1900s
Century's opening years
The 1900s refers to either the decade from 1900 to 1909 or the entire twentieth century (1900–1999), depending on context.
When precision matters, writers often specify: the nineteen-oughts for the decade, the twentieth century for the hundred years.
Fashion in the early 1900s was remarkably formal.
Female voting-rights activists
- flappers1920s modern young women
- temperanceHabitual moderation in behavior
- speakeasyIllicit liquor establishment
- bootleggerIllegal liquor trafficker
Edwardian · Victorian · muckrakers · Titanic · immigration · Ellis Island · tenements · child labor
Syncopated piano genre
- Tin Pan AlleyMusic publishing district
- vaudevilleTheatrical variety entertainment
- silent filmSoundless motion picture
- nickelodeonCoin-fed entertainment machine
Art Nouveau · Impressionism · Cubism · Harlem Renaissance · jazz age · dance halls · sheet music · player piano
Self-propelled passenger conveyance
- electricityEnergy from charged particles
- radioElectromagnetic wave receiver
- telephoneVoice communication device
- airplanePowered flying machine
assembly line · phonograph · motion picture · light bulb · camera · typewriter · refrigerator · vacuum cleaner
Extending dominion over others
- colonialismDomination through foreign settlement
- progressivismPhilosophy advocating societal reform
- suffrageRight to cast ballots
- women's rightsLegal equality for females
Seneca Falls · reform · muckraking · trust-busting · Teddy Roosevelt · Bull Moose · anarchism · socialism
Elongated ground excavations
- armisticeAgreement to cease hostilities
- doughboysWWI American infantrymen
- YpresFlemish city, wartime ruins
- SommeFrench river, WWI battlefield
Gallipoli · Lusitania · zeppelin · mustard gas · no man's land · cavalry · Western Front · trench warfare
suffragettes
Female voting-rights activists
- flappers1920s modern young women
- temperanceHabitual moderation in behavior
- speakeasyIllicit liquor establishment
bootlegger · Edwardian · Victorian · muckrakers · Titanic · immigration · Ellis Island · tenements · child labor · labor unions
ragtime
Syncopated piano genre
- Tin Pan AlleyMusic publishing district
- vaudevilleTheatrical variety entertainment
- silent filmSoundless motion picture
nickelodeon · Art Nouveau · Impressionism · Cubism · Harlem Renaissance · jazz age · dance halls · sheet music · player piano · penny arcade
automobile
Self-propelled passenger conveyance
- electricityEnergy from charged particles
- radioElectromagnetic wave receiver
- telephoneVoice communication device
airplane · assembly line · phonograph · motion picture · light bulb · camera · typewriter · refrigerator · vacuum cleaner · escalator
imperialism
Extending dominion over others
- colonialismDomination through foreign settlement
- progressivismPhilosophy advocating societal reform
- suffrageRight to cast ballots
women's rights · Seneca Falls · reform · muckraking · trust-busting · Teddy Roosevelt · Bull Moose · anarchism · socialism · labor movement
trenches
Elongated ground excavations
- armisticeAgreement to cease hostilities
- doughboysWWI American infantrymen
- YpresFlemish city, wartime ruins
Somme · Gallipoli · Lusitania · zeppelin · mustard gas · no man's land · cavalry · Western Front · trench warfare · shell shock
1900s2000s
First decade, 2000s
2020s · 21st century · modern era · digital age · distant future
1900sdigital age
Epoch of computerized life
information age · space age · atomic age · computer age · jet age
- early 1900sFirst twentieth-century years