Several past and present states have declared themselves socialist states or in the process of building socialism. The majority of self-declared socialist countries have been

Marxist–Leninist Marxism is a left-wing to far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand class relations and social conflict and a dialect ...

or inspired by it, following the model of the Soviet Union or some form of

people's People's, branded as ''People's Viennaline'' until May 2018, and legally ''Altenrhein Luftfahrt GmbH'', is an Austrian airline headquartered in Vienna. It operates scheduled and charter passenger flights mainly from its base at St. Gallen-Altenr ...

national democracy National Democracy may refer to: * National Democracy (Czech Republic) * National Democracy (Italy) * National Democracy (Philippines) * National Democracy (Poland) * National Democracy (Spain) See also * Civic nationalism, a general concept * Na ...

. They share a common definition of socialism and they refer to themselves as socialist states on the road to communism with a leading vanguard party structure, hence they are often called communist states. Meanwhile, the countries in the non-Marxist–Leninist category represent a wide variety of different interpretations of the term socialism and in many cases the countries do not define what they mean by it. Modern uses of the term ''socialism'' are wide in meaning and interpretation. Because a sovereign state is a different entity from the political party that governs that state at any given time, a country may be ruled by a socialist party without the country itself claiming to be socialist or the socialist party being written into the constitution. This has occurred in both one-party and multi-party political systems. In particular, there are numerous cases of

social democratic Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocating economic and social interventions to promote soci ...

and democratic socialist parties winning elections in liberal democratic states and ruling for a number of terms until a different party wins the elections. While socialist parties have won many elections around the world and most elections in the

Nordic countries The Nordic countries (also known as the Nordics or ''Norden''; literal translation, lit. 'the North') are a geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe and the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It includes the sovereign states of Denmar ...

, none of those countries have adopted socialism as a state

ideology An ideology is a set of beliefs or philosophies attributed to a person or group of persons, especially those held for reasons that are not purely epistemic, in which "practical elements are as prominent as theoretical ones." Formerly applied pri ...

or written the party into the constitution. Several countries with liberal democratic constitutions mention socialism. India is a democracy that has been governed by non-socialist parties on many occasions, but its constitution makes references to socialism. Certain other countries such as Hungary,

Myanmar Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

, and Poland have constitutions that make references to their communist and socialist past by recognizing or condemning it, but without claiming to be socialist in the present.

Overview

Self-identification is the only criterion used by the list, therefore it includes all countries that have claimed to be socialist, even if their claims are disputed. All countries that have not claimed to be socialist are excluded, even in cases where certain outside observers regarded those countries as socialist. Mao Zedong and the Communist Party of China considered the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom to be a proto-communist state, although the kingdom never declared itself socialist, hence it is not included on this list. The list includes countries that assert in their constitutions that they are based on socialism, regardless of their economic or political system. It does not list countries that do not have constitutional references to socialism as socialist states, even in cases where the government is currently run by a socialist party or other left-wing ( centre-left and

far-left Far-left politics, also known as the radical left or the extreme left, are politics further to the left on the left–right political spectrum than the standard political left. The term does not have a single definition. Some scholars consider ...

) parties. Inversely, countries that do maintain constitutional references to socialism are listed, even when those countries are governed by non-socialist parties. The list is best understood as a list of countries that explicitly claim to be socialist and it does not reflect the actual economic systems themselves.

Current socialist states

Marxist–Leninist states

Non-Marxist–Leninist states

Countries with constitutional references to socialism

Socialist territories with limited recognition

These are territories that have claimed independence or autonomy and have declared themselves socialist under some interpretation of the term. While these territories have created stable institutions of governance that have existed for a considerable period of time, they are not widely recognized as states by the international community and officially belong to other sovereign states under international law. * Wa State (April 1989 – present) *

Rebel Zapatista Autonomous Municipalities Rebel Zapatista Autonomous Municipalities (Spanish: ''Municipios Autónomos Rebeldes Zapatistas'', ''MAREZ'') are ''de facto'' autonomous territories controlled by the neo-Zapatista support bases in the Mexican state of Chiapas, founded followin ...

(December 1994 – present) *

Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), also known as Rojava, is a de facto autonomous region in northeastern Syria. It consists of self-governing sub-regions in the areas of Afrin, Jazira, Euphrates, Raqqa, Tabqa, M ...

