HGAP terms - Unit 4

note: these definitions are not mine and come straight from the textbook

Political geography

Political geography

A branch of human geography concerned with the spatial analysis of political systems

Political map

A map that shows the spatial organization of the countries and territories on the entire globe at a given point of time

State or country

An independent political unit with a centralized authority that makes claim to sole legal, political, and economic jurisdiction over a region with defined boundaries

Independent state

A state that rules itself and is not subject to the authority of another state

Sovereign state

A state that possess the sole authority over the land and people within its boundaries

Nation

A community of people bound to a homeland and possessing a common identity based on shared cultural traits such as language, ethnicity, and religion

Nation-state

The ideal political geographical unit; one in which the nation’s geographic boundaries (a people and its culture) exactly match the state’s territorial boundaries (governance and authority)

Nation-state ideal

The idea that political authorities govern in the name of all a country’s citizens, modern mass communications link all residents, and state-based citizenship rights reinforce the idea of a national identity

Nationalism

Sense of belonging to and self-identifying with a national culture; people with a strong sense of nationalism derive a significant part of their social identity from a sense of belonging to a nation

Stateless nation

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

Multinational state

A country containing multiple national, ethnic, and religious groups within its boundaries

Multistate nations

Ethnic groups territorially divided by one or more international boundaries

Autonomous region

A subdivision or dependent territory of a country that has a degree of self-government, or autonomy, in its decision making

Semiautonomous region

A subdivision or dependent territory of a country that has some degree of, but not complete, self-government

Self-determination

A nation’s ability to determine its own statehood and form its own allegiances and government; the freedom of culturally distinct groups to govern themselves in their own territories and form their own states

Core area

A small territorial nucleus from which a country grows in area and over time

Escarpments

Abrupt slopes that break up the general continuity of the terrain

Effective sovereignty

The idea that a state’s power to enforce its sovereignty may extend beyond its territory and varies over time and from country to country

Devolution

The movement of power from the central government to regional governments within the state

Ethnonationalism

A form of nationalism in which the nation is defined in terms of ethnic identity

Neocolonialism

The set of economic and political strategies by which wealthy and powerful countries indirectly maintain or extend their influence over less wealthy areas

Peripheral states

States that have relatively little industrial development, simple production systems focused mostly on agriculture and raw materials, and low levels of consumption of manufactured goods.

Core states

States that have the most advanced industrial and military technologies, complex manufacturing systems, external political power, and the highest levels of wealth and mass consumption

Shatterbelt

Region of continuing and persistent fragmentation due to devolution and centrifugal forces

Choke point

A narrow passage that restricts traffic to another region

Strait

A narrow body of water connecting two larger bodies of water

Boundary

A clearly demarcated line that marks both the limits of a territory and divisions between territories; often called a border at the global scale

Median line principle

An approach to dividing and creating boundaries at the midpoint between two places

Borderland

A region straddling both sides of an international boundary where national cultures overlap and blend to varying degrees

Frontier

A region at the margins of state control and settlement

Enclave

A territory surrounded by a country but not ruled by it

Exclave

Part of a national territory separated from the main body of the country to which it belongs

Delimited

Describing how boundaries are fixed or defined to identify their limits

Demarcated

Describing how boundaries are set apart to distinguish their limits

Relic boundary

A boundary that no longer functions as an international border

Superimposed boundary

A boundary that is placed on an area without regard to existing boundaries

Subsequent boundary

A political boundary that developed with the cultural landscape.

Antecedent boundary

A boundary that was identified before an area was settled

Geometric boundary

A boundary that has regular, often perfectly straight, lines drawn without regard for an area’s physical or cultural features

Consequent boundary

A boundary that is drawn to accommodate existing cultural differences

Demilitarized zone (DMZ)

An area in which treaties or agreements between nations, military powers, or contending groups forbid military installations, activities, or personnel; usually lies along an established frontier or boundary between two or more military powers or alliances

Buffer state

A politically and economically weak independent country that lies between the borders of two powers

Satellite state

A nominally independent country that is politically, militarily, and economically controlled by a more powerful state

United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)

Conference organized to define territorial boundaries and rights to the sea

Exclusive economic zone (EEZ)

Zone that extends 200 nautical miles from the shoreline in which coastal states have the sole right to exploit, develop, manage, and conserve all water resources lying beyond the land

Arctic Circle

Area defined by the 66 degrees, 34 minutes north latitude line