AP Human Geography Unit 4 Vocab

state

political unit with a permanent population and boundaries that are recognized by other states that allows for the administration of laws, collection of taxes, and provision of defense

nation

people who think of themselves as one based on a sense of shared culture and history and who desire political autonomy

nation-state

a state with a single nation (very few exist)

stateless nation

a nation who do not have their own independent state

multi-national state

a state with two or more nations (includes most states)

multi-state nation

a nation living across states

autonomous region

an area which governs itself, but is not an independent country

semi-autonomous region

an area which can govern itself in certain areas, but does not have complete power to govern

sovereignty

final authority over a territory and the right to defend territorial integrity against incursion

colonialism

rule by an autonomous power over a subordinate people and place that creates unequal cultural and economic relations

imperialism

the drive toward creation and expansion of an empire and then once established, its perpetuation

self-determination

the process by which a country determines its own statehood and forms its own allegiances and government

political power

expressed geographically as control over people, land, and resources

government

political system with governing authority

authoritarian government

government with a strong central power, no constitutional accountability, no individual freedoms

democracy

government where power resides with the majority

republic

government where power resides in a body of citizens entitled to vote and is exercised by elected representatives responsible to them and governing according to law

democratization

the process of moving from a non-democracy to a democratic system

neocolonialism

 form of indirect control through the use of economic/political pressures to control or influence other countries, especially former colonies in which they continue to be exploited

shatterbelt

region endangered by local conflicts within the state or between countries in the area, as well as the involvement of opposing great powers outside the region

choke points

geographical feature (sea OR land) that has significant strategic importance

irredentism

occurs when one country seeks to annex territory in another country because it has demographic ties to part of the population that lives there, e.g. Nazi Germany annexing Austria prior to WWII, Russia taking control of parts of the Republic of Georgia and Ukraine decades after fall of USSR

human territoriality

the connection of people, their culture, and their economic systems to the land creating a desire for ownership over a defined space

boundary

line that determines the limit of state jurisdiction that is a vertical plane that cuts through the subsoil and extends into the airspace above and often coincides with cultural, national or economic divisions

boundary definition

phase in which the boundary is negotiated and legally described

boundary delimitation

phase in which the boundary is drawn on the map

boundary demarcation

phase in which markers are placed on the ground (signs, walls, fences)

boundary administration

phase in which the boundary is maintained

boundary dispute

disagreement over the location of a boundary/movement across the boundary (migration/smuggling) and can cause conflict

irredentism

when a state wants to annex territory whose population is ethnically similar

antecedent boundary

boundary in the natural landscape that existed before the cultural landscape emerged and stayed in place as people moved in

consequent boundary

 boundary that coincides with cultural groups (religion, language)

subsequent boundary

 boundary that evolves as the cultural landscape of an area takes shape and changes as cultural landscape changes

superimposed boundary

boundary that is drawn by powerful outsiders (e.g. colonizers) and ignores existing cultural groups

relic boundary

 boundary that no longer exists as an international border, but remnants of its existence remain

geometric boundary

boundary that follows a straight line or arc

Berlin Conference

 a meeting (1884-1885) between European nations to divide Africa among them for colonization with the intent of preventing conflict over the process

colonization in Africa

from the 17^th to 19^th centuries, large parts of Africa were divided according to which pieces of land belonged to which European colonizer and not by the existing patterns of different tribal people/ethnicities living on the land

de-colonization in Africa

 the superimposed boundaries of Africa remained in place after independence, which has led to much of the current conflict and lack of ability to establish effective leadership

demilitarized zone (DMZ)

 a buffer zone created by treaties/agreements between two or more military powers that falls on either side of the actual boundary

international agreements

establishment of formal commitments between countries on world related issues that can either encourage interactions (trade) or discourage disputes (resources)

international sanctions

policies or actions designed to induce states to change their behavior

Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)

established rights and responsibilities of states concerning ownership/use of oceans/seas and their resources as developed by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea

Territorial Sea

zone of water adjacent to a state’s coast (12 miles) in which a state has sovereignty

Contiguous Zone

 zone of water adjacent to Territorial Sea (24 miles) in which state can enforce customs, immigration, and sanitation law

Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ)

zone of water adjacent to Contiguous Zone (200 miles) in which a state has the right to explore, exploit, conserve, and manage resources

international waters (High Seas)

ocean beyond the EEZ, in which all states have equal access

median-line principle

method used to divide the waters between states that do not have 400 miles between them

voting district

subdivision for electing members to a legislative body

redistricting

when voting districts are redrawn due to changes in population

gerrymander

redistricting that is unfair and gives an advantage to a particular political party by concentrating voting strength

unitary state

state that is governed as a single unit with a central top down form of form of governance where local territories only have power that is granted by the central government

federal state

state where there is a division in power between a central government and local territories/provinces/States/oblasts

subnational political territorial unit

region that is given greater autonomy from the central government

autonomous region

an area which governs itself, but is not an independent country

semi-autonomous region

an area which can govern itself in certain areas, but does not have complete power to govern

devolution

 the transfer of decision-making power from a central government to a lower level

causes of devolution

- ethnic separatism (religion, language, ethnicity)