(November 2013 – present)

Former socialist states

Marxist–Leninist states

Non-Marxist–Leninist states

Ephemeral socialist states

These are short-lived political entities that emerged during wars, revolutions, or unrest and declared themselves socialist under some interpretation of the term, but which did not survive long enough to create a stable government or achieve international recognition. * Paris Commune (18 March 1871 – 28 May 1871) * Republic of Guria (May 1902 – 10 January 1906) *

Strandzha Commune The Strandzha Commune or Strandzha Republic was a short-lived anarchist commune. It was proclaimed during the Preobrazhenie Uprising in 1903 by Internal Macedonian Adrianople Revolutionary Organization rebels in Strandzha, in the Adrianople Vila ...

(18 August 1903 – 8 September 1903) * (1917–1921) * Crimean People's Republic (1917–1918) *

Soviet Republic of Soldiers and Fortress-Builders of Naissaar Naissaar ( sv, Nargö; german: Nargen) is an island in Estonia. It is situated in the Gulf of Finland, northwest of the capital city Tallinn, and is administratively part of the Viimsi Parish, Viimsi parish. The island covers an area of . It is ...

(December 1917 – February 1918) * (1918–1919) * (1918–1919) * Finnish Socialist Workers' Republic (28 January 1918 – 29 April 1918) *

Odessa Soviet Republic The Odesa Soviet Republic (OSR; uk, Одеська Радянська Республіка; russian: Одесская Советская Республика) was a short-lived Soviet republic formed on from parts of the Kherson and Bessarabi ...

(31 January 1918 – 13 March 1918) * Donetsk–Krivoy Rog Soviet Republic (12 February 1918 – May 1918) * Baku Commune (13 April 1918 - 25 July 1918) * Democratic Republic of Georgia (May 1918 – February 1921) * People's State of Bavaria (8 November 1918 – 6 April 1919) * Alsace Soviet Republic (9 November 1918 – 22 November 1918) * Soldiers' Council of Strasbourg (9 November 1918 – 22 November 1918) *

Free Socialist Republic of Germany Free may refer to: Concept * Freedom, having the ability to do something, without having to obey anyone/anything * Freethought, a position that beliefs should be formed only on the basis of logic, reason, and empiricism * Emancipate, to procur ...

(9 November 1918 – 11 August 1919) *

Mainz Workers' and Soldiers' Council The Mainz Workers' and Soldiers' Council was the effective government of Mainz from 9 November until the arrival of French troops on 9 December 1918 during the German Revolution of 1918. Reports of the Kiel Mutiny are published in the ''Mainzer Ze ...

(9 November 1918 – 9 December 1918) *

Alsace-Lorraine Soviet Republic November 1918 was the period of transition when the region of Alsace- Lorraine passed from German to French sovereignty at the end of World War I. During this month, international events were linked to domestic troubles, particularly the German ...

(10 November 1918 – 22 November 1918) * Commune of the Working People of Estonia (29 November 1918 – 5 June 1919) * Saxon Soviet Republic (November 1918 – March 1919) * Latvian Socialist Soviet Republic (17 December 1918 – 13 January 1920) * Hungarian People's Republic (16 November 1918 – 21 March 1919) * Makhnovshchina (27 November 1918 – 28 August 1921) *

Würzburg Soviet Republic The Würzburg Soviet Republic (German: ) was an unrecognized, short-lived state organized under council communism in Würzburg, Germany in April 1919. It had little support among the local citizenry or political parties and was quickly put down by ...

(1919) * Bremen Soviet Republic (10 January 1919 – 4 February 1919) *

Lithuanian–Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic The Socialist Soviet Republic of Lithuania and Belorussia (SSR LiB), * lt, Lietuvos ir Baltarusijos socialistinė tarybų respublika; * pl, Litewsko-Białoruska Socjalistyczna Republika Rad * russian: Социалистическая Сове ...

(27 February 1919 – 25 August 1919) * Republic of Councils in Hungary (21 March 1919 – 6 August 1919) *

Mughan Soviet Republic The Mughan Soviet Republic was a short-lived pro-Bolshevik state that existed in present-day southeastern Azerbaijan from March to June 1919. It was founded in opposition to the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic in Baku. It was proclaimed mostly by th ...

(March 1919 – June 1919) * Bavarian Soviet Republic (6 April 1919 – 3 May 1919) *

Crimean Socialist Soviet Republic The Crimean Socialist Soviet RepublicHarold Henry Fisher. The Famine in Soviet Russia, 1919-1923: The Operations of the American Relief Administration.' Ayer Publishing, 1971. p. 278. (russian: Крымская Социалистическая � ...

