AP Human Geography Unit 4 Vocab

nation

group of people with common cultural characteristics

Ex: French, Mexicans

sovereignty

political authority of a state to govern itself

nation-state

state whose political boundaries correspond with its cultural boundaries

Ex: Iceland, Japan

berlin conference

meeting in the late 1800s which the European powers determined the boundaries of their colonies in Africa

multistate nation

when a nation stretches across international borders

Ex: Korean, Indian

colonialism

process when one state takes control and settles in another

reapportionment

changing the number of reprsentatives in each district to accommodate to population

shatterbelt

region caught between two stronger feuding forces

Ex: Sudan, Ukraine, Turkey

relic

boundary type that no longer functions but can still be seen on the landscape

Ex: Great Wall of China

ASEAN

(Association of Southeast Asian Nations) organization to promote cultural, political, and economic development

subsequent

boundary type established after the settlement of the area

Ex: Northern Ireland

superimposed

boundary type established by an outside power

Ex: African states in Berlin Conference

geometric

boundary type that is a straight line that disregards geographic features

Ex: US/Canada border

delimited

boundary type that is drawn on a map

stateless nation

group of people who share common cultural characteristics but lack a state.

Ex: Kurds in Turkey, Syria, Iran & Iraq

UN Law of the Sea

convention that defines the rights and responsibilities of states’ use of the oceans

centrifugal force

forces or attitudes that divide/weaken a state

Ex: political instability, religious differences

federal state

state where government authority is shared between the central body and smaller regional authorities with significant autonomy for regions.

Ex: USA

irredentism

when part of an existing state breaks away and merges with another, often based on shared culture or history

Ex: Russia and Ukraine

subnationalism

allegiance of people to a traditional group or nation rather than to a state

Ex: Quebecois in Canada

NATO

(North Atlantic Treaty Organization) political and military alliance with members in North America and Europe

EU

(European Union) seeks to promote peace & economic cooperation

unitary

type of state where power is held by the central government only

Ex: China, Japan, UK

antecedent

boundary type that existed before the land there was settled, opposite of subsequent

Ex: US/Canada border

failed state

state where government has lost the ability to provide the most basic of public services

Ex: South Sudan, Syria

heartland theory

states that controlling the center of Eurasia could give a state the power needed to eventually the dominate the world

state

• area with a permanent population

• controlled by a government that has authority over its affairs and foreign policy

• defined boundaries

• recognized by other states

consequent

boundary type drawn to accommodate a cultural divide

Ex: India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh

multinational

type of state that contains two or more distinct cultural groups

Ex: Canada, France, Russia

autonomous region

area within a country that has autonomy from external authority

Ex: Scotland

imperialism

extending a country’s power and influence through diplomacy and/or military force

United Nations

has over 190 members; aims to increase global political cooperation

African Union

aims to encourage development & stability in Africa

Centripetal force

something that unifies people and enhances support for the state

Ex: shared history, economic prosperity

balkanization

fragmentation of a region into smaller, often hostile, political units

Ex: Yugoslavia

Devolution

transfer of power from the central government to regional governments within the state or the breakup of a large state into several smaller independent ones

neocolonialism

control by a powerful country over its former colonies or other less developed countries using economic pressure

Ex: influence of China in Africa

rimland theory

controlling the land near the coasts of Eurasia can lead to world domination

OPEC

(Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) controls the price of oil

defined

boundary type established by a legal document or treaty

Ex: North and South Korea

demarcated

boundary type identified by physical objects like walls, signs, and fences

exclusive economic zone

area of the sea which a state has absolute control over the use of marine resources

redistricting

drawing of new electoral boundary lines in response to population change

gerrymandering

when officials redraw electoral districts in order to favor a certain political party

organic theory

states are like organisms w/ life cycles that need to be nourished by acquiring less powerful states to survive

satellite state

formally independent but under heavy influence or control by another state

Ex: Korea, Vietnam, and Afghanistan during the Cold War

annex

formal obtaining of territory by conquest or occupation

Ex: Nazi Germany WWII

census

an official count of the population, typically recording various details of citizens

Choke point

strategic strait or canal which could be closed or blocked to stop sea traffic

Ex: Panama Canal

city state

small sovereign state that is made up of a town or city and its surrounding area

Ex: Vatican City

cold war

time of rivalry between the US and USSR. started end of WWII and lasted to the collapse of the Berlin Wall and Soviet Union (1989-1991)

decolonization

when colonized nations gain independence

Ex: much of Africa & Asia after WWII

democratization

transition from autocratic to more representative forms of government

Ex: Tunisia

domino theory

idea that if one country falls under the influence of communism, then surrounding countries will as well

ethnic cleansing

forced removal of an ethnic group from a territory

Ex: deportation of Cossacks during the Russian Civil War

forward capital

the symbolic relocation of a state’s capital city, usually for economic or strategic reasons

Ex: Brasilia

genocide

deliberate killing aimed to destroy a particular nation or ethnic group

Ex: Holocaust

geopolitics

study of the effects of geography on politics and relations among states

microstate

a state that is small in population and area

Ex: Andorra, Monaco

militarized boundary

heavily guarded and discourages crossing and movement

Ex: US/Mexico border

nationalism

a nation’s desire to create and maintain a state of its own

natural boundary

based on physical features

Ex: Mount Everest between China and Nepal

open boundary

crossing is unrestricted

Ex: the European Union

self-determination

when a group of people form their own state and choose their own government

supranational

outside or beyond the authority of one national government

supranational organizations

organizations of 3 or more countries that transcend national boundaries to make decisions on a geopolitical level

Ex: UN, NAFTA

territoriality

the willingness to defend the space a person or group claims

UN convention of the law of the sea

governs relations about how to use and control the oceans.

4 zones = territorial sea, contiguous zone, exclusive economic zone, high seas

semi autonomous region

area with a moderate degree of self-governance

Ex: Hong Kong

frontier

geographic area where no state has direct control over

Ex: international waters

definitional boundary dispute

dispute over the interpretation of legal documents/maps

Ex: unclear depictions

locational boundary dispute

occur when parties disagree about where a boundary should be located

Ex: river has shifted

operational boundary dispute

disagreement on how a boundary should function

Ex: open vs militarized, relating to trade or immigration

allocational boundary dispute

dispute over the ownership of natural resources

Ex: underwater or underground resources like oil

administered boundaries

enforced by laws & regulations

globalization

integration of markets, states, communication, and trade on a worldwide scale

• creates interdependence

ethnic separatism

when a person/group identifies more as their own ethnic group than as a citizen of the state

Ex: Catalan in Spain

terrorism

use of violence or intimidation for political reasons