Full unit 4

Ethnic Separatism

When a district, clustered ethnic groups wants a greater regional autonomy or complete independence from a multi-ethnic state.

Ethnic cleansing

The systematic, forced removal of a less powerful ethnic, religious, or cultural group from a specific geographic area by a more powerful group. EX:Myanmar, The Rohingya, Sudan, and Darfur.

Terrorism

The calculated use of violence or fear to control, influence, or acquire spatial regions, populations, and political power

Economic and social problems

The real-world challenges that arise when wealth, resources, jobs, and people are unevenly distributed across places.

Irredentism

A country’s policy or movement to reclaim and annex territory controlled by another state because of shared historical, or ethnic ties. EX: Kosovo, Albania, Russia, and Crimea.

Delimited boundary

A political boundary that has been drawn and officially represented on a map.

Demarcated Boundary

A political or territorial boundary that is made visible on the ground using physical objects or structures

Defined Boundary

A boundary that has been officially created, agreed upon, or described in a legal document or treaty.

Administered Boundary

A political boundary that is actively enforced, controlled, and maintained by a government or authority

Relic boundary

An old political boundary that no longer functions as an official divison between countries and states, but still leaves visible marks on the cultural or physical landscape. EX: Great wall of China: Berlin wall

Superimposed Boundary

A political boundary that is forced onto a region by an outside or conquering power without regard for existing cultural, linguistic, or tribal groups living there. EX: conference of Berlin

Subsequent Boundary

A political boundary that is drawn after people have already settled in an area and developed a cultural landscape. EX: Republic of Ireland/N. Ireland, USA/Canada

Antecedent Boundary

A political boundary that was created before people settled or built a cultural landscape in that area. EX: 49 degress north with USA and Canada

Geometric Boundary

A political boundary drawn as a straight line on a map. EX: Middle east; conference of Berlin

Sykes-picot Agreement

A secret pact between Geart Britian and France that divided the Arab provinces of the Ottoman Empire into spheres of British and France control after WWI. It is an example of a superimposed boundary because the borders completely ignore existing cultural, ethnic, and religious landscapes on the ground.

Consequent Boundary

A political boundary drawn across an area after people have already settled there to match cultural divides such as religion, language, or ethnicity. EX: India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Canada.

Spratly Islands and the South China Sea

Thought to contain vast oil and gas reserves, so there are many countries who wish to claim

UNCLOS

An international agreement that sets rules for how countries can use, control, and claim the world’s oceans and seas. Established freedom of navigation rights and defined territorial waters as a 12- nautical-mile limit from the coast

Electoral Geography

Analyzes the geography of political preferences and how geography can shape voting outcomes.

Electoral college

Made up of 425 house of representatives, 100 senators, and 3 democratic. Needs 270 electoral votes.

Reapportionment and district

The process of dividing or redistributing political representation (such as seats in the US House of representatives) among geographic areas (like states) based on changes in population. Happens every 10 years

Redistricting

State’s internal political boundaries that determine voting districts for the US House Of Representatives and the state legislature. Redrawn to accurately reflect the new census data.

Voting district

A geographic term used by state and local government to organize elections drawn by state legislatures.

African Union

Continental supranational organization made up of 55 members states that work together to promote political stability, economic growth, and human rights that covers the entire African continent and nearby Islands nations.

Arctic Council

International forum that brings together countries and indigenous groups to cooperate on environmental protection and sustainable development in the Arctic region.

ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations)

A regional cooperative group that work together on shared economic, political, and security goals without giving up on their national rule.

Authoritarian government

A political system where power is concentrated in a single leader or a smaller elite group, and citizens have very limited political freedoms and civil rights.

Balance of power

An equilibrium of political, economic, and military strength among countries or regions so that no single state or alliance can dominate all the others.

Brexit

Formal withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union (EU). Where a state stepped back from a regional economic and political bloc to reclaim national sovereignty and border control.

Choke point

A narrow, strategic passage, such as strait, canal, or mountain pass, that forces people, ships, or military forces to funnel to a single tight area. EX: Suez canal

Cold war

A long-term geopolitical and ideological rivalry between two superpowers-primarily the United States and the Soviet Union- that is fought through political tension and economic competition rather than direct military combat.