(28 April 1919 – 26 June 1919) * Bessarabian Soviet Socialist Republic (May 1919 – September 1919; 15 September 1924 – 18 September 1924) * Slovak Soviet Republic (16 June 1919 – 7 July 1919) *

People's Republic of Mongolia The Mongolian People's Republic ( mn, Бүгд Найрамдах Монгол Ард Улс, БНМАУ; , ''BNMAU''; ) was a socialist state which existed from 1924 to 1992, located in the historical region of Outer Mongolia in East Asia. It w ...

(1921–1924) * Persian Socialist Soviet Republic (9 June 1920 – September 1921) * Galician Soviet Socialist Republic (8 July 1920 – 21 September 1920) *

Labin Republic The Labin Republic ( hr, Labinska republika) was a short-lived self-governing republic that was proclaimed by miners from the Istrian city of Labin on March 2, 1921 during a mining strike. It was created in what has been described as the world ...

(2 March 1921 – 8 April 1921) * Hunan Soviet (September 1927 – October 1927) * Guangzhou Commune (Guangzhou Soviet) (11 December 1927 – 13 December 1927) * Soviet Zone (1927–1937) * Korean People's Association in Manchuria (1929–1931) * Nghệ-Tĩnh Soviet (1930–1931) *

Jiangxi–Fujian Soviet The Central Revolutionary Base, commonly called the Central Soviet (Zone), the Kiangsi–Fukien Soviet, or the Jiangxi–Fujian Soviet, was the largest component territory of the Chinese Soviet Republic, an unrecognized state established in N ...

(1931–1934) * (7 November 1931 – 22 September 1937) * Socialist Republic of Chile (4 June 1932 – 2 October 1932) * People's Revolutionary Government of the Republic of China (22 November 1933 – 13 January 1934) *

Xinjiang Clique The Xinjiang clique was a military faction that ruled Xinjiang during China's warlord era. Unlike other cliques, its leaders were from outside the province. History During the Xinhai Revolution in 1911, the Qing governor fled from Dihua (Ü ...

(1934–1941) * Asturian Socialist Republic (October 1934) *

Regional Defence Council of Aragon The Regional Defence Council of Aragon ( es, Consejo Regional de Defensa de Aragón (CRDA), an, Consello Rechional d'Esfensa d'Aragón), was an administrative entity created by the Confederación Nacional del Trabajo (CNT) in the context of the ...

(1936–1937) *

Anarchist Aragon The Regional Defence Council of Aragon ( es, Consejo Regional de Defensa de Aragón (CRDA), an, Consello Rechional d'Esfensa d'Aragón), was an administrative entity created by the Confederación Nacional del Trabajo (CNT) in the context of the ...

(1936–1939) * Revolutionary Catalonia (1936–1939) * Shaan-Gan-Ning Border Region (1937–1946) * Finnish Democratic Republic (December 1939 – March 1940) * Political Committee of National Liberation (10 March 1944 – 9 October 1944) * Inner Mongolian People's Republic (9 September 1945 – 6 November 1945) * People's Republic of Korea (1945–1946) * Soviet Civil Administration (1945–1949) * Liberated Zone (1946–1949) * Azerbaijan People's Government (November 1945 – December 1946) *

Republic of Mahabad The Republic of Mahabad or the Republic of Kurdistan ( ku, کۆماری کوردستان / Komara Kurdistanê; fa, جمهوری مهاباد) was a short-lived Kurdish self-governing unrecognized state in present-day Iran, from 22 January to 1 ...

(22 January 1946 – 15 December 1946) * Provisional People's Committee for North Korea (1946–1947) * People's Committee of North Korea (1947–1948) * Provisional Democratic Government of North Greece (1947–1949) *

Marquetalia Republic "Marquetalia Republic" was an unofficial term used to refer to one of the enclaves in rural Colombia which communist peasant guerrillas held during the aftermath of "La Violencia" (approximately 1948 to 1958). Congressmen of the Colombian Conse ...

(1948–1964) *

Second East Turkestan Republic The East Turkestan Republic (ETR) was a short-lived satellite state of the Soviet Union in northwest Xinjiang (East Turkestan), between November 12, 1944, and December 22, 1949. To differentiate it from the First East Turkestan Republic (1933� ...

