Chapter 8: political geography

Question 1

what is a state

Answer 1

an area organized into a political unit and ruled by an established government that has control over affairs

Question 2

what does sovereignty mean

Answer 2

ability of a state to govern its territory free from control of its international affairs by other states

Question 3

what is a micro state

Answer 3

state that is on a very small land area

Question 4

what is the law of the sea

Answer 4

countries have rights to water 12 nautical miles (22km) away from shore

Question 5

the idea of splitting into states is ______

Answer 5

relatively new

Question 6

what is a city-state

Answer 6

sovereign state comprising of a city and its immediate surrounding countryside

Question 7

what is a nation

Answer 7

large group who are united by common cultural characteristics such as language, ethnicity, or shared history

Question 8

what is a nation-state

Answer 8

state whose territory corresponds to that occupied by a nation

Question 9

what is self-determination

Answer 9

concept that ethnicities have the right to govern themselves

Question 10

what is a multinational state

Answer 10

state that contains two or more cultural groups with traditions of self-determination that agree to coexist peacefully by recognizing each other as distinct nationalities

Question 11

what is a colony

Answer 11

territory legally tied to a sovereign state rather than completely independent

Question 12

what is colonialism

Answer 12

attempt by one country to establish settlements and to impose its political, economic, and cultural principles in another territory

Question 13

why did europeans colonize

Answer 13

• promote Christianity
• extract resources
• gain numbers

Question 14

what is a boundary

Answer 14

invisible line that marks the extent of a state’s territory.

can be physical, cultural, of geometric

Question 15

what is a frontier

Answer 15

zone separating 2 states where neither exercises political power

Question 16

what are the 5 different shapes of states

Answer 16

1. compact states: distance from centre to any boundary does not vary significantly. good communication
2. perforated state: completely surrounds another state
3. prorputed state: otherwise compact state with a large projecting extension.
4. elongated state: long, narrow shape
5. fragmented state: includes severed discontinuous pieces of territory

Question 17

what is a landlocked state

Answer 17

no direct outlet to sea

Question 18

what are the 2 levels of government

Answer 18

national and local

Question 19

what are the two types of local government? describe them

Answer 19

• unitary: internal organization of a state that places most power in the hands of central government officials
• federal: internal organization of a state that allocates most powers to units of local government

Question 20

what are the 3 types of a national state

Answer 20

1. democracy: citizens elect leaders and can run for office
2. autocracy: ten according to the interests of the ruler rather than the people
3. anocracy: not fully democracy or autocracy

Question 21

what is the balance of power

Answer 21

condition of roughly equal strength between opposing countries of alliances of countries

Question 22

what is terrorism

Answer 22

systemic use of violence by a group to create an atmosphere of fear and alarm to coerce government into actions it would not otherwise make