Colony

A territory that is legally controlled by a distant, sovereign state rather than being completely independent.

Cracking (gerrymandering)

Is gerrymandering a voting district by dividing (dispersing) like-minded voters among multiple districts. This minimizes the oppositions ability to become a majority.

Democratization

The process by which a country or region shifts from an authoritarian or non-democratic government to a democratic system where citizens hold political power.

Demilitarized zone (DMZ)

A designated buffer area between hostile states or alliances where military forces, weapons, and installations are legally forbidden by a treaty or armistice EX: The Korean DMZ (160 mile long strip of land near the 38th parallel that separates North Korea and south Korea, created by the 1953 Korean Armistice Agreement.)

European Union

A continent political and economic partnership of 27 European countries that work together under a shared set of laws, institutions, and policies. Made to keep peace, make travel and trade easy, build a strong shared economy.

Failed/fragile state

An extreme fragile state where the central government has completely lost control of it’s territory and can no longer provide basic services or law enforcement. Fragile=weak authority EX: Haiti, Syria Failed= Lost authority EX: Somalia

Federal state

A country where political power is divided and shared between a central national government and smaller regional governments (such as states, provinces, or cantons) Gives voice to multiple group through shared power, reduces conflict, and allows control of larger territories. But some groups may recieve more voice and devoluntionary pressures.

EX: Mexico, Belgium, and Nigeria

neolcolonialism

The practice of powerful country establishing direct, physical control over a foreign territory to settle it’s people, extract resources, and impose it’s culture.

Packing (gerrymandering)

Is gerrymandering a voting district by concentrating (clustering) all like-minded voters in a single district.

Semi autonomous regions

An area within a country that has moderate power to govern it’s own local affairs (such as education, local laws, or cultural policies) while remaining under the ultimate legal authority and sovereign of the central national government. EX: Hong Kong, China

Shatterbelt

Regions of continuing and persistent fragments due to devolution. They often serve as buffers between independent States that are hostile to each other. EX: Kashmir, Balkans and Balkanization

Unitary state

Concentrates (clutters) power in a strong central government and grants little authority to subnational units like states or provinces. standardization of laws, unifying or national identity, and faster and more efficient implementation of laws. But causes loss of connection to local and smaller areas, and slow response because it’s far away from, capital.

EX: China, Indonesia

United Nations

A global organization of 193 independent countries that work together to keep world peace, protect humans rights, and solve international problems. Helps prevent major wars through discussion. But challenges structural, financial, and geopolitical pressures.

The USSR

A former multinational communist stat that existed from 1922 to 1991, joining 15 different ethnic republics under a single central government based in Moscow. Examples of Multinational state, devolution and splitting. EX: Russia, Ukraine, Belarus (Slavic republics)

Disintegration of states

The process where a political country breaks apart or completely stops existing as a unified sovereign state. Usually when central government authority fails. EX: USSR (Soviet Union) and Sudan= Civil war raged in Sudan & South Sudan from 1983-2005. In 2011, South Sudan voted to secede, but this did not bring peace. Eritrea and East Timor

Eurozone & Schengen area

A geographic and economic region where countries share the euro as their official common currency and monetary policy.

NAFTA/USMCA

1994 Regional free-trade agreements between the United States, Canada, and Mexico that remove tariffs and economic barriers to promote cross- border trade and economic integration. Revised to be the USMCA in 2020

Economies of scale

As the scale of production increases, the average production cost per unit decreases

Independent States

A clearly defined area with permanent population, recognized borders, and functioning government (made up of 200 of this type of state)

City-states

Comprised a town and the surrounding country side, usually enclosed by walls EX: Fertile Cresent

Nations

Groups of people who share a common culture, language, history, or sense of belonging (May not control their own government or state) EX: Kurds (The Kurdish people in the Middle East share culture and identity, even though they live across several countries) NOT A STATE!

