The Third Wave: Democratization in the Late Twentieth Century

The Third Wave: Democratization in the Late Twentieth Century

Cover of the first edition
Author	Samuel P. Huntington
Country	United States
Language	English
Subject	Third Wave Democracy
Publisher	University of Oklahoma Press
Publication date	1991
Media type	Hardcover, paperback
ISBN	0-8061-2516-0

The Third Wave: Democratization in the Late Twentieth Century is a 1991 book by Samuel P. Huntington which outlines the significance of a third wave of democratization to describe the global trend that has seen more than 60 countries throughout Europe, Latin America, Asia, and Africa undergo some form of democratic transitions since Portugal's "Carnation Revolution" in 1974.^[1]

The catch-phrase "the third wave" has been widely used among scholars studying what is considered by some to be democratic transitions and democratization throughout much of the developing world. The phrase however, has come under criticism, largely by those who stress that so called democratic transitions are little more than transitions to semi-authoritarian rule, as demanded by the international realities of a post-cold war world.^[2][3]