AP Human Geography Unit 4.1-4.4

state

state

has to have defined territory with boundaries, a permanent population, a government, sovereignty, and recognition from other states. ex. USA

nation-state

when the borders of a nation match the borders of a state; a state with (ideally) only one nation within it. no “true” examples, japan is 98% japanese

stateless nation

nations of people without a state to occupy, ex. the kurds, basque, and palestines

multinational state

a country with various ethnicities and cultures within its borders, ex. nigeria had over 250 groups

sovereignty

a state’s authority to control its territory and governs itself

multistate nation

consists of a nation of people that live in more than one state ex. russians in former soviet territories after cold war

autonomous region

a location within a state that is given authority to govern independently from the national government. ex. hong kong, tibet, and native american reservations

nationalism

an ideology that emphasizes loyalty, devotion, or allegiance to a nation or nation-state and holds that such obligations outweigh other individual or group interests

self-determination

the right of all people to govern themselves. usually a nation, ethnicity, or former colony wants to govern themselves and establish sovereignty over their own state. oftentimes will result in independence movements or devolution

colonialism

the process by which one nation exercises near complete control over another country which they have settled and taken over

decolonization

the process of a colony gaining independence and becoming a sovereign nation

genocide

the deliberate and systematic destruction of a group of people because of their ethnicity, nationality, religion, or race

cold war

this period of time following wwII where the united states and the soviet union emerged as superpowers and faced off in an arms race that lasted nearly 50 years

satellite states

a political term that refers to a country which is formally independent, but under heavy influence or control by another country

devolution

due to centrifugal forces, power is shifted from the central government or administration to regional authorities which are usually reflective of nations

choke point

geographic locations where the flow of people and essential goods can be constricted and choked off in the event of a conflict. it can be a strait, a mountain pass, a canal, a tunnel, or even a bridge. ex. strait of malacca, strait of hormuz and the suez canal

neocolonialism

the use of economic, political, cultural or other pressures in order to control or influence other countries, ex. former african colonies are reliant on outside investments for economic security

relic boundary

a border that no longer exists, but has left some imprint on the local culture or environmental geography; ex. iron curtain, confederacy in u.s.

superimposed boundary

a border that is drawn over existing and accepted borders by an outside force, ex berlin conference imposed boundaries throughout africa

antecedent boundary

borders that are established before there have been major settlements by people in a territory; ex. the 49th parallel that separates the us and canada

consequent boundary

type of subsequent boundary - takes into account the existing cultural distribution of the people living in the territory and redevelops boundary lines to more align with cultural boundaries

demarcated boundary

a visible marking of the landscape with objects such as fences or signs

demilitarized zone

an area in which treaties or agreements between nations, military powers or contending groups forbid military installations, activities or personnel; ex. north and south korea border that seperates them

berlin conference

european powers gathered to divide up the continent of Africa and establish borders. they drew political boundaries for their own benefit and it caused conflict and violence between african countries

landlocked

a country that is completely surrounded by the territory of more than one other country and has no direct access to the sea; considered a major disadvantage

maritime boundary

a conceptual means of division of the water surface of the planet into maritime areas that are defined through surrounding physical geography or by human geography

UNCLOS

an international agreement that describes how sea-going vessels should interact with each other and with marine resources in regional waters and the high seas

international waters

the areas of the sea that are not under the jurisdiction of any country