for Economics and Peace. November 2015. p. 41. Archived from the original(PDF) on 7 February 2019. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
^Chambrot, Krysten; Ingber, Hanna; Keller, Josh; Mainl, Lexi; Murphy, Heather; Pecanha, Sergio; S; Stevenson, Ra; Suppes, Mark. "In Focus: North Korea's Nuclear Threats". Archived from the original on 7 September 2021. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
^Brooks, David (25 January 2010). "The Populist Addiction". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 21 December 2020. Retrieved 29 September 2017.
^Surowiecki, James (15 February 2010). "The Populist Problem". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on 30 November 2020. Retrieved 29 September 2017.
^Wallace-Wells, Benjamin (5 May 2016). "Is the Alt-Right for real?". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on 29 August 2017. Retrieved 20 February 2020.
^Ahmed H Adam and Ashley D Robinson. Will the Arab Winter spring again in Sudan?. Al-Jazeera. 11 June 2016. [1]Archived 8 February 2018 at the Wayback Machine "The Arab Spring that swept across the Middle East and succeeded in overthrowing three dictatorships in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya in 2011 was a pivotal point in the history of nations. Despite the subsequent descent into the 'Arab Winter', the peaceful protests of young people were heroic..."
^J. Wilkie (23 November 2016). "Sentencing remarks of Mr Justice Wilkie: R -v- Mair (Jo Cox murder)"(PDF). Judiciary. Archived(PDF) from the original on 9 October 2022. Retrieved 24 November 2016. There is no doubt that this murder was done for the purpose of advancing a political, racial and ideological cause namely that of violent white supremacism and exclusive nationalism most associated with Nazism and its modern forms.
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