Political Geography: the study of the ways that the world is organised as a reflection of the power that different groups hold over territory

Political maps can express differences in interpretations of the world. For example:

• The Chinese government doesn’t recognize the island of Taiwan as a separate country

• The US consider Taiwan independent

• Therefore a political map from these two countries may look different

State: a politically organized, independent territory with a government, defined borders, an a permanent population

Sovereignty: The right of a government to control and defend its territory and determine what occurs within its borders.

• If a state is not recognized as an independent country by other states, it is not considered sovereign

Nations: a cultural entity of individuals with a shared language religion, ethnicity, or heritage (often all of these traits are shared) who share a vision of the future.

• For example Native Hawaiians, the Navajo people

Nation-State: when the territory covered by a state is the same as the territory occupied by a group of people who view themselves as a nation

• No country is a pure nation-state

• Countries are often considered nation-states if 85% of their population is made up of a single ethnic group

Multistate Nation: a state that consists of people who share a a cultural or ethnic background but live in more than one country

• ex. Ethnic Russians because many live outside Russia

Irredentism: Attempting to acquire territories in neighboring states inhabited by people of the same nation

Multinational State: A country that contains two or more ethnic groups with traditions of self-determination

• often struggle with getting citizens to feel a sense of unity with those of other groups

Multiethnic state: A country with 2+ ethnic groups within its borders

Autonomous/ semiautonomous: When a region within a country is given some authority to govern their own territories independent from the national government.

Stateless Nation: a people united by culture, language, history, and tradition but not possessing a state

• ex. Tribal nations in the US

• is not the majority ethnic group in any one state