Unit 4 Review Political Geography
UNIT 4 REVIEW POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY
Political Geography:
• Political geographers study countries and alliances, reasons underlying the observed arrangements, and the conflicts that result for the organization
• Geopolitics: The study of the interplay between international political relations and the territories in which they occur.
SOVEREIGNTY: The political authority of a state to govern itself
MICROSTATE: Ministate: A country that is small in both population and area. Andorra, Monaco, Liechtenstein, Singapore
Examples of microstates:
State Nation POLITICAL UNIT ▪ CULTURAL UNIT Independent country ▪ Common ancestry occupying a Defined boundaries particular territory Internationally recognized ▪ Common religion (usually) and/or Full sovereign control over land and language, accepted behaviors people within boundaries
NATION-STATE Definition: Example:
A state in which the cultural borders of a nation Japan correspond with the state borders of a country Denmark Poland Territory matches culture
STATE-LESS NATION Definition: Example:
A nation of people without a state that it Kurds, Basques, Palestinians considers home
MULTINATIONAL STATE Definition: Example:
A state that contains more than one nation, and Former Yugoslavia, former no single ethnic group dominates the USSR, Lebanon population
Every state to a degree is multinational (no state has 100% of a single ethnicity)
MULITSTATE NATION Definition: Example:
Nation stretches across borders and across Kurds, Koreans states people share a common characteristic and live in multiple states.
AUTONOMOUS REGION SEMI-AUTONOMOUS REGION Definition Definition
• sections of a nation that have a degree of independence in • having a degree of, but not complete, self-government. several issues. • control over certain affairs, make own decisions
Example Example many regions in China, Aland islands Native Americans
What factors affect the viability of a state?
▪ Centrifugal force: It is a force or attitude that tends to divide a state.
▪ Centripetal force: A centripetal force is a force or attitude that tends to unify people and enhance support for a state.
Be sure to know specific examples of each force for a given country
NATIONALISM: loyalty and devotion to a nationality
Nationalism can unite countries, or force them to separate
Irredentism Balkanization Self-determination Definition A political movement by an ethnic A contentious process of a state the concept that ethnicities have the group or other closely aligned fragmenting into smaller states, right to govern themselves group that aims to reoccupy an area which are often hostile or that the group lost. The group’s uncooperative with one another territorial claims are often based on national, historic, or ethnic affiliations
Modern example:
East Germany, West Germany Former Yugoslavia Czech Republic + Slovakia
POLITICAL POWER & TERRITORY
Organic Theory: political entities continually seek nourishment in the form of gaining territories to survive in the same way that a living organism seeks nourishment from food to survive.
Heartland Theory: the core of global influence lies in what is known as the Heartland – Eastern Europe and Asia. It argues that this region of the world situated in Eurasia is important due to its sheer size, a wealth of resources, and a high population. Mackinder stated that the nation in control of the Heartland had the potential to “command the world.”
Rimland Theory: Eurasia’s rimland, the coastal areas, is the key to controlling the World Island. The Rimland Theory claims that forming alliances and controlling the coasts and seas are necessary to maintain the political power to control the world.
▪ Shatterbelt/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: Cohen’s theory predicted that armed conflicts after 1950 would likely occur in areas within the Inner Crescent or Middle East
SHAPES OF STATES
COMPACT Definition: The distance from the center to any boundary does not vary significantly
Advantages: Good communication to al regions
Disadvantages: Usually small states May not have as many resources
Example: Poland, France
PRORUPT Definition: Otherwise compact with large projecting extension
Advantages: Provide a state with access to natural resources Separate two states that would share a boundary
Disadvantages: Some regions may be isolated or hard to reach
Example: Thailand, Afghanistan
ELONGATED Definition: Long, narrow shape
Advantages: Variation of landscapes and resources through your state
Disadvantages: Poor internal communication
Example: Chile, Italy
FRAGMENTED Definition: Several discontinuous pieces of territory, can be separated by water or intervening state
Advantages: Variation of landscape, access to resources
Disadvantages: Difficult communication, no unity, high cost
Example: Indonesia, India
PERFORATED Definition: State that completely surrounds another one
Advantages: Can control smaller state (if good relations)
Disadvantages: Can be hostility
Example: Lesotho, San Marino, Vatican City
• Exclave = a territory, or a part of a territory, that is entirely surrounded by the territory of one other state.
• Landlocked state = A country that does not have direct access to the sea due to being surrounded by neighboring states
BOUNDARY FRONTIER
A state is separated from its neighbors by a Historically, frontiers rather than boundaries boundary, an invisible line marking the separated states. extent of a state’s territory. A frontier is a zone where no state exercises Line complete political control Brings neighboring states into direct contact Area Provides some separation
Types of boundaries/Definition Examples: Physical boundaries: A boundary based on the Mountains, deserts, water geographical features of the Earth’s surface.
