PastlasHistorical atlas

Year

The world in 1940

In 1940 the atlas holds 403 states standing across 6 regions. 110 things began that year - Astatine, Neptunium and Vichy France among them - and 15 ended; 90 people were born and 70 died.

Only what Wikidata dates to the year is counted here; a thing dated to its decade is on the 1940s page, and to its century on the 20th century.

What began in 1940

By kind, the best known first; a war or a state is listed in the year it began.

States 5

Wars and battles 84

and 74 more in the atlas.

Regime change 1

Unrest and atrocity 7

Natural disasters 1

Treaties 8

Works and ideas 4

What ended in 1940

States that fell or were replaced, and wars and other things that ran past the year they began.

States 4

Wars and battles 11

and 1 more in the atlas.

Born and died

By how many Wikipedias write about them.

Born in 1940 90

and 74 more in the atlas.

Died in 1940 70

and 54 more in the atlas.

Standing in 1940

The states the atlas holds as standing that year, by region, the best known first, with who held the highest office where the record dates it.

Europe: 79 statesEurope79Middle East and North Africa: 49 statesMiddle East and North Africa49Sub-Saharan Africa: 25 statesSub-Saharan Africa25South Asia: 156 statesSouth Asia156East and Southeast Asia: 54 statesEast and Southeast Asia54Americas and Oceania: 35 statesAmericas and Oceania35Location unknown: 5 statesLocation unknown5

Europe79 states

and 69 more; every state of Europe.

Middle East and North Africa49 states

and 39 more; every state of Middle East and North Africa.

Sub-Saharan Africa25 states

and 15 more; every state of Sub-Saharan Africa.

South Asia156 states

and 146 more; every state of South Asia.

East and Southeast Asia54 states

and 44 more; every state of East and Southeast Asia.

Americas and Oceania35 states

and 25 more; every state of Americas and Oceania.

Location unknown5 states

Open in the atlas

  • On the timeline, 1915 – 1965: every state, war and life of 1940 and the years either side, region by region.
  • On the map in 1940: 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.