UNIT 4 AP HUG

Types of Political Entities

Nation

Cultural unit, common ancestry
Example: Kurds occupying a particular territory

Nation-State

Definition: A state in which the cultural borders of a nation correspond with the state borders of a country
Example: Japan, Denmark, Poland

Stateless Nation

Definition: A nation of people without a state that it considers home
Example: Kurds, Basques, Palestinians

Multinational State

Definition: A state that contains more than one nation, and no single ethnic group dominates the population
Example: Former Yugoslavia, former USSR, Lebanon
Every state to a degree is multinational (no state has 100% of a single ethnicity)

Multistate Nation

Definition: Nation stretches across borders and across states
Example: Kurds, Koreans

Autonomous and Semi-Autonomous Regions

Autonomous Region: sections of a nation that have a degree of independence in several issues. Example: Native Americans
Semi-Autonomous Region: having a degree of, but not complete, self-government. Example: many regions in China, Aland islands

Key Concepts in Political Geography

Sovereignty

The political authority of a state to govern itself

Nation-States

A country whose political boundaries correspond with its cultural boundaries

Self-Determination

The process by which a group of people, usually possessing a certain degree of national consciousness, form their own state and choose their own government

Influences on Political Boundaries

Colonialism and Imperialism

Colonialism: the policy or practice of acquiring full or partial political control over another country, occupying it with settlers, and exploiting it economically.
Imperialism: a policy or ideology of extending a country's rule over foreign nations, often by military force or by gaining political and economic control of other areas.

Independence Movements and Devolution

Independence movement: effort by people to create a new sovereign state in a place inside of another state (devolution failed)
Devolution: Process of transferring some power from the central government to regional government. Transfer of power that occurs when a state breaks up, when regions that were once unified in one, central government gain power, and sometimes, independence.

Political Power and Geography

Neocolonialism

Neocolonialism or neo-imperialism is the practice of using capitalism, globalization and cultural imperialism to influence a developing country instead of the previous colonial methods of direct military control or indirect political control.

Shatterbelt Theory

A region caught between stronger colliding forces, under persistent stress, and often fragmented by aggressive rivals.
Cohen’s theory predicted that armed conflicts after 1950 would likely occur in areas within the Inner Crescent or Middle East. Examples: Eastern Europe, Vietnam during Cold War, India and Pakistan over Kashmir.

Chokepoints

In military strategy, a choke point is a geographical feature on land such as a valley, defile or a bridge or at sea such as a strait, which an armed force is forced to pass, sometimes on a substantially narrower front and therefore greatly decreasing its combat power, to reach its objective.

Types of Political Boundaries

Relic Boundary

No longer functions as boundary, reminder a line once divided space. Example: Berlin Wall, Great Wall of China

Superimposed Boundary

Forcibly put on landscape by an outside party, ignores cultures. Example: African countries

Subsequent Boundary

Evolves as the cultural landscape takes shape. Developed because of settlement patterns.

Antecedent Boundary

Existed before human cultures developed into their current forms, usually physical.

Geometric Boundary

A boundary created by using lines of latitude and longitude and their associated arcs.

Consequent Boundary

A boundary line that coincides with some cultural divide, such as religion or language.

Boundary Management

Boundary Definition and Delimitation

Boundaries are defined, delimited, demarcated and administered to establish limits of sovereignty, but they are often contested.

Types of Boundary Disputes

Definitional/positional: boundary disputes are fights over the language of the border agreement in a treaty or boundary contract. Example: US, Canada.
Locational/territorial: boundary disputes occur when the conflicting parties agree on the definition but not on where the boundary exists on the Earth of the map. Example: Lakes in Africa.
Operational/functional: boundary disputes are conflicts over the way a boundary should operate or function. Example: US-Mexico.
Allocational: boundary disputes are fights over natural resources that may not be divided by the border. Example: mineral deposits, fertile farmland, fishing groups, natural gas or oil reserves.

International Agreements and Internal Boundaries

Law of the Sea

The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea defines the rights and responsibilities of nations in the use of international waters, established territorial seas, and exclusive economic zones.

Internal Boundaries

Voting districts, redistricting, and gerrymandering affect election results at various scales. Redistricting is the process of drawing electoral district boundaries in the United States. Gerrymandering: drawing political boundaries to give your party a numeric advantage over an opposing party. Can strengthen/weaken a particular party – partisan politics.