(12 November 1949 – 20 December 1949) *

People's Republic of Zanzibar and Pemba The People's Republic of Zanzibar () was an African state founded in 1964, consisting of the islands of the Zanzibar Archipelago. It existed for less than a year before it merged with Tanganyika to create the United Republic of Tanganyika and Zan ...

(1964) *

Republic of South Vietnam The Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam (PRG, vi, Chính phủ Cách mạng Lâm thời Cộng hòa Miền Nam Việt Nam), was formed on June 8, 1969, by North Vietnam as a purportedly independent shadow gover ...

(8 June 1969 – 2 June 1976) * People's Provisional Government of Vanuatu (1977–1978) * People's Revolutionary Republic of Guinea (1979–1984) *

Junta of National Reconstruction The Junta of National Reconstruction (''Junta de Gobierno de Reconstrucción Nacional'') was the provisional government of Nicaragua from the fall of the Somoza dictatorship in July 1979 until January 1985, with the election of Sandinista Nation ...

(18 July 1979 – 10 January 1985) * National Revolutionary Council of Gambia (30 July 1981 – 5 August 1981) * Coalition Government of Democratic Kampuchea (22 June 1982 – 24 September 1993) * National Council for the Revolution (1984–1987) *

Republic of Kuwait The Republic of Kuwait was a short-lived and self-styled republic formed in the aftermath of the invasion of Kuwait by Ba'athist Iraq during the early stages of the Gulf War. During the invasion, the Iraqi Revolutionary Command Council stated t ...

(4 August 1990 – 28 August 1990) *

Democratic Republic of Yemen The Democratic Republic of Yemen ( '), colloquially known as South Yemen, was a breakaway state that fought against Yemen Arab Republic in the 1994 Yemeni Civil War. It was declared in May 1994 and covered all of the former South Yemen. Th ...

(21 May 1994 – 7 July 1994) *

Provisional Government of National Union and National Salvation of Cambodia The Provisional Government of National Union and National Salvation of Cambodia (PGNUNSC) was an internationally unrecognised and ostensibly provisional government set up by the Khmer Rouge on July 11, 1994, in opposition to the established King ...

(11 July 1994 – 22 June 1998)

States with governing communist or socialist parties

There are multiple states with

communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

socialist parties Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of th ...

leading the government, sometimes together. Such states are not considered to be communist or socialist states because the countries themselves do not provide a constitutional role for their ruling socialist/communist parties or deem socialism a state ideology. This does not include socialist parties following social democracy which governed most of the Western world as part of the mainstream centre-left and refers to democratic socialist parties positioned to their left. Examples of previous direct communist or socialist party rule in non-socialist multi-party democracies and constitutionally socialist states include: *

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

( Australian Labor Party, 1899) * Republic of San Marino ( Sammarinese Communist Party, 1945–1957) * Indonesia ( Socialist Party, 1945–1948) * Union of Burma ( Anti-Fascist People's Freedom League, 1948–1962) * Israel ( Mapai Socialist Party, 1948–1977) *

Republic of India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

( Indian National Congress, 1951–1977; 1980–1989; 1991–1996; 2004–2014) * Republic of Uganda (

Uganda People's Congress The Uganda People's Congress (UPC; sw, Congress ya Watu wa Uganda) is a political party in Uganda. UPC was founded in 1960 by Milton Obote, who led the country to independence and later served two presidential terms under the party's banner ...

, 1960–1971; 1980–1985) * Islamic Republic of Pakistan (

Pakistan Peoples Party The Pakistan People's Party ( ur, , ; PPP) is a centre-left, social-democratic political party in Pakistan. It is currently the third largest party in the National Assembly and second largest in the Senate of Pakistan. The party was founded ...

, 1970–1977; 1988–1990; 1993–1996; 2008–2013) * Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste (

Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor The Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor ( pt, Frente Revolucionária de Timor-Leste Independente, abbreviated as Fretilin) is a centre-left political party in East Timor. They presently hold 23 of 65 seats in the National Parliame ...

, 1975; 2002–2006; 2007; 2015–2018) * Republic of Senegal (

Socialist Party of Senegal The Socialist Party of Senegal (french: Parti Socialiste du Sénégal, PS) is a political party in Senegal. It was the ruling party in Senegal from independence in 1960 until 2000. In the 2000 presidential election, the party's candidate and previ ...

, 1975–2000) *

Arab Republic of Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

( National Democratic Party, 1978–2011) *

Republic of Vanuatu Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (french: link=no, République de Vanuatu; bi, Ripablik blong Vanuatu), is an island country located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of no ...

