More languages
More actions
No edit summary Tag: Visual edit |
No edit summary Tag: Visual edit |
||
| (18 intermediate revisions by 3 users not shown) | |||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
'''Communist nostalgia''', also known as '''socialist nostalgia''', is a political and cultural phenomenon in former [[Socialist state|socialist states]] where | [[File:Communist nostalgia map.png|thumb|436x436px|Percentage of people who said life was better under socialism and/or that the [[Overthrow of the Soviet Union|fall of the USSR]] harmed their country. White numbers indicate polls that had an option for neutral or "don't know," meaning some of these countries have a pro-communist plurality but no majority.]] | ||
'''Communist nostalgia''', also known as '''socialist nostalgia''', is a political and cultural phenomenon in former [[Socialist state|socialist states]] where significant portions of the population and oftentimes majorities long for a return to [[socialism]] as they become disillusioned with the new [[capitalist]] system that replaced it. | |||
== | Contrary to the notion that nostalgia for socialism is only popular in ex-communist countries among the college-educated youth who never experienced it, older generations as well as non-college-educated people across the board in former [[Eastern Bloc]] countries are less likely to approve of the change to a [[market economy]], less likely to approve of the change to a [[multi-party system]], and less likely to be satisfied with their current lives.<ref name=":4" /> | ||
== Former Soviet republics == | |||
=== Armenia === | |||
71% of [[Republic of Armenia|Armenians]] believe life was better in the Soviet Union,<ref name=":0">{{Web citation|author=Will Stewart|newspaper=Express|title=Back in the USSR: 64 per cent of Russians say life was better in the Soviet Union than now|date=2016-08-17|url=https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/701026/russians-life-better-soviet-union-ussr-sixty-four-percent|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220616141354/https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/701026/russians-life-better-soviet-union-ussr-sixty-four-percent|archive-date=2022-06-16|retrieved=2022-09-24}}</ref> and only 12% believe Armenia benefitted from the overthrow of the Soviet Union in 1991.<ref name=":1">{{Web citation|author=Neli Esipova, Julie Ray|newspaper=Gallup|title=Former Soviet Countries See More Harm From Breakup|date=2013-12-19|url=https://news.gallup.com/poll/166538/former-soviet-countries-harm-breakup.aspx|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220828070321/https://news.gallup.com/poll/166538/former-soviet-countries-harm-breakup.aspx|archive-date=2022-08-28|retrieved=2022-09-24}}</ref> | |||
=== Azerbaijan === | |||
69% of [[Republic of Azerbaijan|Azerbaijanis]] think life was better in the Soviet Union.<ref name=":0" /> | |||
=== Belarus === | |||
53% of [[Republic of Belarus|Belarusians]] believe life was better in the Soviet Union.<ref name=":0" /> | |||
=== Estonia === | |||
=== Georgia === | |||
57% of [[Georgia (country)|Georgians]] see [[Joseph Stalin|Stalin]] positively compared to only 18% for [[Mikhail Gorbachev|Gorbachev]].<ref>{{Web citation|newspaper=Pew Resarch Center|title=Religious Belief and National Belonging in Central and Eastern Europe|date=2017-05-10|url=https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2017/05/10/religious-belief-and-national-belonging-in-central-and-eastern-europe/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231007031807/https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2017/05/10/religious-belief-and-national-belonging-in-central-and-eastern-europe/|archive-date=2023-10-07}}</ref> | |||
=== Kazakhstan === | |||
