upheaval
n.a big, sudden change that causes a lot of trouble or confusion. It often happens in a society, a government, or someone's personal life.
n.a violent or sudden change or disruption to something. Often refers to social, political, or personal instability.
“The sudden move caused a lot of upheaval in the family.”
“The country experienced massive political upheaval after the unexpected results of the national election.”
“Economic historians often point to the industrial revolution as a period of unprecedented social upheaval that permanently altered the relationship between labor and capital.”
Both uncountable for the general state of chaos and countable when referring to a specific event.
“Many of those bursts lined up with major climate shifts, suggesting that environmental upheaval can reshape life in powerful ways.”
“Satellite data suggest the surge is already weakening, raising the possibility that the deep-Earth upheaval is part of a mysterious natural cycle.”
From upheave + -al.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.