Terms : Hide Images
| 65123190 | nation | tightly knit group of people sharing a common language, ethnicity, religion, and other cultural attributes | |
| 65123191 | state | politcally organized territory administered by a sovereign government, with a permanent population, and recognized by the international community (State = internal division, state = country) | |
| 65123192 | nation-state | a state whose population possesses a substantial degree of cultural homogenity and unity (e.g. Japan, Portugal, Venezuela, ASrmenia, Iceland) | |
| 65123193 | stateless nation | a nation without a state (e.g. Kurds, Palestinians) | |
| 65123194 | multinational state | country with two or more nationalities within its borders (e.g. US, Canada, Russia, Iran) | |
| 65123195 | multistate nation | nation that transcends the borders of two or more states (e.g. Kurds (Kurdistan), The Koreas) | |
| 65123196 | annexation | incorporation of a territory into another geo-political entity | |
| 65123197 | european model | a state model based on inviolable territory (after the Peace of Westphalia), a governmental soverighty, permanent population with a national culture, and a state capital; This model was spread globally due to the Age of Exploration (and Colonization) | |
| 65123198 | sovereignty | possessing supreme or independent political power | |
| 65123199 | theocracy | a state whose government is either believed to be divinely guided or a state under the control of a group of religious leaders (e.g. Iran, Saudi Arabia, Vatican City) | |
| 65123200 | Colonialism (modern) | the attempt by a country to establish settlements and impose political and economic control and principles. Often associated with the Eruopean movement beginning the the 16th century, which created unequal cultural and economic relations; also led to massive depopulation due to the spread of disease and through conquest. | |
| 65123201 | imperialism (modern) | second phase of European colonialism beginning in late 18th century, due to the Second Agricultural Revolution and the Industrial Revolution. European states sought colonies for resources necessary for indsutrialization, outlets for overpopulation, and markets for their goods. The US and Japan (and Russia to a lesser extent) were also engaged in imperialism (e.g. Berlin Conference 1855 carved Africa into a plethora of superimposed boundaries) | |
| 65123202 | decolonization | the movement of American/European/Asian colonies gaining independence (mostly beginning after the post-WWII era). Some were peacefull struggles while other became violent | |
| 65123203 | core-periphery | countries with high levels of development, a capacity at innovation and a convergence of trade flowing vs. countries with lesser development levels, usually poor. | |
| 65123204 | World-Systems Theory | structure theory proposing that social change in the developing world is linked to the economic activities of the developed world; three tiers: core, semi-periphery, periphery | |
| 65123205 | Immanuel Wallerstein | theorist of World-Systems Theory | |
| 65123206 | Brandt Line (North/South Divide - 1960s) | economic division between the wealthy countries of Europe, North America, Japan, and Australia and teh generally poorer countries of Asia, Africa, and Latin America | |
| 65123207 | East/West Divide | geographic separation between the largely democratic and free-market states of Western Europe and the Americas from the communist and socialist countries of Eastern Europe and Asia | |
| 65123208 | first world | the largely democratic and free-market states of the US and Western Europe (cold war to today) | |
| 65123209 | second world | the communist and state-planned countries of the Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, and China (Cold war) | |
| 65123210 | third world | the generally poorer countries of Asia, Africa, and Latin America (cold war to today) | |
| 65123211 | multicore state | a state that has more than one dominant region in terms of economics or politics (e.g. US, South Africa) | |
| 65123212 | immigrant state | a type of receiving state which is the target of many immigrants; popular because of their economy, political freedom, and opportunity (e.g. US, Germany) | |
| 65123213 | territorial morphology | study of states' shapes and their effects | |
| 65123214 | compact | (tm) distance from geometric center is similar (e.g. Germany, Hungary) | |
| 65123215 | elongated | (tm) a.k.a. attenuated (e.g. Chile, Vietnam) | |
| 65123216 | fragmented | (tm) two or more separate pieces (e.g. Indonesia, Malaysia) | |
| 65123217 | perforated | territory completely surrounds that of another state (e.g. Italy, Azerbaijan) | |
| 65123218 | protruded | (tm) a.k.a. prorupt; have an area that extends from a more compact core (e.g. Thailand, India) | |
| 65123219 | microstate (ministate) | state or territory that is small in both population and area (e.g. Vatican City, Monaco) | |
| 65123220 | exclave | bounded territory that is part of a state but is separated by the territory of another state (e.g. Alaska, Kalingrad (part of Russia)) | |
