AP HUMAN GEOGRAPHY VOCAB 4

African Union (AU)

Continental body consisting of the 55 member states that make up the countries of the African Continent. Officially launched in 2002 as a successor to the Organization of African Unity (AU, 1963-1999). Meant to help in accelerating the process of integration, enable it to play its rightful role in the global economy while also addressing multifaceted social, economic, & political problems.

Antecendent Boundary

Drawn across an area before it is well populated, before most of the cultural landscape features were put in place. Like Native American Reservations & 49th Parallel.

Apartheid

Political and social system in South Africa during the era of White minority rule. Enforced racial discrimination against non-Whites, mainly focused on skin color and facial features. This existed in the twentieth century, from 1948 until the early-1990s. Like “Whites Only” signs in bathrooms, restaurants, etc.

Arctic Council

Leading intergovernmental promoting cooperation, interaction among Arctic States, Arctic indigenous communities&other Arctic inhabitants on common Arctic issues, in particular on issues of sustainable development and environmental protection in the Arctic. Like Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, etc.

Association of Southeast Asia Nations (ASAN)

Founded in order to help the acceleration of the economic growth, social progress, and cultural development in the region, and to promote regional peace and stability throughout Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand.

Autonomous Region

An area of a country that has a degree of autonomy, or has freedom from an external authority. It is typical for it to be geographically distant from the country, or to be populated by a national minority. Like Greenland being controlled by the Kingdom of Denmark.

Berlin Conference

Tribal conflicts, territorial disputes, and power struggles continue to plague many African nations, hindering social progress, economic growth, and regional cooperation. All of this can be traced back to and blamed on the Berlin Conference, so they are extremely negative and lasting effects as a result of the meeting.

Choke Point

geographic features on land such as a valley, bridge or at sea, which an armed force is forced to pass, sometimes on a substantially narrower front and therefore greatly decreasing its combat power, to reach its objective. Like The Bering Strait which is the choke point for U.S.A. & Russia.

Consequent Boundary

culturally defined political boundaries, such as those determined by the spatial patterns of religion or language. Like Israel/Palestine (The Gaza Strip), India and Pakistan/Bangladesh, East and West Germany.

Decolonization

the acquisition (asset obtained), by colonized peoples, of control over their own territory. Like African countries receiving their independence in the 1960s.

Delimited Boundary

drawing of boundaries, particularly of electoral towns, states, counties or other municipalities

Demarcated Boundary

the actual placing of a political boundary on the landscape by means of barriers, fences, walls, or other markers. Trump's continuation of the Wall would be an example, there are also cities that are cut in half by a border wall.

Demilitarized Zone

area in which treaties or agreements between nations, military powers or contending groups forbid military installations, activities or personnel. Like the region on the Korean peninsula that separates North Korea from South Korea.

Democratization

the transition to a more democratic political place, including political changes moving in a democratic direction. Like there is research to suggest that greater urbanization, through various pathways, contributes to democratization.

Devolution

the transfer or body of power to a lower level, especially by central government to local or regional administration. Like the federal government has gradually transferred responsibility to territorial governments for matters such as: health, education.

Enclave

a portion of territory within or surrounded by a larger territory whose inhabitants are culturally or ethnically distinct. Like Lesotho, Vatican City, San Marino.

Exclave

strip of land that belongs to an entity (like a country or a region) but that is not connected to it by land (islands are not counted). Like Alaska, French Guiana.

Ethnic Cleansing

the 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 similar. Like Persecution, violence, discrimination, and military crackdown forced Rohingya from Myanmar.

Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ)

a sea zone prescribed by the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea over which a state has special rights regarding the exploration and use of marine resources, including energy production from water and wind.

Federal State

also known as a federation; a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government (federalism).

Forward-Thrust Capital

a capital that is deliberately located, or relocated, to a specific region within a country or a symbolic relocation of a capital city to a geographically or demographically peripheral location may be for either economic or strategic reasons. Like Brasilia was relocated to promote regional growth, Abuja to reduce ethnic tensions, and Islamabad for strategic development.

Geometric Boundary

formed by arcs or straight lines of the physical and cultural features of the land it passes through. Like the US-Canada border, Egypt-Libya, and Algeria-Mali.

Gerrymandering

practice intended to establish a political advantage for a particular party or group by manipulating district boundaries. Like distort democracy by giving unfair advantage to one party, undermining fair representation.

Imperialism

a policy or ideology of extending a country's rule over foreign nations, often by military force or by gaining political and economic control of other areas. Is broader, focusing on political, economic, or military dominance.

International waters

located outside any nation's territorial waters.

Irredentism

The assertion by the government of a country that has a minority living outside its formal borders belongs to it historically and culturally.

Multinational state

a sovereign state that comprises two or more nations or states. Like Canada, India, Belgium, Switzerland, and Russia, each containing diverse ethnic or cultural groups.

multi-state nation

nation which operates more than one state within its borders. Korea is this because the Korean people are divided between two states: North Korea and South Korea.

Nation

a culturally distinctive group of people occupying a specific territory and bound together by a sense of unity arising from shared ethnicity, beliefs, and customs. Not all nations are nation-states. Like Japan, France, Hungary, Egypt, Korea, and Iceland.

Nation-State

a state in which the great majority shares the same culture and are conscious of it. The nation state is an ideal in which cultural boundaries match up with political ones. All nation-states could also be considered nations.

Neocolonialism

the practice of using capitalism, globalization and cultural imperialism to influence a developing country instead of the previous colonial methods of direct military control or indirect political control.

reapportionment

the process of allocation electoral seats to geographical areas.

redistricting

the process of drawing electoral district boundaries in the United States.

Relic Boundary

a former boundary line that no longer functions as such is still marked by some landscape features or differences on the two sides. Like the Berlin Wall, Hadrian's Wall, and the Mason-Dixon Line, all now symbolic or historical rather than functional.

Satellite State

a country which is formally independent but which is primarily subject to the domination of another, larger power. Like the US.

Self Determination

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

Shatter belt

a zone of great cultural complexity containing many small cultural groups.

Sovereignty

the right of individual states to control political and economic affairs within their territorial boundaries without external interference.

State

a centralized authority that enforces a single political, economic, and legal

system within its territorial boundaries. Often synonymously with “country.” The Untied

States is a “state” but it is not a “nation” or “nation-state.”

Stateless Nation

an ethnic group or nation that does not possess its own state and is not the majority population in any nation state.

Subsequent Boundary

boundary drawn after the development of the cultural landscape.

Suffrage

right to vote in public, political elections.

Superimposed Boundary

a boundary forced on existing cultural landscapes, a country, or a people by a conquering or colonizing power that is unconcerned about preexisting cultural patterns.

Supranationalism

occurs when states willingly relinquish some degree of sovereignty in order to gain the benefits of belonging to a larger political-economic entity.

Territoriality

an individual or group attempt to identify and establish control over a clearly defined territory considered partially or wholly an exclusive domain; the behavior associated with the defense of the home territory.

Unitary State

the central government dictates the degree of local or regional autonomy and the nature of local governmental units; a country with few cultural conflicts and with a strong sense of national identity.

United Nations

an intergovernmental organization responsible for maintaining international peace and security, developing friendly relations among nations, achieving international cooperation, and being a center for harmonizing the actions of nations. There are 193 members.

United Nations Convention of the Law of the Sea (UNCLS)

the international agreement that resulted from the third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea, which took place between 1973 and 1982.