60% of [[Republic of Kazakhstan|Kazakhstanis]] people believe life was better in the Soviet Union.<ref name=":0" /> 82.4% believed that the Soviet Union responded to citizens' needs.<ref name=":3">{{Citation|author=Kelly M. McMann|year=2005|title=Central Asians and the State: Nostalgia for the Soviet Era|pdf=https://web.archive.org/web/20221227064639/https://www.ucis.pitt.edu/nceeer/2005_818_09_McMann.pdf|publisher=Case Western Reserve}}</ref> | |||
=== Kyrgyzstan === | |||
61% of [[Kyrgyz Republic|Kyrgyz]] people believe the dissolution of the USSR harmed Kyrgyzstan and only 16% say it helped.<ref name=":1" /> 87% believed that the USSR responded to citizens' needs.<ref name=":3" /> | |||
=== Latvia === | |||
=== Lithuania === | |||
=== Moldova === | |||
60% of [[Republic of Moldova|Moldovans]] who lived in the Soviet Union say life was better then.<ref name=":0" /> Only 26% say Moldova benefitted from the dissolution of the USSR.<ref name=":1" /> | |||
=== Russia === | |||
[[File:Russian communists.png|thumb|350x350px|Russians celebrating the legacy of the [[Soviet Union]]]] | |||
In the [[Russian Federation]], 75% of people believe that the USSR was the best time period in Russian history.<ref>[https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2020/03/24/75-of-russians-say-soviet-era-was-greatest-time-in-countrys-history-poll-a69735 75% of Russians Say Soviet Era Was 'Greatest Time' in Country’s History – Poll]</ref> In 2009, 58% of Russians said it was a "great misfortune" that the Soviet Union no longer exists.<ref name=":4">{{Web citation|newspaper=Pew Research Center|title=End of Communism Cheered But Now with More Reservations|date=2009-11-02|url=https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2009/11/02/chapter-7-nationalism/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230401210644/https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2009/11/02/chapter-7-nationalism/|archive-date=2023-04-01}}</ref> In 2019, [[Joseph Stalin|Stalin]] had a 70% approval rating in Russia.<ref>{{News citation|newspaper=[[In Defense of Communism]]|title=Anticommunism Fails: 70% of Russians have a positive opinion on Joseph Stalin|date=2019-04-17|url=http://www.idcommunism.com/2019/04/anticommunism-fails-70-of-russians-have-positive-view-on-joseph-stalin.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210629093512/https://www.idcommunism.com/2019/04/anticommunism-fails-70-of-russians-have-positive-view-on-joseph-stalin.html|archive-date=2021-06-29}}</ref> | |||
In 1999, 58% of Russians agreed that their country should have stayed how it was before 1985, and only 27% disagreed.<ref name=":05">{{Citation|author=Austin Murphy|year=2000|title=The Triumph of Evil|chapter=The Documented Facts about Eastern Europe and Communism|page=71|pdf=https://mltheory.files.wordpress.com/2017/06/austin-murphy-the-triumph-of-evil.pdf|city=Fucecchio|publisher=European Press Academic Publishing|isbn=8883980026}}</ref> 64% of Russians believe that life was actually better under the USSR.<ref name=":0" /> 55% of Russians believe that the overthrow of the Soviet Union caused more harm than good compared to 19% who support the change to capitalism.<ref name=":1" /> | |||
62% of Russians prefer a [[planned economy]] over a [[market economy]] and 49% prefer the Soviet political system, including 62% aged 55 and older.<ref>{{Web citation|newspaper=Levada|title=What Do Russians Think Russia Should Be Like?|date=2021-10-05|url=https://www.levada.ru/en/2021/10/05/what-do-russians-think-russia-should-be-like/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220521003718/https://www.levada.ru/en/2021/10/05/what-do-russians-think-russia-should-be-like/|archive-date=2022-05-21|retrieved=2022-09-24}}</ref> | |||
=== Tajikistan === | |||
52% of people in [[Republic of Tajikistan|Tajikistan]] believe the dissolution of the USSR harmed their country, and only 27% believe it helped.<ref name=":1" /> | |||
=== Ukraine === | |||