| 65123221 | enclave | a small and relatively homogeneous group or region surrounded by a different group or region (e.g. Nagorn-Karabagh (part of Armenia surrounded by Azerbaijan), West Berlin during the Cold War); or wholy lying within the boundaries of another country (e.g. Lesotho); not the same as an ethnic enclave (e.g. Chinatowns, Little Italys, Little Havana) | |
| 65123222 | boundary | vertical plane between states that cuts through the rocks below, and the airspace above (even outer space) | |
| 65123223 | definition | (evolution - boundary) legal document or treaty drawn up to specify actual points in the landscape | |
| 65123224 | delimitation | (evolution - boundary) cartographers put the boundary on the map | |
| 65123225 | demarcation | (evolution - boundary) boundary is actually marked on the ground with wall, fence, posts (too expensive or impractical for most borders to be demarcated) | |
| 65123226 | geometric | (type - boundary) straight-line, unrelated to physical or cultural landscape, latitude and longitude (e.g. US/Canada) | |
| 65123227 | physical-political | (type - boundary) conform to physiological features (e.g. Rio Grande: Us/Mexico, Pyrenees: Spain/France); a.k.a. natural-political | |
| 65123228 | cultural-political | (type - boundary) mark breaks in the human landscape (Armenia/Azerbaijan) | |
| 65123229 | genesis | origin based classification | |
| 65123230 | antecedent | (genesis - boundary) existed before the cultural landscape emerged (e.g. Malaysia/Indonesia) | |
| 65123231 | subsequent | (genesis - boundary) developed contemporaneously with the evolution of the cultural landscape (e.g. US/Mexico) | |
| 65123232 | superimposed | (genesis - boundary) placed by powerful outsiders on a developed landscape, usually ignores pre-existing cultural-spatial patterns (e.g. Indonesia/Papua New guinea, Haiti/Dominican Republic) | |
| 65123233 | relict | (genesis - boundary) has ceased to function, but its imprint can still be detected on the cultural landscape (e.g. North/South Vietnam, East/West Berlin) | |
| 65123234 | definitional | (disputes - boundary) focus on legal language (e.g. median line of a river, water levels may vary) | |
| 65123235 | locational | (disputes - boundary) definition is not in dispute, the interpretation is; allows mapmakers to delimit boundaries in various ways | |
| 65123236 | operational | (disputes - boundary) neighbors differ voer the way the boundary should function (migration, smuggling) (e.g. US/Mexico) | |
| 65123237 | allocational | (disputes - boundary) disputes over rights to natural resources (gas, oil, water) (e.g. Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait in part, due to a dispute over oil rights in Buffer zone) | |
| 65123238 | Buffer zone (state) | zone of separation, a territorial "cushion" that keeps rivals apart (e.g. Mongolia between China and Russia, Rhineland prior to WWI, DMZ between North and South Korea) | |
| 65123239 | frontier | area where borders are shifting and weak, and where peoples of different cultures or nationalities meet and lay claim ot the land (e.g. Amazon Basin, Antarctica, between Saudi Arabia and Yemen) | |
| 65123240 | shatterbelt | a region caught between stronger colliding external cultural-political forces, under persisent stress, and often fragmented by agressive rivals (e.g. Israel or Kashmir today, Eastern Europe during Cold War) | |
| 65123241 | geopolitics | a.k.a. the organic theory; study that analyzes geograpy, history, and social science with reference to international politics. states can be viewed as living organisms that need to consume other territories to survive. Gained a negative reputation when Hitler and Nazis embraced this to justify theri right for lebensraum because of their racial superiority | |
| 65123242 | lebensraum | living space | |
| 65123243 | Friedrich Ratzel | theorist behind Geopolitics | |
| 65123244 | heartland theory | theory from early 20th century that claimed whichever state controlled teh resource-rich heartland of Eastern Europe could eventually dominate the world; "who rules East Eruope commands the Heartland; who rules the Heartland commands the World-Island (Europe, Asia and Africa); who rules the World-Island controls the world" | |
| 65123245 | Halford Mackinder | theorist behind Heartland theory | |
| 65123246 | Rimland Theory | mid-20th century theory that the domination of the coastal fringes of Eurasia would provide the base for world conquest | |
| 65123247 | capital city | principle city, state, or country; the best place to locate a capital is at the center of a country, so it is a somewhat equal distance from all parts of the country | |
| 65123248 | forward capital | a symbolically relocated capital city usually because of either economic or strategic reasons; sometimes used to integrate outlying parts of a country into the state (e.g. Brasilia, Washington DC) | |
| 65123249 | unitary state | a state governed constitutionally as a unit, without internal divisions or a federalist delegation of powers | |
| 65123250 | federal state | a state in which a group or body of members are bound together with a governming representative head. The system in which the power to govern is shared between the national and state governments; considered the most geographically expressive of all states | |
| 65123251 | confederation | association of sovereign states (or States) by a treaty or agreement; deals with issues such as defense, foreign affairs, trade, and a common currency | |
