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AP Human Geography || Chapter 8

Terms in this set (58)

Antecedent Boundaries
a boundary that was created before the present day cultural landscaped developed
Boundary
an indivisible line marking the extent of a state's territory
Centrifugal Forces
the outward force on a body moving in a curved path around another body
Centripetal Forces
an attitude that tends to unify people and enhance support for a state
Choke Point
a geographical feature on land such as a valley, defile or a bridge, or at sea such as a straight which an armed force is forced to pass, therefore greatly decreasing its combat, in order to reach its objective.
City-State
a sovereign state that comprises a town and the surrounding countryside
Colonialism
attempt by one country to establish settlements and to impose its political, economic, and cultural principles in another territory
Colonies
a territory that is legally tied to a sovereign state rather than completely independent
Commonwealth of Independent States
an alliance made up of states that had been the Soviet Socialist Republics in the Soviet Union prior to its dissolution in 1991
Compact State
a state in which the distance from the center to any boundary does not vary significantly; usually shaped circular [Examples: Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda, Kenya]
Confederation
an alliance
Cultural Boundaries
boundaries between states that coincide with differences in ethnicity, especially language and religion; another cultural boundary is drawn according to geometry
Decolonization
the action of changing from colonial to independent status
Devolution
the passing of authority [especially from a central government to a regional government]
Elongated State
a state with a long, narrow shape [Examples: Chile, Italy, Malawi, Gambia]
Enclave
a territory whose geographical boundaries lie entirely within the boundaries of another territory [Example: Lesotho]
European Union
Western Europe's most important economic organization; the main task is to promote development within the member states through economic cooperation
Exclave
is a territory legally or politically attached to another territory with which it is not politically contiguous [Example: Liberty Island]
Exclusive Economic Zone
a sea zone over which a state has special rights over the exploration and use of marine resources; stretches from the seaward edge of the state's territorial sea out to 200 nautical miles from its coast
Federal States
an internal organization of that state that allocates most powers to units of local governments [Examples: United States, India, Brazil, Canada]
Fragmented States
a state that includes several discontinuous pieces of territory [Examples: Indonesia, India, Alaska, Russia]
Frontier
a zone separating two states in which neither state exercises political control [Antarctica, Saudi Arabia]
Geometric Boundaries
straight lines that serve as political boundaries that are unrelated to physical and/or cultural differences [Example: United States/Canada border]
Geopolitical
relating to the study of the effects of economic geography on the powers of states
Heartland Theory
Hypothesis proposed by Halford Mckinder that held that any political power based in the heart of Eurasia could gain enough strength to eventually dominate the world
High Seas
refers to the area of the sea beyond the national jurisdiction of any state
Imperialism
control of territory already occupied and organized by an indigenous society
International Organizations
an organization with an international membership, scope or presence
Landlocked
a state that does not have a direct outlet to the sea
Maritime Boundaries
a conceptual means of division of the water surface of the planet into maritime areas that are defined through surrounding physical geography or by human geography
Median Lines
an approach to dividing and creating boundaries at the mid-point between two places.
Microstates
a state that encompasses a very small land area
Multinational States
contains two ethnic groups with traditions of self-determination that agree to coexist peacefully by recognizing each other as distinct nationalities
Nation
a politically organized body of people under a single government
Nation State
a state whose territory corresponds to that occupied by a particular ethnicity that has been transformed into a nationality
North American Free Trade Agreement
an agreement signed by the governments of Canada, Mexico and the United States, creating a trilateral trade bloc in North America.
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
a military alliance among 16 democratic states including the United States and Canada, plus 14 European states [Belgium, Denmark, West Germany, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Turkey and the United Kingdom. France Spain were members but did not contribute troops]; designed to maintain a bipolar balance of power in Europe
Organic Theory
It is comparing a state to a living organism. The state needs land to grow such as an organism needs nutrition to grow.
Perforated State
a state that completely surrounded by another state [Example: South Africa]
Physical Boundaries
boundaries that are made by important physical features on Earth's surface; can include mountains, deserts and water.
Prorupted State
an otherwise compact state with a large projecting extension [Examples: Congo, Afghanistan]
Reapportionment
to redistribute or reallocate
Redistricting
changing political borders
Religious Boundaries
boundaries between states that coincide with religious differences [Examples: India/Pakistan, Northern Ireland]
Rimland
a land or region at the periphery of the heartland
Self-Determination
the concept that ethnicities have the right to govern themselves
Sovereignty
government free from external control
State
an area organized into a political unit and ruled by an established government with control over its internal and foreign affairs
Stateless
without a state or nationality
Subsequent Boundaries
boundaries that are created as a result of long time processes
Superimposed Boundaries
boundaries that has been forced upon the inhabitants of an area to solve an issue/conflict
Supranational Organizations
a world or regional organization that is not tied to any one sovereign country [Example: World Bank]
Territorial Sea
a belt of coastal waters extending at most 12 nautical miles from the baseline of a coastal state
Terrorism
the calculated use of violence (or the threat of violence) against civilians in order to attain goals that are political or religious or ideological in nature; this is done through intimidation or coercion or instilling fear
Unitary State
an internal organization of a state that places most power in the hands of central government officials
United Nations
international organization created at the end of WWII to help maintain international peace
United Nations Convention on the Law of the Seas
defines the rights and responsibilities of nations in their use of the world's oceans, establishing guidelines for businesses, the environment, and the management of marine natural resources
Warsaw Pact
a military agreement among Communist Eastern European countries to defend each other in case of attack [Soviet Union, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, Poland, and Romania]; designed to maintain a bipolar balance of power in Europe
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