62% of [[Ukraine|Ukrainians]] believe that life was better under socialism.<ref name=":2">{{Web citation|newspaper=Pew Research Center|title=People Worse off than Under Communism?|date=2010-04-21|url=https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2009/11/02/end-of-communism-cheered-but-now-with-more-reservations/communism220px/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112035654/https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2009/11/02/end-of-communism-cheered-but-now-with-more-reservations/communism220px/|archive-date=2020-11-12|retrieved=2022-09-24}}</ref> 56% of Ukrainians believe the breakup of the Soviet Union was bad for Ukraine and only 23% say it was good.<ref name=":1" /> | |||
=== Uzbekistan === | |||
In 2005, 70.2% of Uzbeks agreed that the Soviet government responded to citizens' needs.<ref name=":3" /> | |||
== Eastern Bloc == | |||
=== Albania === | |||
55% of [[People's Socialist Republic of Albania (1946–1992)|Albanians]] have a positive view of former leader [[Enver Hoxha]].<ref>{{Web citation|newspaper=Tirana Times|title=Former dictator still seen in positive light by many Albanians, poll shows|date=2016-12-09|url=https://www.tiranatimes.com/?p=130276|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220827105957/https://www.tiranatimes.com/?p=130276?p=130276|archive-date=2022-08-27|retrieved=2022-10-08}}</ref> | |||
=== Bulgaria === | |||
62% of [[Republic of Bulgaria|Bulgarians]] say life was better in the [[People's Republic of Bulgaria (1946–1990)|People's Republic of Bulgaria]].<ref name=":2" /> | |||
=== Czechia === | |||
Nostalgia for communism isn't very common in the [[Czech Republic]]. In 2009, only 47% of Czechs polled said that life is better now than it was under communism compared to 39% who said it was worse. When specifically asked about the economic situation, 45% said that things are better now than they were under communism as opposed to 39% who stated that things are worse. 80% of Czechs polled approved of the change from a [[one-party state]] to a [[Multi-party system|multi-party state]] and 79% approved of the change from a [[planned economy]] to a [[market economy]] (with 63% agreeing that most people are better off under the [[free market]]). 49% were satisfied with their lives in 2009 compared to only 23% in 1991. When asked to rate their lives on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being "the best possible life for you", a relative majority of Czechs (49%) answered with a 7 or higher in 2009.<ref name=":4" /> | |||
Communism's relative unpopularity among Czechs is reflected in [[Parliament of the Czech Republic|the government]], with not a single person in the [[Chamber of Deputies of the Parliament of the Czech Republic|Chamber of Deputies]] being a member of the [[Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia|Czech Communist Party]] since the [[2021 Czech parliamentary election|2021 election]]. The older generation is typically less satisfied with liberal reforms and the current state of things in their country,<ref name=":4" /> with the average age for KSČM members being 75 according to the party's own newspaper.<ref>[[Ivana Kottasová|Kottasová, Ivana]] (2021-11-08).: [https://edition.cnn.com/2021/11/08/europe/czech-parliament-communists-out-intl/index.html "Communists have now left the Czech parliament, more than three decades after the Velvet Revolution"]. [[Cable News Network|''CNN'']]. Retrieved 2024-12-23.</ref> | |||
With all that being said, 53% of Czechs polled think that the [[dissolution of Czechoslovakia]] was a bad idea, and those polled are evenly split on whether or not they're satisfied with their new "democracy." Only 18% of Czechs think that elected officials care what they think, down from 34% in 1991. In 1991, 87% of Czechs supported the move towards a free market; in 2009, only 79% did. A relative majority of 37% of Czechs said that their country's economic integration into the [[European Union|EU]] weakened their economy compared to 31% who say that their economy was strengthened. 70% are dissatisfied with the way things are going in their country.<ref name=":4" /> | |||
