Geo: Chapter 8 - Political Geography

Nation

(1) an independent politcal unit holding sovereignty over a territory. 

(2) a community of people with a common culture and territory. 

Nation-state

A state whose territory is identical to that occupied by a particular nation.

Gerrymandering

Divding an area into voting districts in such a way to give a political party an unfair advantage in elections, to fragment voting blocks, or to achieve other nondemocratic objectives.

Nationalism

A sense of unity binding the people of state together; devotion to the interests of a particular nation; an identification with the state and acceptance of national goals. 

Devolution

decentralization of political control.

Centrifugal force

In political geography, a force that disrupts and destabilizes a state, threatening its unity. 

Centripetal force

In political geography, a force that promotes unity and national identity.

Core area

The nucleus of a state, containing its most developed area, greatest wealth, density populations, and clearest national identity.

Political geography

The branch of human geography concerned with the spatial analysis of political phenomena.

Stateless nation

An ancient group with a distinctive language, for example, the Kurds that are concentrated in Turkey.