Political Regions Lecture Notes Flashcards
Roughly how many independent countries are there?
200
Various forms of state are:
Greek city-states, Chinese Dynastic, and European Feudal State
What is sovereignty?
The ability to control own affairs and the right to exist within the territorial boundaries
The central idea of the state is:
A need to belong to a larger group that controls its own territory
What does political geographer Robert Sack say:
Human territoriality uses power to control area, social and political space, and there are different forms
Nationalism:
A sense of collective identity that springs from attachment; emotional; culturally reason for being
Territoriality and Nationalism are tied to sovereignty:
Defined boundaries, means of having control, and rights to defend territorial integrity
Types of Territorial Morphology
Compact, Enclave, Pene-enclave, Exclave, Elongated State, Fragmented States
Compact (France and Brazil):
More compact = easier to govern; hexagonal or circular
Enclave (South Africa and Lesotho):
Potentially very dangerous; District surrounded by a country, but not ruled by it
Pene-enclave (Senegal and Gambia):
Intrusive piece of territory with only a small outlet; usually disruptive
Exclave (Russia, Estonia, Lithuania):
Part of natural territory that is separated from the main territory by a different territory; Isolation
Elongated State (Vietnam, Korea, Norway):
6x longer than they are wide; possible instability
Fragmented States (Indonesia, Philippines):
Separate islands; communication and transportation troubles
Boundaries (ZONES):
Marchlands, Buffer States, Satellite States
Marchlands:
Neutral territory; Large swafts of ground
Buffer States:
Independent country, small and weak, between 2 countries who do not like each other
Satellite States:
When one of the bigger countries wants to control the buffer state
Boundaries (LINES):
Natural, Ethnographic, Geometric, Relic
Natural:
Usually follows some feature of the landscape
Ethnographic:
Based on cultural trait (Language/Religion)
Geometric:
Straight(ish) lines
Relic:
Leave a trace in local culture, but no longer exists, hardest to define AND find
Spatial Organization:
Unitary and Federal
Unitary:
Centrally located power, policies are applied uniformly through the territory; fragile
Federal:
More geographically located, Individual representation; Central government gives power to states (tension)
Nationalism (Group Identity):
Sub-state and military service
Centrifugal Forces:
Push people OUT
Centripetal Forces:
Brings people IN; Factors that promote national unity and identity
