chapter 7 notes Flashcards
Political Geography
the study of the spatial aspects of political affairs, including their impact on other components of society and culture
Territoriality
Geographer Stuart Elden: modern concept of territory arose in early modern Europe as a system of political units came into being with fixed, distinct boundaries and at least a quasi-independent government
process by which this happens is territoriality
How Is Space Politically Organized into States and Nations?
Today, territoriality is tied to the concept of sovereignty.
Sovereignty means having a recognized right to control a territory both politically and militarily.
Under international law, states are sovereign, and they have the right to defend their territorial integrity against incursion from other states.
State (country)
a politically organized territory with: 1) a permanent population, 2) a defined territory, 3) a government, 4) to be a state, an it must be recognized as such by other states – must have control over internal and external affairs
193 countries
- -ambiguity
- –around 200 countries
Nations
Nation is a culturally defined term, and few people agree on exactly what it means
The term was originally meant to refer to a group of people who think of themselves as one based on a sense of shared culture and history, and who seek some degree of political-territorial autonomy
all nations are ultimately mixtures of different peoples
a nation is identifies by its own membership; therefore, we cannot simply define a nation as the people within a territory
nationalism
relates to nation
patriotism
relates to state
Multinational State –
A state with more than one nation in its borders
- often no single ethnic group dominates
Nation-State
a nation state is a politically organized area in which nation and state occupy the same space
The goal of creating nation-states dates to the French Revolution:
Key problem associated with the idea of the nation-state is that it assumes the presence of reasonably well-defined, stable nations living in discrete territories.
When people have a strong sense of nationalism, they have a loyalty to and a belief in the nation itself
A state, in contrast, seeks to promotes sense of nationhood that coincides with its own borders
To help people within the borders relate to the dominant national ideal, states provide security, infrastructure, and goods and services for their citizens.
The stateless nation
Some examples of stateless nations: Cherokee nation, kurds, palestinians
Colonialism
a physical action in which one state takes over control of another, taking over the government and ruling the territory as its own
Profits
Power
Convert indigenous populations to colonists’ religion
Characteristics: domination over another people, economic/political dependence, resource exploitation
European Colonial Objectives
A port along the West African coast (initially the Portuguese)
A water route to South Asia and Southeast Asia
1500’s- looking for resources; Slaves
slaves not new, but slave raiding was
30 mi slaves forced from their homes
1850- Industrial Revolution occurs in Europe
increased demand for mineral resources
Need to expand agricultural production
Berlin Conference (1884)
13 States divided up Africa without consideration of cultures
Results of superimposed boundaries
– African peoples were divided
– unified regions were ripped apart
– Hostile societies were thrown together
– Hinterlands were disrupted
– migration routes were closed off
When independence returned to Africa after 1950, the realm had already acquired a legacy of political fragmentation.
boundaries
A vertical plane (down into rock and up into airspace) that fixes the territory of a state
Boundaries often divide resources, such as oil between Kuwait and Iraq
Establishing Boundaries
Define
legal document where longitude and latitude are described
Delimit
draw the boundary on a map
Demarcate
Use steel posts, fences, pillars, walls, etc to mark the boundary on the ground
Administrate
determine how a boundary gets maintained and how goods/people will get across it
Informal/implied boundaries :
formal boundaries:
Informal/implied boundaries – often marked by symbols but wont see in maps or defined in legal documents (ie turf of a city gang)
Formal boundaires: on maps, in international law,
geometric boundarie
based on grid systems
eg boundaries between the US and Canada
physiographic (physical political) boundaries
follow an agreed-upon feature in the physical geographic landscape
eg rio grande – boundary between the us and mexico
ethnographic boundaries
based on cultural traits
Ex. India and Pakistan: separates Hindus and Muslims
relic boundaries
no longer exists
exclave
territory that is separated from, but politically attached to, it’s state by another state (i.e. Kaliningrad)
enclave
territory (or part of one) surrounded by the boundaries of another state (ie Vatican city)
Vatican city is an enclave of rome
pene enclave
Territory with one other country also being bordered by a body of water
unitary government
highly centralized government where the capital city serves as a focus of power
