AP HUG Barrons unit 4-political

Antecedent boundaries

boundary line established before area is populated

Balkanization

political process where a state is broken up to smaller countries

Buffer State

country sandwiched between two larger powers

-help prevent dangerous conflicts between powerful countries.

Centrifugal forces

forces that divide a country

ie: diff religions, languages

Centripetal forces

forces that unite or bind a country together

ie: shared language

Colonialism

expansio of an empire esp to extract resources

• give more freedom

Commonwealth of Independent States****

confederacy of independent states of former soviet union

• united—> common economic and administrative needs

Compact State

A state where distance from center to any boundary does not vary significantly

• circular

Confederation

int'l organization that brings several autonomous states together for a common purpose

Domino Theory

idea :"political destabilization in one country can lead to political collapse in neighboring countries"

East/West Divide

geographic separation between:

• Western Europe and the Americas- largely democratic and free-market countries

• Eastern Europe and Asia- communist and socialist countries

Electoral College******

number of electors from each state proportional to that state's population

--each elector chooses a candidate

• candidate w/ higher proportion # electoral votes within a state receives all the electoral votes for that state

Electoral Vote****

decision of a state elector that represents dominant views on that elector's state.

Elongated State

A state that's long and narrow in shape.

Enclaves

smaller homogeneous group or region surrounded by larger and different group or region

European Union

Int'l organization of European countries, promotes free trade

Exclave

bounded territory that is part of a particular state but is separated from it by the territory of a different state.

Federalism

gov't system where power is distributed among territories rather than centralized

Fragmented State

A state that includes several discontinuous pieces of territory. Ex) Philippines

Frontier

An area where borders are constantly shifting and weak, and where different countries lay claim to the land

Geometric Boundary

Political boundaries that are defined and delimited by straight lines.

Geopolitics

the study of the interplay between political relations and the territorial context where they occur

Gerrymandering

The designation of voting districts to favor a particular political party/candidate

Heartland theory

MacKinder's hypothesis “any political power based in heart of Eurasia could gain enough strength to dominate world”

Imperialism

The perpetuation of a colonial empire even after it is no longer politically sovereign

International Organization

an alliance of two or more countries seeking cooperation with each other without giving up autonomy or self-determination

Landlocked state

state completely surrounded other states

• disadvantage of accessibility to and from international trade routes/ocean

Law of the sea

Law establishing states’ rights and responsibilities concerning the ownership and use of the seas and oceans and their resources.

Lebensraum

Hitler's expansionist theory based on a drive to acquire "living space" for the German people.

Microstate

A state or territory that is small in both size and population.

Nation

tightly knit group of people sharing a common language, ethnicity, religion, and other cultural attributes.

Nationalism

Pride in one's own nation to the point where you hold it above others

Nation-state

a country whose population = relatively culturally homogenous and unity

NAFTA

A trade agreement in North America that encourages free trade between these North American countries. Opened up borders. (Abbreviation)

NATO

an international organization, joined for military purposes

North/South divide

The economic division between the wealthy countries of Europe and North America, Australia and Japan VS poorer Asia Africa and Latin America countries

Organic Theory

the view that states resemble biological organisms with life cycles that include stages of youth, maturity, and old age

OPEC****

int'l econ organization whose members produce and export oil

Perforated state

A state whose territory completely surrounds that of another state. Ex) South Africa

Physical boundary

Political Boundaries that correspond with physical features such as mountains or rivers.

Political geography

The spatial analysis of political phenomena and processes.

Popular vote

The tally of the vote of the individuals in an area

Prorupted state

narrow, elongated land extension, leading away from the main territory. Ex Thailand

Reapportionment

the process of reallocation of electoral seats in territories

Rectangular state

A state that is rectangular in shape. Ex) Hungary

Redistricting

drawing of a new electoral district boundary lines in response to population changes.

Relic boundaries

old political boundaries that no longer exist but that have enduring mark on the local cultural or environmental geography

Rimland theory

Spykman's theory that the domination of the coastal fringes of Eurasia would provided the base for world conquest.

Self-determination

the right of a nation to govern itself autonomously

Sovereignty

Supreme or independent political power

State

a politically organized body of people under a single government. Recognized by int'l community

States' rights

Rights and powers believed to be those of the state's, rather than the feds

Subsequent boundaries

established after area has been settled

• considers the social and cultural characteristics of the area

Superimposed boundaries

boundary line drawn in an area ignoring the existing cultural pattern

Supranational organization

organization of 3 or more states to promote shared activities. Ex) NAFTA

Territorial dispute

A dispute over land ownership

Territorial organization

political organization that distributes power in smaller subsections of state

ie: counties, cities

Theocracy

A state whose government is either believed to be divinely guided or a state under control of a group of religious leaders

Unitary State

A state governed as a unit, without internal divisions

United Nations

A global supranational organization established at the end of WWII, to foster int'l security and cooperation

irredentism

advocating for return of territory to country it formerly belonged to

• one country annexes another because it has cultural ties to the population

shatterbelt

region of persistent political fragmentation due to devolution and centrifugal forces

• region caught btwn arge external powers who are fighting

choke point

area that has to be passed to reach new destination

• Strait of Malacca (Singapore)

protectionism

protecting domestic trade from international competition

definitional/positional boundary dispute

conflicts over interpretation of documentes defining a boundary or way it’s shown on ground

locational/ territorial boundary dispute

conflict between states/regions over ownership of area

• each area feels as if it’s their own (ie: due to same culture)

operational/functional boundary dispute

conflict over national policies applied at border

allocational

conflict over use of resources created/complicated by boundary

neocolonialism

using economic/politcal influence by MDC to inde=irectly control LDC

• Wallerstein’s world system theory (exploitation of LDCs)

cultural shatterbelt

cultures in one area that have conflict with each other