=== Germany === | === Germany === | ||
In | In former [[German Democratic Republic (1949–1990)|East Germany]], 57% of the population polled believes that life was better under socialist rule. 49% of former GDR residents believe that "The GDR had more good sides than bad sides. There were some problems, but life was good there."<ref>[https://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/homesick-for-a-dictatorship-majority-of-eastern-germans-feel-life-better-under-communism-a-634122.html Majority of Eastern Germans Feel Life Better under Communism]</ref> Nostalgia for East Germany is so common that there's even a word for it: '''''Ostalgie''''', a [[portmanteau]] of the words ''Ost'' (meaning "east") and ''Nostalgie'' ("nostalgia"), sometimes [[Anglicisation|anglicised]] as ''Ostalgia'' or ''Eastalgia''. | ||
=== Hungary === | === Hungary === | ||
In [[Hungary]], an outstanding majority of people numbering at 72% believe that life was better | In [[Hungary]], an outstanding majority of people numbering at 72% believe that life was better in the [[Hungarian People's Republic (1949–1989)|Hungarian People's Republic]].<ref name=":2" /> | ||
=== Poland === | |||
=== Romania === | |||
One 2014 survey found that 69% of [[Romania|Romanians]] believe life was better under socialism and 66% would vote for former leader [[Nicolae Ceaușescu]] if he was still alive.<ref>{{Web citation|newspaper=El Mundo|title='Con el comunismo se vivía mejor': el 66% de los rumanos votaría al dictador Ceausescu|date=2014-04-10|url=https://www.elmundo.es/internacional/2014/04/10/5346de4d268e3e8f598b458c.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220115111100/https://www.elmundo.es/internacional/2014/04/10/5346de4d268e3e8f598b458c.html|archive-date=2022-01-15|retrieved=2022-09-24}}</ref> | |||
=== Slovakia === | |||
66% of people in [[Slovak Republic|Slovakia]] believe life was better under socialism and only 8% believe it was worse.<ref>{{Web citation|author=Robert A. Lindsay|newspaper=Beyond Highbrow|title=Nostalgia For Communism in Russia and Eastern Europe|date=2010-05-16|url=https://robertlindsay.wordpress.com/2010/05/16/nostalgia-for-communism-in-russia-and-eastern-europe/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170714235645/https://robertlindsay.wordpress.com/2010/05/16/nostalgia-for-communism-in-russia-and-eastern-europe/}}</ref> However, a relative majority of Slovaks (49%) think that the dissolution of Czechoslovakia was a good thing.<ref name=":4" /> | |||
== Other countries == | |||
=== Afghanistan === | |||
=== Angola === | |||
=== | === Mongolia === | ||
=== Yugoslavia === | |||
==== Bosnia and Herzegovina ==== | |||
==== Croatia ==== | |||
==== Macedonia ==== | |||
==== Montenegro ==== | |||
==== Serbia ==== | |||
81% of [[Republic of Serbia|Serbians]] believe life was better under socialism.<ref>{{Web citation|newspaper=Balkan Insight|title=Serbia Poll: Life Was Better Under Tito|date=2010-12-24|url=https://balkaninsight.com/2010/12/24/for-simon-poll-serbians-unsure-who-runs-their-country/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220509215855/https://balkaninsight.com/2010/12/24/for-simon-poll-serbians-unsure-who-runs-their-country/|archive-date=2022-05-09|retrieved=2022-10-08}}</ref> | |||
=== | ==== Slovenia ==== | ||
== References == | == References == | ||
<references /> | <references /> | ||
[[Category: | [[Category:Debunking myths]] | ||
Latest revision as of 19:24, 23 December 2024
Communist nostalgia, also known as socialist nostalgia, is a political and cultural phenomenon in former socialist states where significant portions of the population and oftentimes majorities long for a return to socialism as they become disillusioned with the new capitalist system that replaced it.