Stateless Nations

Groups of people who consider themselves a nation but do not have their own independent country. EX: Palestine (The Palestinians see themselves as a nation but the USA does not recognize them as a state/ they don’t really have a state of their own.) More EX: Kurds, Uyghur, Catalan, and Quebecois

Multinational States

Countries that include more than one nation within their borders. EX: The UK (Has the nations of Scotland, England, Wales, and Northern Ireland within the borders of the state.) More EX: Canada, Nigeria, India, and USA

Multistate Nations

Nations that spread across the borders of more than one country. EX: North and South Korea ( Koreans are divided between North Korea and South Korea, but they still see themselves as one nation.) More EX: Kurds, Basque, Arab, and Russian

Autonomous & Semiautonomous Regions

Areas within a country that have some degree of self-rule or independence. EX: American Indian Reservations (Native nations have their own governments and laws in certain areas even though they are still apart of the larger countries) More EX: Catalonia, and Hong Kong

Nation-States

A state where most people also belong to the same nation. The border of the state match the identity, culture, and language of the people within it and have their own country. EX: Japan ( most people in Japan share the same culture, language, and history) More EX: Finland, Iceland, Poland, N & S Korea, and Slovenia

State

Often called country, its the fundamental building block of the map. It needs geographic territory, stable population, government to which the population gives legitimacy, recognition in international community, sovereignty.

Sovereignty

The right of individual states to determine for themselves the policies they will follow. (Full control over it’s own territory and government. and make it’s own laws, control borders, and conduct independent foreign policy without interference from other states.) EX: France and Ukraine

Self-Determination

The belief that nations/ ethnic groups have the right to form their own states and govern themselves. EX: Catalonia (centers on a long-standing political and legal conflict over whether the region has the right to secede from Spain)

Territoriality

The connection of people, their culture, and their economic systems to the place they call home. Helps explains why conflicts over land happen. (Ukraine)

Centripetal Force

Any attitude, action, or policy that is unifying and enhances support for the state. These forces can lead to ethnonationalism, more equitable infrastructure development, and increased cultural cohesion.

Centrifugal Force

Separates or disaggregates ideas, attitudes, and cultures and may lead to failed states, uneven development, stateless nations, and ethnic nationalist

Colonialism

The practice of one country taking control of another territory, usually for economic and strategic gain. EX: During the 1500s to 1900s, European powers colonized most of Africa, Asia, and the Americas. These powers often drew political boundaries without regard to local cultures, creating lasting problems like cutting across ethnic and linguistic groups

Imperialism

Involves one country dominating another politically or economically even without full settlement. EX: The British Empire controlled India and influenced China without always sending settlers, which shapes trade routes, infrastructure, and cultural connections

Independence Movements

Emerged in the 20th century as colonized and controlled regions demanding sovereignty and self-rule. EX: India and Pakistan became independent from Britain in 1947 forming separate states based on religion and cultural identity.

Devolution

The process by which central governments give more power to regional governments, often along national or ethnic lines. This can lead to greater autonomy or even independence. EX: Scotland has it’s parliament and some control over laws even though it remains part of the United Kingdom. In Spain, regions like Catalonia and the Basque country have pushed for greater autonomy or full independence due to strong religion identities.

Ethno-Nationalism

Nations are defined by a shared heritage, which includes language, a common faith and or ethnic ancestry, represents the support for political independence of a particular nation (more equitable infrastructure development, and increased cultural cohesion. EX: Putin’s justification for the conflict in Ukraine and Viktor orban, PM of Hungary

Age of Empires

The Roman empire collapsed in the fifth century, after a series of attacks by people living on it’s frontier and because of internal disputes. The European portion of the Roman Empire was fragmented into a large number of states owned by competing kings. MOST OF WESTERN EUROPE IS MADE UP OF NATION-STATES BY THE EARLY 20TH CENTURY

Ethnicity

Identity with a group of people who share cultural traditions (language, religion, etc) of a particular homeland or hearth EX: German-speaking territory in 1914

Catalonia

Regions that talk about becoming independent. Region of Spain. They speak a different language and represent an out sized portion of the Spanish economy.

Berlin Conference (1884)

European powers gathered to divide up the continent Africa and established borders. European drew political boundaries for their own benefits without regard to tribal cultures and distributions, over time this causes conflict and violence and impacted development of African countries and other colonies. Colonialism & Imperialism.