Liberalism
A political ideology centered on individual rights, rule of law, free markets, limited government, and protection of civil liberties.
Explanation
Classical liberalism — originating in the Enlightenment — holds that individuals have natural rights that government must protect, not violate. It champions rule of law, freedom of speech and religion, separation of church and state, and constitutional limits on power. Economic liberals favor free markets and minimal state intervention. Modern social liberalism (the dominant form in most Western parties calling themselves "liberal") combines civil liberty protections with a more active state role in addressing inequality and market failures. "Liberal" means very different things in different countries: in the U.S. it is used to describe the left-of-center; in Europe, liberal parties are typically centrist and pro-market.
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