There are four societies that have
acclimated well to modernity. The Nordic society, America, Japan and
the Children of Israel. Just making that list is helpful.
Knowing history helps understand that the Dutch (clearly a source of modernity) are linguistically and culturally part of the Nordic people and to the extent that the Vikings conquered England, England is too.
Knowing that the Children of Israel and the Japanese entered the modern world at the same time sets the stage for understanding that both societies exploded with vigor in the new milieu.
Lastly, Americans are the pinnacle of modernity and we deserve to be viewed as a unique society because we have such radically different institutions and traditions.
Think
for a moment...what do these superstars of modernity have in common
that can't be found in the same proportion among any other people?
My answer is a cluster of attributes that are all part of one reality. These are societies that move readily, adapt aggressively, are open to change, have weak social hierarchies and have the weakest family structures on the planet.
All
these points are true for these four societies and only these four.
Move: the Vikings, Dutch, English, Americans and the Children of Israel
are the world champions in traveling, trading and exploring the
globe. 
Less known is the extensive trade and travels of the Japanese
before 1640. Better known are their ventures after 1860. Unknown to
most of the world (except to Hawaiians ) is the extraordinary internal
movement of the Japanese. Most Japanese have visited every part of
their own country and much of the world outside.
Adaptation and openness to change probably needs no explanation. The weakness of the social hierarchies and families in these four societies (particularly in Japan) is not so widely known. I'll save it for another blog.
Put these four societies together with their four common attributes and what single word fits the cluster and is a synonym for modernity? Open.