HomeUnit 4 Independent states are theprimary building blocks of the world political map. State~ A geographic area with a permanent population defined borders, sovereign government and is recognized by other states Defined territory with borders Permanent population Government Sovereignty~The Authority of a state to govern itself including domestic and international affairs Recognition from other states Nation~ a group of people with a shared culture, language,history,homeland and self-determination Nation-state~ is when the borders of the nation match the borders of the state- a state with (ideally) only one nation within it. Stateless nations~are nations of people without a state to occupy. multi state nation~ consists of a nation of people that live in more than one state. Multinational state~is a country with various ethnicities and cultures within its borders. Autonomous or semi autonomous~region is a location within a state that is given authority to given authority to govern independently from the national government. Nation-State~ A sovereign state with a relatively homogeneous population that has a shared language, culture and history. Multinational state~ A state that has more than one nation within it borders Multi State Nation~ A nation that spreads across multiple sovereign states Stateless nation~A nation that has history of self-determination but does not have a recognized state Autonomous regions~ A geographic area that is located within a state and has a high degree of autonomy from the state Semi-autonomous regions~ A geographic area that is controlled by another state but only has a moderate degree of self governance Stateless Nation Lack Control over their political boundaries A government with sovereign authority Control over internal and external affairs Recognition from other states Colonialism~ The practice of acquiring territories and settling there to exert political, economic and social control over the area Imperialism~ The idea of growing a state or empire by exerting force over other nations to gain economic and political power without establishing settlements Decolonization~ The process by which a colony becomes independent of the colonizing country Devolution ~ The transfer of power from a national government to regional governments Territoriality~How people use space to communicate ownership territory that connects to their culture,economic system or political interests Political Power~ defined as control over people, land and resources. Neocolonialism~The use of political, cultural or economic power to influence or control other countries Shatterbelts~ Areas where countries or people are subjected to political,cultural and economic pressure from, external power that are in conflict with each other Demilitarized Zone~ An area between two states which cannot be occupied or used for military purposes Choke points ~A strategic narrow route providing passage through or to another region Defining Boundaries Defined~ A boundary is agreed upon fixed and set Demarcated~ The process of marking a boundary Antecedent~ Borders that are established before there has been major settlement by people in a territory. Subsequent boundary- Borders that develop along with the development of the cultural landscape Consequent: Type of subsequent boundary- A boundary that was established to settle conflict between opposing cultural ethnic or political groups Geometric Boundary- Borders that follows lines of latitude and longitude Superimposed Boundary~ a boundary that was created by a foreign state or group Relic- Border that no longer exists, but has left some imprint on the local cultural or environmental geography. Frontier ~ A geographic area where no state has direct power or control over ____________________________________________________________________________ Boundaries~are defined, delimited, demarcated and administered. On land and in the water. An expression of political power and territoriality. Used to establish sovereignty. Subject to change and conflict. Sometimes correspond with cultural or economic divisions. International Boundaries~ Boundaries that separate one sovereign state from another and are established through treaties and agreements between neighboring states Definitional Boundary Dispute ~ A boundary dispute that takes place over the interpretations of the original documents that defined the boundary Locational Boundary Dispute~ A boundary dispute over the location of the boundary and the ownership of the land Operational boundary Dispute~ A boundary dispute on how to manage the boundary and handle Diferent issues/ situations that occur on the boundary Voting Districts ~ A geographical area organized together for the purpose of administering elections Redistricting~ The process for redrawing districts after the census has occurred Gerrymandering~ The process of redistricting a voting district to favor one political party over another (IMPACTS OF GERRYMANDERING) Representatives do not reflect the beliefs of the people Decreasing the competition in political races Weakens the democratic process Creates safe districts Cracking~The process of spreading like minded voters out across multiple districts packing ~ The process of stacking like minded voters into just a few districts to reduce the impact of their vote in other districts Unitary State~ Power is located in the central or national government Federal State~ power is shared between the central/National government and regional governments Devolution ~ The transfer of power from a national government to regional governments Devolutionary Factors Physical geography of a state Divisions between different cultural groups Political instability Economic and social divisions Governments abusing their power Irredentism Self-determination~ The right or desire for a nation or group of people to govern themselves Ethnic Separatism~ when a person or group starts to identify more as their own ethnic group than as a citizen of the state Ethnic cleansing~ When a government organization or group of people attack an ethnic group in a state with the goal of pushing the group of people out of the state Irredentism~ A movement by a nation to unite other parts of its nation that are located in another state Disintegrate~ When a state breaks up into smaller parts Democratization~ A process through which a political regime becomes more democratic Supranational Organization~ An alliance which consists of multiple countries traditionally three or more that work together to achieve a common goal or address specific issues/ challenges that impact the states. Supranational Organization Member countries agree to abide by the rules and regulation set by the organization Member countries surrendered some of their autonomy and sovereignty ____________________________________________________________________________ Centripetal forces~ Aspects of a society that unite people and bring them together Centrifugal Forces~Aspects of a society that divide a group of people and push them apart Failed State~ A state that no longer has a functioning government Ethnic Nationalist Movement~ When a cultural group wants to separate or wants to control themselves based on a specific ethnicity or nationality Maritime Boundaries Why do they matter? Trade & shipping routes Fishing rights Oil reserves Defense Landlocked countries are at significant disadvantage! Highly disputed, just like land boundaries