unit 4

State

A politically organized territory with a permanent population, a defined territory, and a government. Must be recognized by other states.

Sovereignty

A state's right to control its own territory and affairs without interference from other states.

Nation

A group of people with a shared sense of culture, ancestry, and attachment to a territory; a cultural unit.

Nation-State

A state whose territory corresponds to that occupied by a particular ethnicity that has been transformed into a nationality.

Multinational State

A state with more than one nation within its borders.

Stateless Nation

A nation that does not have a state.

Centripetal Forces

Forces that unite or bind a state together.

Centrifugal Forces

Forces that divide or pull a state apart.

Boundary

Vertical plane between states that cuts through the rocks below and the air above.

Frontier

A zone where no state exercises complete political control.

Superimposed Boundary

Boundary that is imposed on the cultural landscape which ignores pre-existing cultural patterns (typically a colonial boundary).

Subsequent Boundary

Boundary that evolves as the cultural landscape takes shape; can be superimposed.

Relic Boundary

A boundary that no longer functions, but can still be detected on the cultural landscape.

Gerrymandering

Drawing electoral district boundaries to benefit a specific political party or group.

Majority-Minority Districts

Districts where the majority of the population is from a minority group.

Federal State

An internal organization of a state that allocates most powers to units of local government.

Unitary State

An internal organization of a state that places most power in the hands of central government officials.

Devolution

The transfer of powers and responsibilities from the federal government to the states.

Supranationalism

A venture involving three or more states political, economic, and/or cultural cooperation to promote shared objectives.

United Nations (UN)

A global organization created after World War II to promote international cooperation.

European Union (EU)

A political and economic alliance of many European countries.

North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)

A military alliance of European and North American democracies founded after World War II to strengthen international ties between member states.

Geopolitics

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

Critical Geopolitics

Intellectuals of statecraft construct ideas about places, these ideas influence and reinforce their political behaviors and policy choices, which then affect how we, the people, interpret geopolitics.

Heartland Theory

A geopolitical hypothesis proposed by Halford Mackinder that states that the interior of Eurasia was the 'geographical pivot' of power.

Rimland Theory

A geopolitical theory by Nicholas Spykman who asserted that control of the seas would allow a nation to control the surrounding coasts, control trade.

Capital City

The primary seat of government administration and political power within a state or country.

Electoral Geography

The study of the spatial aspects of voting systems, voter behavior, and election results.

Territoriality

A country's or more local community's sense of property and attachment toward its territory, as expressed by its determination to keep it inviolable and defended.

Colonialism

The policy or practice of acquiring full or partial political control over another country, occupying it with settlers, and exploiting it economically.

Imperialism

the policy or ideology of a powerful state extending its influence and power over another state, often through force, economic control, or cultural domination