Coincide with features on the natural landscape Good because they can be seen both on a map and on the ground
Geometric boundaries: 38th parallel (Korea) 49th parallel (US-Canada) A boundary created by using lines of latitude and Many western states longitude and their associated arcs.
Cultural boundaries: Religion - India & Pakistan, Northern Ireland follow the distribution of cultural characteristics – Language- Germany, France, Italy religion, language, ethnicity
▪ Fortified boundary: When a state creates a wall or physical boundary
▪ Demarcation: Boundary is marked on the ground. Engineers and construction workers involved - Stone pillars, walls, etc
▪ Delimitation: the drawing of boundaries
BOUNDARY EVOLUTION Another way to classify boundaries depends not just on how they were created, but on how they evolved over time
ANTECEDENT BOUNDARY Existed before human cultures developed into their current forms usually physical
SUBSEQUENT BOUNDARY Evolves as the cultural landscape takes shape Developed because of settlement patterns
SUPERIMPOSED BOUNDARY Forcibly put on landscape by an outside party, ignores cultures example: African countries
RELICT BOUNDARY No longer functions as boundary, reminder a line once divided space Example: Berlin Wall, Great Wall of China
▪ Law of the Sea = set of UN laws establishing states’ rights and responsibilities concerning the ownership and use of the Earth’s waters and their resources.
▪ Exclusive economic zone = A sea zone over which a state has special rights over the exploration and use of marine resources stretching 200 nautical miles from the coast.
▪ Median-line principle = A line that is drawn in the water equidistant from each competing party to settle a question of sea resource access (when there’s an EEZ conflict)
BOUNDARY Description Example DISPUTES Definitional/ boundary disputes are fights over the language of the border US, Canada positional agreement in a treaty or boundary contract
Locational/ boundary disputes occur when the conflicting parties agree on Lakes in Africa territorial the definition but not on where the boundary exists on the Earth of the map (The interpretation is in dispute)
Operational/ boundary disputes are conflicts over the way a boundary US-Mexico functional should operate or function
Allocational boundary disputes are fights over natural resources that may mineral deposits, fertile not be divided by the border farmland, fishing groups, natural gas or oil reserves
ORGANIZATION OF STATES
▪ 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 o Local governments have authority to adopt their own laws o Boundaries can be drawn to correspond with regions inhabited by different ethnicities o Empowers different nationalities, especially if the live in separate regions
▪ Confederal states = A system consisting of a league of independent states, each having essentially sovereign powers.
UNITARY STATES FEDERAL STATES nation-states with few internal cultural Works best Larger states – capital may be too remote to differences (homogenous) in: provide effective control over isolated regions
Smaller, compact sizes Heterogeneous states (multiple ethnicities, languages, religions) - Standardization of laws and their Advantages: - Multiple nationalities, ethnicities, or cultures implementation across the country diverse states devolve power in order to - Patriotism or pride in one’s country is reduce separatist tendencies or to enhance bolstered due to uniformity loyalty to the country - Efficiencies are achieved through less - To address devolutionary forces arising from duplication OR faster countrywide physical, economic, or political differences implementation of laws or governmental federal governments are able to maintain services across multiple scales national cohesion by bridging physical or - Fewer government or taxation agencies, or cultural barriers or providing means for fewer scales of government or taxation resolving conflicts between subnational areas - The potential for corruption of local - Larger countries, or territorial control over government reduced large or fragmented area allow units to - Creation of a national identity that reduces provide more effective governmental services the potential for devolutionary processes to address local issues. - As distance from national capital increases, people tend to feel better served by decision- makers who are closer to home Especially common in Europe – UK, Norway, Examples: United States, Russia, Canada, Brazil, India Finland Japan, China
What is gerrymandering and what are its consequences?
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
DEVOLUTION IS:
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.
BALKANIZATION IS: breakup of a large state into several independent ones
What factors might lead to devolutionary forces in a state?
Cultural differences, economic differences, physical/territorial differences & distance
Examples: breakup of a state
- Former USSR - Yugoslavia/Balkans - Czechoslovakia - Austria-Hungary - Ethiopia-Eritrea - British India
Examples: demand for regional autonomy
- United Kingdom - Catalonia, Spain - Basques, Spain - Quebec, Canada - Corsica, France - Padania, Italy - Tyrol, Italy - Crimea, Ukraine
SUPRANATIONALISM is: Examples: the process of nation states organizing - NATO/Warsaw Pact politically and economically into one - NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) organization or alliance. - UN (United Nations) - OPEC (Organization of Petroleum exporting countries) - African Union (AU) - Arab League - Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) - Union of South American Nations (USAN)
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/disadvantages:
- loss of identity - loss of control over individual policy - give up some sovereign control