| A | B |
|---|
| Antecedent Boundaries | A boundary line established before an area is populated |
| Balkinization | The contentious political process by which a state may break up into smaller countries |
| Buffer State | A relatively small country sandwiched between two larger powers. The existence of buffer states may help to prevent dangerous conflicts between two powerful countries |
| Centrifugal Forces | Forces that tend to divide a country |
| Centripetal Forces | Forces that tend to unite or bind a country together |
| Colonialism | The expansion and perpetuation of an empire |
| Commonwealth of Independent States | Confederacy of independent states of the former Soviet Union that have united because of their common economic and administrative needs |
| Compact state | A state that possesses a roughly circular, oval, or rectangular territory in which the distance from the geometric center is relatively equal in all directions |
| Confederation | A form of an international organization that brings several autonomous states together for a common purpose |
| Domino Theory | – The idea that political destabilization in one country can lead to collapse of political stability in neighboring countries, starting a chain reaction of collapse |
| East/West Divide | Geographic separation between the largely democratic and free market countries of Western Europe and the Americas from the communist and socialist countries of Eastern Europe and Asia |
| Electoral College | A certain number of electors from each state proportional to and seemingly representative of that state’s population. Each elector chooses a candidate believing they are representing their constituency’s choice. The candidate who receives a higher proportion of electoral votes within a state receives all the electoral votes for that state |
| Electoral vote | The decision of a particular state elector that represents the dominant views of that elector’s state |
| Elongated state | A state whose territory is long and narrow in shape |
| Enclaves | Any small and relatively homogeneous group or region surrounded by another larger and different group or region |
| European Union | International organization comprised of Western European countries to promote free trade among members |
| Exclave | A bounded territory that is part of a particular state but is separated from it by the territory of a different state |
| Federalism | A system of government in which power is distributed among certain geographical territories rather than concentrated within a central government |
| Fragmented state | A state that is not a contiguous whole but rather separated parts |
| Frontier | An area where borders are shifting and weak and where peoples of different cultures or nationalities meet and lay claim to the land |
| Geometric boundary | Political boundaries that are defined and delimited by straight lines |
| Geopolitics | The study of the interplay between political relations and the territorial context in which they occur |
| Gerrymandering | The designation of voting districts so as to favor a particular political party or candidate |
| Heartland theory | Hypothesis proposed by Halford Mackinder that held that any political power based in the heart of Eurasia could gain enough strength to eventually dominate the world |
| Imperialism | The perpetuation of a colonial empire even after it is no longer politically sovereign |
| International organization | An alliance of two or more countries seeking cooperation with each other without giving up either’s autonomy or self-determination |
| Landlocked state | A state that is completely surrounded by the land of other states, which gives it a disadvantage in terms of accessibility to and from international trade routes |
| Law of the Sea | Law establishing states’ rights and responsibilities concerning the ownership and use of the earth’s seas and oceans and their resources |
| Lebensraum | Hitler’s expansionist theory based on a drive to acquire “living space” for the German people |
| Microstate | A state or territory that is small in both population and area |
| Nation | Tightly knit group of individuals sharing a common language, ethnicity, religion, and other cultural attributes |
| Nationalism | A sense of national pride to such an extent of exalting one nation above all others |
| Nation-state | A country whose population possesses a substantial degree of cultural homogeneity and unity |
| North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) | Agreement signed on January 1, 1994 that allows the opening of borders between the United States, Mexico, and Canada |
| North Atlantic Treaty Organization ( NATO) | An international organization that has joined together for military purposes |
| North/south divide | The economic division between the wealthy countries of Europe and North America, Japan, and Australia and the generally poorer countries of Asia, Africa, and Latin America |
| Organic Theory | The view that states resemble biological organisms with life cycles that include stages of youth, maturity, and old age |
| Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries | An international economic organization whose member countries all produce and export oil |
| Perforated state | A state whose territory completely surrounds that of another state |
| Physical boundary | Political boundaries that correspond with prominent physical features such as mountain ranges or rivers |
| Political geography | The spatial analysis of political phenomena and processes |
| Popular vote | The tally of each individual’s vote within a given geographic area |
| Prorupted state | A state that exhibits a narrow, elongated land extension leading away from the main territory |
| Reapportionment | The process of a reallocation of electoral seats to defined territories |
| Rectangular state | A state whose territory is rectangular in shape |
| Redistricting | The drawing of new electoral district boundary lines in response to population changes |
| Relic boundaries | Old political boundaries that no longer exist as international borders, but that have left an enduring mark on the local cultural or environmental geography |
| Rimland theory | Nicholas Spykman’s theory that the domination of the coastal fringes of Eurasia would provide the base for world conquest |
| Self-determination | The right of a nation to govern itself autonomously |
| Sovereignty | Supreme or independent political power |
| State | A politically organized territory that is administered by a sovereign government and is recognized by the international community |
| States’ rights | Rights and powers believed to be in the authority of the state rather than the federal government |
| Subsequent boundaries | Boundary line established after an area has been settled that considers the social and cultural characteristics of the area |
| Superimposed boundaries | Boundary line drawn in an area ignoring the existing cultural pattern |
| Supranational organization | Organization of three or more states to promote shared objectives |
| Territorial dispute | Any dispute over land ownership |
| Territorial organization | Political organization that distributes political power in more easily governed units of land |
| Theocracy | A state whose government is either believed to be divinely guided or a state under the control of a group of religious leaders |
| Unitary state | A state governed constitutionally as a unit, without internal divisions or a federalist delegation of powers |
| United Nations | A global supranational organization established at the end of World War II to foster international security and cooperation |
