Long nineteenth century

The long nineteenth century is a term for the 125-year period beginning with the onset of the French Revolution in 1789, and ending with the outbreak of the First World War in 1914. It was coined by the Soviet writer Ilya Ehrenburg and later popularized by the British historian Eric Hobsbawm.

The concept is an adaption of Fernand Braudel's 1949 notion of le long seizième siècle ("the long 16th century," 1450–1640, which saw the birth of the world market) and "a recognized category of literary history", although a period often broadly and diversely defined by different scholars. Numerous authors, before and after Hobsbawm's 1995 publication, have applied similar forms of book titles or descriptions to indicate a selective time frame for their works, such as: S. Kettering's French Society: 1589–1715 – the Long Seventeenth Century, E. Anthony Wrigley's British Population During the 'Long' Eighteenth Century, 1680–1840, or David Blackbourn's The Long Nineteenth Century: A History of Germany, 1780–1918. However, the term has been used in support of historical publications to "connect with broader audiences" and is regularly cited in studies and discussions across academic disciplines, such as history, linguistics and the arts.