| 65123252 | below the state boundary | internal divisions within a state (e.g. States, countries, municipalities (local self-government) | |
| 65123253 | above the state boundary | refer to supranationalist agreement with two or more states working together for a common purpose | |
| 65123254 | electoral regions | the different voting districts that make up local, state, and national regions | |
| 65123255 | gerrymandering | the process of redrawing legislative boundaries for the purpose of benefiting the political party in power; usually used to turn 'too close to call' states into a party's favor | |
| 65123256 | apartheid | Afrikaans for apartness; it was the segregation of blacks, coloreds, and Asians in South Africa from 1948 to 1994; created to keep teh white minority in power and allow them to have total contorl over the majority (~90% of total pop.) | |
| 65123257 | supranationalism | a venture of three or more states (sometimes two or more) involving formal economic, political, and/or cultural cooperation to promote shared objectives | |
| 65123258 | United Nations | supranationalist organization establisehd at the end of WWII to foster internationa security and cooperation; precursor was the League of Nations; many subsidaries such as the Security Council, World Health Org, etc.; 192 member states | |
| 65123259 | European Union | supranationalist organization comprised of 27 democratic members of Europe; its predecessors were Benelux followed by the European Economic Community. This union covers most areas of public policy, form economic policy to foreign affairs, defense, agriculture, and trade. It is the largest political and economic entity on the European continent. | |
| 65123260 | North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) | (supranationalism) military alliance of western democracies begun in 1949 with 28 member states today; its members agree to mutal dfense in response to an attack by any external party | |
| 65123261 | North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) | (supranationalism) a trilateral trade bloc in North America created by the governments of the US, Canada, and MExico. Poverty rates have fallen and real incomes have risen in MExico, but farmers haven't fared well due to cheaper food from US agribusiness; US also manufacturing workers ahve lost jobs to maquiladora plants in Mexico (mostly due to cheaper labor costs) | |
| 65123262 | Commonwealth of Independant States (CIS) | (supranationalism) confederacy of states of the former Soviet Union; it possesses coordinating powers in the realm of trade, finance, lawmaking, and security; also promotes cooperation on deomcratization and cross-border crime prevention. | |
| 65123263 | 'near-abroad' | referring to states such as Baltic States (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania) with strong Russian ties linguistically and politically; part of the CIS | |
| 65123264 | devolution | process whereby regions within a state demand and gain political strength and growing autonomy at the expense of the central government (e.g. Basque and Catalonia in Spain, Chechnya in Russsia) | |
| 65123265 | Balkanization | the political term used when referring to the fragmentation or breakup of a region or country into smaller regions or countries; the term comes from the Balkan wars, where the country of Yugoslavia was broken up in to six countries between 1989 and 1992 | |
| 65123266 | centripetal forces | forces that unify a state - national culture, shared ideological objectives, common faith, etc. | |
| 65123267 | centrifugal forces | forces that divide a state - internal religious, political, economic, linguistic, or ethnic differences | |
| 65123268 | law of the sea | laws establishing states' rights and responsibilities concerning the ownership and use of the Earth's waters and their resources | |
| 65123269 | Territorial sea | states' territory extending 12 nautical miles from the coast (since 1982); regarded as the sovereign territory of the state, although foreign ships (both military and civilian) are allowed innocent passage through it; this sovereignty also extends to the airspace over the seabed below | |
| 65123270 | Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) | a sea zone over which a state has special rights over the exploration and use of marine resources stretching 200 nautical miels from the coast. The country that controls this zone has the rights to the fishing, whaling, etc. as well as the raw material resources | |
| 65123271 | median-line principle | in situations where there is less than 400 nautical miles | |
| 65123272 | domino theory | the idea that if one land in a region come under the influence of Communists, then more would follow in a domino effect. A resulting policy out of the Truman Doctrine that promoted containment of communism, this theory was used by successive US administrations during the Cold WAr to justify American intervention around the world | |
| 65123273 | New World Order | commonly refers to the post- Cold War era vision in which world affairs would not be dominated by the competition between teh two nuclear superpowers; a positive and hopeful vision for the future |