Contrary to the notion that nostalgia for socialism is only popular in ex-communist countries among the college-educated youth who never experienced it, older generations as well as non-college-educated people across the board in former Eastern Bloc countries are less likely to approve of the change to a market economy, less likely to approve of the change to a multi-party system, and less likely to be satisfied with their current lives.[1]
Former Soviet republics[edit | edit source]
Armenia[edit | edit source]
71% of Armenians believe life was better in the Soviet Union,[2] and only 12% believe Armenia benefitted from the overthrow of the Soviet Union in 1991.[3]
Azerbaijan[edit | edit source]
69% of Azerbaijanis think life was better in the Soviet Union.[2]
Belarus[edit | edit source]
53% of Belarusians believe life was better in the Soviet Union.[2]
Estonia[edit | edit source]
Georgia[edit | edit source]
57% of Georgians see Stalin positively compared to only 18% for Gorbachev.[4]
Kazakhstan[edit | edit source]
60% of Kazakhstanis people believe life was better in the Soviet Union.[2] 82.4% believed that the Soviet Union responded to citizens' needs.[5]
Kyrgyzstan[edit | edit source]
61% of Kyrgyz people believe the dissolution of the USSR harmed Kyrgyzstan and only 16% say it helped.[3] 87% believed that the USSR responded to citizens' needs.[5]
Latvia[edit | edit source]
Lithuania[edit | edit source]
Moldova[edit | edit source]
60% of Moldovans who lived in the Soviet Union say life was better then.[2] Only 26% say Moldova benefitted from the dissolution of the USSR.[3]
Russia[edit | edit source]
In the Russian Federation, 75% of people believe that the USSR was the best time period in Russian history.[6] In 2009, 58% of Russians said it was a "great misfortune" that the Soviet Union no longer exists.[1] In 2019, Stalin had a 70% approval rating in Russia.[7]
In 1999, 58% of Russians agreed that their country should have stayed how it was before 1985, and only 27% disagreed.[8] 64% of Russians believe that life was actually better under the USSR.[2] 55% of Russians believe that the overthrow of the Soviet Union caused more harm than good compared to 19% who support the change to capitalism.[3]
62% of Russians prefer a planned economy over a market economy and 49% prefer the Soviet political system, including 62% aged 55 and older.[9]
Tajikistan[edit | edit source]
52% of people in Tajikistan believe the dissolution of the USSR harmed their country, and only 27% believe it helped.[3]
Ukraine[edit | edit source]
62% of Ukrainians believe that life was better under socialism.[10] 56% of Ukrainians believe the breakup of the Soviet Union was bad for Ukraine and only 23% say it was good.[3]
Uzbekistan[edit | edit source]
In 2005, 70.2% of Uzbeks agreed that the Soviet government responded to citizens' needs.[5]
Eastern Bloc[edit | edit source]
Albania[edit | edit source]
55% of Albanians have a positive view of former leader Enver Hoxha.[11]
Bulgaria[edit | edit source]
62% of Bulgarians say life was better in the People's Republic of Bulgaria.[10]
Czechia[edit | edit source]
Nostalgia for communism isn't very common in the Czech Republic. In 2009, only 47% of Czechs polled said that life is better now than it was under communism compared to 39% who said it was worse. When specifically asked about the economic situation, 45% said that things are better now than they were under communism as opposed to 39% who stated that things are worse. 80% of Czechs polled approved of the change from a one-party state to a multi-party state and 79% approved of the change from a planned economy to a market economy (with 63% agreeing that most people are better off under the free market). 49% were satisfied with their lives in 2009 compared to only 23% in 1991. When asked to rate their lives on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being "the best possible life for you", a relative majority of Czechs (49%) answered with a 7 or higher in 2009.[1]
Communism's relative unpopularity among Czechs is reflected in the government, with not a single person in the Chamber of Deputies being a member of the Czech Communist Party since the 2021 election. The older generation is typically less satisfied with liberal reforms and the current state of things in their country,[1] with the average age for KSČM members being 75 according to the party's own newspaper.[12]
With all that being said, 53% of Czechs polled think that the dissolution of Czechoslovakia was a bad idea, and those polled are evenly split on whether or not they're satisfied with their new "democracy." Only 18% of Czechs think that elected officials care what they think, down from 34% in 1991. In 1991, 87% of Czechs supported the move towards a free market; in 2009, only 79% did. A relative majority of 37% of Czechs said that their country's economic integration into the EU weakened their economy compared to 31% who say that their economy was strengthened. 70% are dissatisfied with the way things are going in their country.[1]
Germany[edit | edit source]
In former East Germany, 57% of the population polled believes that life was better under socialist rule. 49% of former GDR residents believe that "The GDR had more good sides than bad sides. There were some problems, but life was good there."[13] Nostalgia for East Germany is so common that there's even a word for it: Ostalgie, a portmanteau of the words Ost (meaning "east") and Nostalgie ("nostalgia"), sometimes anglicised as Ostalgia or Eastalgia.
