APHUG Unit 6 Vocab

political geography

branch of geography that deals with boundaries, divisions, and possessions of countries.

sovereignty

authority of a state to govern itself

state

A country 

Characteristics of a State

1.  Defined territory with borders

2.  Permanent population 

3.  Government 

4. Recognition from other states

nation

a group of people with a common identity through shared cultural traits such as language, religion, ethnicity, and heritage.

nation-state

when the borders of a nation match the borders of the state; a state with (ideally) only one nation within it

multinational state

A country with various ethnicities and cultures within its borders

multistate nation

A nation of people that live in more than one state.

stateless nation

nations of people without a state to occupy.

autonomous region

An area of a country that has a degree of autonomy or freedom from an external authority; tends to be geographically distant.

semi-autonous region

an area that can govern itself in certain areas, but without complete power to govern (i.e., Scotland)

self determination

The right of the people to decide their own form of government.

early colonialism

First wave of European colonialism was led by Portugal & Spain, and then by France and Britain.

• Established large empires in the Americas, motivated by “God, Gold, and Glory”

  • Religious influence by spreading Christianity 

  • Economic wealth from exploiting land, labor, and capital to enrich the home country.

  • Political power by expanding their influence around the world

• Justified their conquests through terra nullius, or “land belonging to no one,” leading to the dispossession of indigenous peoples.

• Wars between empires influenced colonies.

  • Seven Years War (1756-1763)

  • Latin American independence

Nationalism in Europe

Unification of Italy and Germany in the 1800s following nationalist movements.

later colonialism

• During the 19th century, the influence of Spanish and Portuguese empires declined, leading to the rise of Great Britain, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Italy & Germany seizing lands in Africa and Asia.

• Driven by resources(for factories) and markets(to sell goods)

• Berlin Conference (1884-1885): used claims in Africa to form state boundaries, showing little regard for ethno-linguistic, cultural, and political boundaries.

• As a result, one colony might have included a patchwork of rival cultural groups, and another cultural group might be divided among multiple colonies. 

• WWI ended with the Treaty of Versailles (1919), redrawing boundaries in Europe & Southwest Asia; broke up the Ottoman, Auto-Hungarian, & German empires.

modern colonial independence

• Following WWII, many colonists - inspired by nationalism- began resisting European rule, seeking:

  • Economic control over natural resources such as petroleum and precious metals.

  • Political power through free elections

  • Social changes such as racial equality and religious freedom.

• Subject people in colonies desired self-determination, the right to choose a sovereign government without external influence.

• While many states achieved political independence, many remained economically dependent (recall Wallerstein’s World Systems Theory)

  • Neo-colonialism: control over developing countries is exerted through indirect means.

Civil Wars in the Developing World

• 32 colonial territories in Africa gained independence between 1960-1970.

• Political boundaries imposed by European countries remained, leading to conflict between ethnic and cultural groups, such as the Rwandan genocide.

The Cold War

• The Cold War was a period of diplomatic, political, and military rivalry between the United States and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR)

• Many proxy wars throughout Africa, Latin America, and Asia. 

• The American-Soviet contest often influenced the newly independent states emerging out of colonialism

  • Non-Aligned Movement: forum of 120 countries that did not take sides with the US or USSR.

• Complicated status as Germany was divided between East and West Germany and East and West Berlin.

Devolution & Collapse of the USSR

• Beginning in the 1980s, new Soviet leadership began to relax its grip on satellite states.

• Glasnost - openness

• Perestroika - rebuilding 

• Former satellite states formed newly independent states.

21st Century Balance of Power & Supranational Organizations

• Increasing role of supranational organizations.

• NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization), formed in response to the USSR but has continued to expand under the influence of the US.

• Rise of BRICS - Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa (Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates) to encourage development.

territoriality

Attempt by an individual or a group to affect, influence, or control people, phenomena or relationships by delimiting and asserting control over a geographic area.

neocolonialism

When more powerful countries have “indirect” control over less powerful countries, especially through economic means.

shatterbelt region

Instability within a region that is geographically located between states with overlapping power.

choke point region

A strategic strait or canal which is narrow, hard to pass through, and has competition for use.

Heartland Theory

Those that controlled the heartland (center) of Europe would become the world’s superpower.

Rimland Theory

Whoever controlled the coastal areas would achieve global dominance

exclaves

part of a state that is geographically separated from the main territory by one or more states

enclaves

a territory that is completely surrounded by the territory of another state

Demilitarized Zone

Areas (often borders) that are considered neutral territory because neither side can control it (N & S Korea; Cyprus, Iraq & Kuwait; Antarctica)

Allocational Boundary Dispute / Resource Dispute

When a boundary separates natural resources that may want to be used by both countries.

Operational Boundary Dispute / Functional Dispute

How a boundary functions. 

Locational Boundary Dispute / Territorial Dispute

Disputes over where the boundary should be and who possesses the land.

Definitional Boundary Dispute

Two or more parties disagree over how to interpret legal documents or maps. (Andes Mountains)

delimited boundaries

are drawn on a map.

demarcated boundaries

are identified by physical objects on the landscape like walls, signs, and fences.

antecedent boundaries

Boundaries that are established before there has been major human settlement

subsequent boundaries

Boundaries that are created after human settlement and interaction with the landscape, including cultural differences between groups.

superimposed boundaries

Boundaries placed on an area without regard to existing boundaries

relic boundaries

Boundaries that used to exist and can still be detected on the landscape

geometric boundaries

Drawn as a straight line on a map

Consequent boundaries

Type of subsequent boundary that takes into account the existing cultural distribution of people living in the territory and redeveloped boundary lines.