-economic and social issues

-irredentism

-physical geography

-centrifugal forces

-terrorism

-ethnic cleansing

devolution occurs when

states fragment into subnational political territorial units

devolution occurs when

states disintegrate

supra-nationalism

political and/or economic alliance of three or more states that is formed for mutual benefit to promote shared goals and resolve disputes, but can limit the economic or political actions of member states creating a challenge to state sovereignty

United Nations (UN)

 union formed to promote international world peace and security after WWII, comprised of 6 principal organs that meet to decide on common issues and policies

European Union (EU)

economic alliance between European countries (1992) that established free trade and open borders and a common currency (Eurozone)

North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)

 economic alliance to gradually eliminate tariffs and trade barriers

African Union

political, economic and social alliance aimed at promoting greater unity, cohesion, and efficiency of African states and reducing the strains of their colonial roots

NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization)

 military alliance formed after WWII between the U.S., Canada and 26 European states to ensure mutual assistance in times of aggression

ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nation)

economic alliance aimed at improving development in Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Cambodia, Myanmar, Vietnam, Laos, and Brunei

Arctic Council

alliance aimed at promoting cooperation, coordination, and interaction among Arctic states, Arctic indigenous communities, and other Arctic inhabitants on issues of sustainable development and Environmental protection in the Arctic

military alliance

alliance between two or more states who agree on mutual protection and support in case of a crisis

Cold War

period of political and military tension between the USSR and Western states after WWII

trade agreement

 treaty between two or more states who agree on trade, tariffs, taxes, and often includes investment guarantees

economies of scale

cost advantages gained by an increased level of production

The Paris Agreement

establishment of protocols dealing with greenhouse gas emissions by the United Nations

political change

advances in communication technology have facilitated devolution, supranationalism, and democratization

centripetal forces

advances in communication technology have facilitated devolution, supra nationalism, and democratization

centripetal forces can lead to ethnonationalism, more equitable infrastructure development, and increased cultural cohesion

- effective government/institutions/infrastructure (public education, military, justice system, transportation/communication)

- language/religion/ethnicity

- healthy economy

- national holidays (July 4^th, Bastille Day), flags, symbols

centrifugal forces

forces within a state that divide, destabilize or weaken it 

centrifugal forces can lead to failed states, uneven development, stateless nations, and ethnic nationalist movements

- ineffective government/institutions/infrastructure (public education, military, justice system, transportation/communication)

- language/religion/ethnicity

- separatist movements

- struggling economy

- peripheral location

- religious extremism

genocide

 any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such (organized and systematic):

1. Killing members of the group;

2. Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group;

3. Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part;

4. Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group;

5. Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.

- term created by Polish lawyer Rafael Lemkin in an attempt to understand the Holocaust, first recognized as an international crime by United Nations in 1946

- UN tribunals by International Criminal Court: Nazi Holocaust 1941-1945, Cambodia 1975-1979, Bosnia-Herzegovina (former Yugoslavia) 1992-1995, Rwanda 199

ethnic cleansing

 (crimes against humanity, war crimes)- systematic forced removal of ethnic, racial and/or religious groups from a given territory by a more powerful ethnic group, often with the intent of making it ethnically homogeneous (does not necessarily include mass killing which makes many events not qualify as genocides)

         - the rise of extreme nationalist movements during the 20th century led to an unprecedented level of ethnically motivated brutality

- examples: Native Americans 1800s, Aboriginals (Australia) 1840-1897, Armenia 1915-1917, Algeria 1830-1871, Serbia 1941-45, Rwanda 1994, Bosnia/Serbia 1941-45, Darfur (Sudan) 2003-present, Rohingya (Myanmar) 2017- present, Soviet famine 1932-33

cold war

 a state of political hostility between countries characterized by threats, propaganda, espionage, and other measures short of open warfare

-the state of political hostility that existed between the Soviet bloc countries (satellite states) and the US-led Western powers from 1945 to 1990

Collapse of Communism

-November 1989 fall of Berlin Wall (Germany)

- USSR/United Soviet Socialist Republics collapsed and 15 republics became independent states

- breakup of Yugoslavia 1991 (balkanization) erupted into ethnic cleansing

- Russia intervened militarily to support separatist movements (irredentism - ) in the Republic of Georgia (2008) and Ukraine (2014), resulting in condemnation and economic sanctions by some UN members

Korean War

a war between North Korea (with the support of China and the Soviet Union) and South Korea (with the support of the United Nations, primarily from the United States). The war began in 1950 when North Korea invaded South Korea following a series of clashes along the border. As a product of the Cold War, the Soviet Union and the United States divided Korea into two sovereign states in 1948 with the border set at the 38th parallel. A socialist state was established in the north under the communist leadership of Kim Il-sung and a capitalist state in the south under the anti-communist leadership of Syngman Rhee. No peace treaty has been signed, so a demilitarized zone was set up to divide the opposing communist and democratic forces, which remains today.

Vietnamese War

The Vietnam War, also known as the Second Indochina War, and in Vietnam as the Resistance War Against America or simply the American War, was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1955 to the fall of Saigon in 1975; formerly North Vietnam and South Vietnam merged into one state under Communist control