PastlasHistorical atlas

Decade · 1940 – 1949

The world in the 1940s

From 1940 to 1949 the atlas holds 498 states standing at some time. 1,186 things began - Japan, Italy and People's Republic of China among them - and 395 ended; 923 people were born and 901 died, 3 of all these dated only to the decade.

Its years

The years of the decade with a page of their own: ten or more things dated to the year.

1940: 110 began — 84 wars and battles, 8 risings, regime changes and massacres, 18 other19401941: 180 began — 130 wars and battles, 34 risings, regime changes and massacres, 16 other19411942: 158 began — 138 wars and battles, 11 risings, regime changes and massacres, 9 other19421943: 148 began — 120 wars and battles, 17 risings, regime changes and massacres, 11 other19431944: 232 began — 185 wars and battles, 34 risings, regime changes and massacres, 13 other19441945: 161 began — 98 wars and battles, 23 risings, regime changes and massacres, 40 other19451946: 32 began — 7 wars and battles, 6 risings, regime changes and massacres, 19 other19461947: 50 began — 12 wars and battles, 13 risings, regime changes and massacres, 25 other19471948: 70 began — 31 wars and battles, 17 risings, regime changes and massacres, 22 other19481949: 42 began — 9 wars and battles, 6 risings, regime changes and massacres, 27 other1949

What began in the 1940s

By kind, the best known first.

States 100

and 92 more in the atlas.

Wars and battles 815

and 807 more in the atlas.

Regime change 15

and 7 more in the atlas.

Unrest and atrocity 156

and 148 more in the atlas.

Famine and plague 4

Natural disasters 10

and 2 more in the atlas.

Treaties 58

and 50 more in the atlas.

Works and ideas 28

and 20 more in the atlas.

What ended in the 1940s

States 212

and 204 more in the atlas.

Wars and battles 153

and 145 more in the atlas.

Unrest and atrocity 23

and 15 more in the atlas.

Famine and plague 5

Treaties 2

Born and died

Born 923

and 907 more in the atlas.

Died 901

and 885 more in the atlas.

States of the 1940s

The states that stood at some time in the 1940s, by region, the best known first, with who held the highest office in 1940.

Europe: 113 statesEurope113Middle East and North Africa: 56 statesMiddle East and North Africa56Sub-Saharan Africa: 26 statesSub-Saharan Africa26South Asia: 167 statesSouth Asia167East and Southeast Asia: 88 statesEast and Southeast Asia88Americas and Oceania: 37 statesAmericas and Oceania37Location unknown: 11 statesLocation unknown11

Europe113 states

and 105 more; every state of Europe.

Middle East and North Africa56 states

and 48 more; every state of Middle East and North Africa.

Sub-Saharan Africa26 states

and 18 more; every state of Sub-Saharan Africa.

South Asia167 states

and 159 more; every state of South Asia.

East and Southeast Asia88 states

and 80 more; every state of East and Southeast Asia.

Americas and Oceania37 states

and 29 more; every state of Americas and Oceania.

Location unknown11 states

and 3 more; every state of Location unknown.

Open in the atlas

  • On the timeline, 1920 – 1969: every state, war and life of the 1940s, region by region.
  • On the map in 1945: the borders of the year, its cities under their names of the year, and what happened where.

Wikidata (CC0) · data built 2026-10-07 · Pastlas v2.13.1, by Oleh Voronko. The published atlas and its data are for non-commercial use.