(

Vanua'aku Pati The Vanua'aku Pati () is a democratic socialist political party in Vanuatu. History The party was founded on 17 August 1971 by Walter Lini as the New Hebridean Cultural Association, renamed later that same year as the New Hebrides National Party ...

, 1980–1994; 2009–2014) *

Republic of Nicaragua Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the cou ...

( Sandinista National Liberation Front, 1984–1990) * People's Democratic Republic of Burkina Faso (

Organization for Popular Democracy – Labour Movement Organization for Popular Democracy – Labour Movement (french: Organisation pour la Démocratie Populaire - Mouvement du Travail) was the ruling political party in Burkina Faso. It was founded in April 1989 by the Union of Burkinabè Communists, t ...

and

Congress for Democracy and Progress The Congress for Democracy and Progress (french: Congrès pour la Démocratie et le Progrès, ''CDP'') was the ruling party in Burkina Faso from 1996 until the overthrow of Blaise Compaoré in 2014. History The party was founded in February 199 ...

, 1987–1996; 1996–2014) *

Republic of Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

(

Democratic Constitutional Rally The Democratic Constitutional Rally or Democratic Constitutional Assembly ( ar, التجمع الدستوري الديمقراطي ', french: Rassemblement Constitutionnel Démocratique, sometimes also called Constitutional Democratic Rally in E ...

, 1988–2011, Nidaa Tounes 2014–2019) * Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (

Communist Party of the Soviet Union "Hymn of the Bolshevik Party" , headquarters = 4 Staraya Square, Moscow , general_secretary = Vladimir Lenin (first) Mikhail Gorbachev (last) , founded = , banned = , founder = Vladimir Lenin , newspaper ...

, 1990–1991) *

Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

( Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front, 1991–2019) *

Republic of Seychelles Seychelles (, ; ), officially the Republic of Seychelles (french: link=no, République des Seychelles; Creole: ''La Repiblik Sesel''), is an archipelagic state consisting of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city, V ...

( Seychelles People's Progressive Front, People's Party and United Seychelles, 1991–2009; 2009–2018; 2018–2020) * Republic of Mali ( Alliance for Democracy in Mali and Rally for Mali, 1992–2002; 2012–2013; 2013–2020) * ( Socialist Party of Serbia, 1992–2000) * Co-operative Republic of Guyana ( People's Progressive Party, 1992–2015) *

Republic of Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...

( Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist), Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) and Nepal Communist Party, 1994–1998; 2008–2013; 2015–2017) * Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka (

Sri Lanka Freedom Party The Sri Lanka Freedom Party ( si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂය, translit=Śrī Laṁkā Nidahas Pakṣaya; ta, இலங்கை சுதந்திரக் கட்சி, translit=Ilaṅkai Cutantirak Ka� ...

, 1994–2001; 2004–2015) * Republic of Madagascar ( Association for the Rebirth of Madagascar, 1997–2002) * Russian Federation (

Communist Party of the Russian Federation , anthem = , seats1_title = Seats in the State Duma , seats1 = , seats2_title = Seats in the Federation Council , seats2 = , seats3_title = Governors , seats3 = , seats4_title ...

, 1998–1999) * Republic of Moldova ( Party of Communists of the Republic of Moldova, 2001–2009) * Federative Republic of Brazil ( Workers' Party, 2002–2016) * Oriental Republic of Uruguay (

Socialist Party of Uruguay The Socialist Party of Uruguay ( es, Partido Socialista del Uruguay) is a Uruguayan socialist political party. History The party was founded in 1910. Its main leader and spokesman was Dr Emilio Frugoni, a prominent advocate of socialist ideas ...

, 2005–2010; 2015–2020 and Movement of Popular Participation 2010–2015) * Republic of Sierra Leone ( All People's Congress, 2007–2018) * Republic of Cyprus ( Progressive Party of Working People, 2008–2013) *

Republic of El Salvador El Salvador (; , meaning "Jesus, The Saviour"), officially the Republic of El Salvador ( es, República de El Salvador), is a country in Central America. It is bordered on the northeast by Honduras, on the northwest by Guatemala, and on the so ...

( Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front, 2009–2019) *

Republic of Suriname Suriname (; srn, Sranankondre or ), officially the Republic of Suriname ( nl, Republiek Suriname , srn, Ripolik fu Sranan), is a country on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America. Borders of Suriname, It is bordered by the Atlanti ...

( National Democratic Party, 2010–2020)

Notes

References

{{Communist states Communist states Socialist States States *