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2000s
This article is about the decade starting at the beginning of 2000 and ending at the end of 2009. For the century or millennium starting in 2000 (or, technically, 2001), see the links below.
The decade as a whole
- In keeping with naming decades (cf. 1990s "the Nineties", 1980s "the Eighties", etc.), the decade of the 2000s lacks an accepted name. The most common name is "the Os", pronounced as "the ohs". A widely accepted term may not come about until the decade has ended. However no such term exists for the decades of the 1900s and 1910s. Some other suggestions for the 2000s decade are:
- "the Twenty-O's" (pronounced; twenty-ohs) or "the Oh's". For example, the year 2005 would be pronounced as "twenty-oh-five," instead of "two-thousand and five."
- "the 0-0s", usually pronounced as "the oh-ohs". This pronunciation sounds like "uh oh", an expression of dismay; this similarity is no doubt intentional.
- "the 2Ks", a term that is rooted in the slang of the times. K is shorthand for the Greek prefix kilo meaning 1000; hence, 2K means 2000. In popular culture, the years of the decade are already being named according to this slang. For example, the year 2003 is referred to as 2K3. The "2K" term probably has its popular origins in the heavily-hyped Y2K bug that began in 1999, and lasted into this decade.
- "the Aughts" (or "Oughts"), keeping with the practice of the twentieth century.
- "the Nillies", derived from the term "nil", meaning nothing or zero.
- "the Noughties", referring to the nought, or zero, as the decade indicator; the word-play on "naughty" is intentional.
- "the Twenty Hundreds", though this could be confused with a name for the century.
- "the zeroes",
- "the double-O's"
- "the 0-Hundreds"
- "the two thousands", simply 2000s instead of stressing the last two numbers of the first year of the decade e.g. 2000s instead of just 00's.
- The United Nations General Assembly declared the (mostly overlapping) decade of 2001-2010 as the "International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-Violence for the Children of the World".
Events and trends
Technology
War, peace and politics
- Major controversy over U.S. presidential election, 2000
- September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attack on New York's World Trade Center and Virginia's Pentagon killing over 3000 people. A resultant change in stance towards international terrorism (See War on Terror) has ripple effects on the USA's foreign policy and military strategy.
- 2001 U.S. invasion of Afghanistan to depose the Taliban regime in response to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks
- December 2001 – July 18, 2003: The Convention on the Future of Europe proposing first European constitution (i.e., of the EU)
- East Timor gains official independence from Indonesia on May 20, 2002
- International Criminal Court exists as of 1 July 2002, used for judging war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide
- 2003 invasion of Iraq as a step in the American war on terrorism
- Darfur conflict in Sudan
- "Orange Revolution" in Ukraine leads to election of Viktor Yushchenko as Prime Minister after initial election victory of incumbent Viktor Yanukovych is annulled due to vote-rigging
- Revolution in Kyrgyzstan overthrows government of President Askar Akayev
- Beslan school hostage crisis, in which multinational terrorists took a school in Beslan, Russia hostage and subsequently killed 344 people including children
- United States expands international influence, in particular in the Middle East, as well as continuing to expand its military might. The US also hold a number of war games pertaining to the Strait of Taiwan in preparation for a possible war with the People's Republic of China over a Taiwanese succession
- While the US continues to enjoy international political, military and economic dominance, China emerges as a viable world power, as well as an industrial powerhouse for numerous light goods
Economics
Culture and religion
Other
- November 2002: SARS virus outbreak, most notably in Hong Kong and Toronto
- Major earthquake rocks the ancient city of Bam, in Iran. Cost over 50,000 lives.
- A major earthquake and ensuing tsunami causes devastation in Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, The Maldives and many other areas around the rim of the Indian Ocean. As of January 2005 the death toll is estimated to be nearly 290,000
- Bird flu spreads through South East Asia
- April 2, 2005: Pope John Paul II dies at age 84.
People
World leaders
State leaders by year: 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 ...
Entertainers
- Ben Affleck
- Jack Black (High Fidelity, Shark Tale, The School of Rock, Ice Age)
- Emily Browning
- Ellen DeGeneres (Finding Nemo, The Ellen DeGeneres Show)
- Johnny Depp (Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, Finding Neverland, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (movie))
- Eminem
- Ricky Gervais
- Tom Hanks (The Terminal, (Castaway, (Catch Me If You Can, Lady Killers
- Peter Jackson (The Lord of the Rings trilogy)
- Samuel L. Jackson
- Catherine Zeta Jones
- Nicole Kidman
- Brock Lesnar
- Madonna
- Moby
- Keanu Reeves (The Matrix series)
- Julia Roberts (Erin Brockovich, Ocean's Eleven, The Perfect Storm
- Conan O' Brien
- Brad Pitt
- Natalie Portman
- Radiohead
- Adam Sandler
- M. Night Shyamalan
- Will Smith (I, Robot film adaptation)
- Jon Stewart
- Ben Stiller
- U2 (All That You Can't Leave Behind, How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb)
- Bruce Willis
- Green Day (American Idiot)
- Lindsay Lohan (Mean Girls, Freaky Friday)
Sports figures
See also
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