Hungary[edit | edit source]
In Hungary, an outstanding majority of people numbering at 72% believe that life was better in the Hungarian People's Republic.[10]
Poland[edit | edit source]
Romania[edit | edit source]
One 2014 survey found that 69% of Romanians believe life was better under socialism and 66% would vote for former leader Nicolae Ceaușescu if he was still alive.[14]
Slovakia[edit | edit source]
66% of people in Slovakia believe life was better under socialism and only 8% believe it was worse.[15] However, a relative majority of Slovaks (49%) think that the dissolution of Czechoslovakia was a good thing.[1]
Other countries[edit | edit source]
Afghanistan[edit | edit source]
Angola[edit | edit source]
Mongolia[edit | edit source]
Yugoslavia[edit | edit source]
Bosnia and Herzegovina[edit | edit source]
Croatia[edit | edit source]
Macedonia[edit | edit source]
Montenegro[edit | edit source]
Serbia[edit | edit source]
81% of Serbians believe life was better under socialism.[16]
Slovenia[edit | edit source]
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 "End of Communism Cheered But Now with More Reservations" (2009-11-02). Pew Research Center. Archived from the original on 2023-04-01.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Will Stewart (2016-08-17). "Back in the USSR: 64 per cent of Russians say life was better in the Soviet Union than now" Express. Archived from the original on 2022-06-16. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Neli Esipova, Julie Ray (2013-12-19). "Former Soviet Countries See More Harm From Breakup" Gallup. Archived from the original on 2022-08-28. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
- ↑ "Religious Belief and National Belonging in Central and Eastern Europe" (2017-05-10). Pew Resarch Center. Archived from the original on 2023-10-07.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Kelly M. McMann (2005). Central Asians and the State: Nostalgia for the Soviet Era. [PDF] Case Western Reserve.
- ↑ 75% of Russians Say Soviet Era Was 'Greatest Time' in Country’s History – Poll
- ↑ "Anticommunism Fails: 70% of Russians have a positive opinion on Joseph Stalin" (2019-04-17). In Defense of Communism. Archived from the original on 2021-06-29.
- ↑ Austin Murphy (2000). The Triumph of Evil: 'The Documented Facts about Eastern Europe and Communism' (p. 71). [PDF] Fucecchio: European Press Academic Publishing. ISBN 8883980026
- ↑ "What Do Russians Think Russia Should Be Like?" (2021-10-05). Levada. Archived from the original on 2022-05-21. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 "People Worse off than Under Communism?" (2010-04-21). Pew Research Center. Archived from the original on 2020-11-12. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
- ↑ "Former dictator still seen in positive light by many Albanians, poll shows" (2016-12-09). Tirana Times. Archived from the original on 2022-08-27. Retrieved 2022-10-08.
- ↑ Kottasová, Ivana (2021-11-08).: "Communists have now left the Czech parliament, more than three decades after the Velvet Revolution". CNN. Retrieved 2024-12-23.
- ↑ Majority of Eastern Germans Feel Life Better under Communism
- ↑ "'Con el comunismo se vivía mejor': el 66% de los rumanos votaría al dictador Ceausescu" (2014-04-10). El Mundo. Archived from the original on 2022-01-15. Retrieved 2022-09-24.
- ↑ Robert A. Lindsay (2010-05-16). "Nostalgia For Communism in Russia and Eastern Europe" Beyond Highbrow. Archived from the original.
- ↑ "Serbia Poll: Life Was Better Under Tito" (2010-12-24). Balkan Insight. Archived from the original on 2022-05-09. Retrieved 2022-10-08.