Gerrymandering and Political Boundaries

Definition and Impact of Gerrymandering

Gerrymandering: drawing political boundaries to give your party a numeric advantage over an opposing party.
Can strengthen/weaken a particular party – partisan politics.
Lack of social cohesion, sense of community – can be greater tension.
Can divide areas of voters with similar characteristics.
Can discourage some voters.

Forms of Governance

Unitary States

Places most power in the hands of one central government who make decisions for entire state.
Centralized government.

Federal States

Allocates strong power to units of local government within the country.
Local governments have authority to adopt their own laws.
Boundaries can be drawn to correspond with regions inhabited by different ethnicities.
Empowers different nationalities, especially if they live in separate regions.

Confederal States

A system consisting of a league of independent states, each having essentially sovereign powers.

Characteristics of Governance Types

Unitary States

Nation-states with few internal cultural differences (homogenous).
Smaller, compact sizes.

Federal States

Works best in larger states – capital may be too remote to provide effective control over isolated regions.
Heterogeneous states (multiple ethnicities, languages, religions).
Standardization of laws and their implementation across the country.
Patriotism or pride in one’s country is bolstered due to uniformity.
Efficiencies are achieved through less duplication or faster countrywide implementation of laws or governmental services across multiple scales.
Fewer government or taxation agencies, or fewer scales of government or taxation.
The potential for corruption of local government reduced.
Creation of a national identity that reduces the potential for devolutionary processes.

Devolution and Its Causes

Definition of Devolution

Devolution = Process of transferring some power from the central government to regional governments.
Transfer of power that occurs when a state breaks up, when regions that were once unified in one, central government gain power, and sometimes, independence.

Factors Leading to Devolution

Division of groups by physical geography.
Ethnic separatism.
Ethnic cleansing.
Terrorism.
Economic and social problems.
Irredentism.

Examples of Devolution

Devolution occurs when states fragment into autonomous regions; subnational political-territorial units, such as those within Spain, Belgium, Canada and Nigeria; or when states disintegrate, as happened in Eritrea, South Sudan, East Timor, and states that were part of the former Soviet Union.

Supranationalism and Global Governance

Definition and Benefits of Supranationalism

Supranationalism: the process of nation states organizing politically and economically into one organization or alliance.
Benefits/advantages:

• Larger market, more trade – free trade.

• Greater international influence.

• Economic and political power.

• Open borders for labor/workers and tourists.

• Common currency.

• Common policy.

• War is less likely.

Drawbacks of Supranationalism

Loss of identity.
Loss of control over individual policy.
Give up some sovereign control.

Political Processes and Issues

Political Concepts and Terms

Explain the scales of a graph, explain the term sovereign, describe the pros and cons of a federal State, and describe the pros and cons of the European Union.

Historical and Current Political Issues

Explain the difference in the number of states from 1940 to now.
Describe the China and Taiwan situation.
Define and identify examples of antecedent, geometric, and relic boundaries.
Describe a frontier.

Regional and Global Political Dynamics

State Types and Examples

What type of states are Japan and Iceland? Why?
Why did Yugoslavia fail?
Differentiate between balkanization and irredentism?
What are the issues with Catalonia and Basque of Spain?
What is a stateless nation? Be able to recognize real-life examples.

Neocolonialism and Global Issues

What is the difference between peripheral versus core states in neocolonialism?
Identify examples of neo-colonialism in African and Central America.
Why is Paraguay’s story regarding Neocolonialism different than the rest of South America?

International Relations and Alliances

Military and Economic Alliances

Differentiate Military Alliances versus Economic Alliances.
What is the goal of OPEC?
What is the goal of ASEAN?
What is the purpose of the Arctic Council?
What are the membership requirements for the E.U. and A.U.?
What are the pros and cons of membership to a Supranational organization?

Impact of Devolution

Case Studies

Describe the impact of devolution in Canada and East Timor.
Recognize factors of devolution in Belgium and Nigeria.

Historical Context and Effects

Historical Events

Identify the effects of the Berlin Conference.
Identify negative issues that may result from the Electoral College.
Identify USA cultural norms and political tendencies by region.

Discussion questions

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How do the concepts of sovereignty and self-determination influence the formation of nation-states in contemporary politics?

Difficulty: Medium

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Flashcards and Free Response Practice

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    • Efficient review method before exams.

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    • Time yourself to simulate exam conditions.

    • Review feedback from teachers or peers to improve responses.