Territorial Dimensions of Politics - AP Human Geography

Apartheid was an official government policy of South Africa for much of the twentieth century. It was based on the belief that there is an inherent difference between the races and that people of different ethnicities should be prevented from working and living together by rules and regulations.

Federalism is a system of government where power is shared (in various arrangements) between a centralized government and various regional authorities. The United States is a federal country because power is shared between the national government and the governments of the various states.

A unitary state, as opposed to a federal state like the United States, is a state where laws are administered uniformly by one central government. There are no regional authorities, like the various states in the United States, who compete for power and dilute the authority of the central government.

The Great Wall of China is an example of a relic boundary, or a nonfunctional boundary that still exists.

India and Pakistan were both part of the British Raj, which encompassed modern day India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Sikkim. In 1947, Britain granted self-rule to its former dominions in Southeast Asia, and it was believed that most of the former Raj would become one country, known as India. However, Muslim leaders in the country wanted a Muslim country, creating East and West Pakistan. In 1972, West Pakistan became the independent nation of Bangladesh.

Compact states feature their capitals in the center. No other type of state shape has a set capital location. Prorupted states are states wherein a piece of the state is projected. Elongated states are long and narrow. Perforated states feature a state fully enclosed inside another state's territory. Fragmented states have two or more pieces to them.

Korea is an ancient and long-lasting nation. Although for much of its history has been incorporated into various empires the Korean ethnicity remains fairly homogenous and culturally relevant. Since the end of the Korean War in 1953 the Korean nationality has been divided between a communist North Korea and a capitalist South Korea.

The boundary between Northern Ireland (part of the United Kingdom) and the Republic of Ireland (an independent state) is an example of a religious boundary. The population of Northern Ireland is overwhelmingly Protestant, whereas the population of the Republic of Ireland is overwhelmingly Catholic. The proximity of these two religious groups, and the involvement of the English government, has led to a great deal of “trouble” in the past century.

A cultural boundary is the geographical term for the border between two different ethnic, linguistic, and religious groups. While these often fall along territorial, topographical, or national boundaries, they can be almost anywhere, and cultural boundaries are more likely to be shaped by historical forces rather than strictly geographical ones. An important cultural boundary is the line formed from the Alps and the Danube River, which divided Western Europe between the Latinized areas of the former Roman Empire and the German-influenced areas on the other side.

An allocational boundary dispute is a dispute over the right to resources. An allocational dispute arises from both natural resources, such as water from a common source, and commercial resources, such as oil from beneath bordering land.

The Kurds do not have a state where they are the majority population. They are, therefore, a stateless nation. All other ethnic groups listed have their own states, such as the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Croatia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina respectively.

A boundary dispute over the "allocation" or distribution of natural resources is an allocational dispute. A definitional dispute is a boundary dispute over the legal terms set forth, a locational dispute is a boundary dispute over the physical location, and an operational dispute is a boundary dispute over how the boundary ought to function.

Serving on the U.S. President's Cabinet is a high-ranking position within one of the most powerful governments in the world. This job is a high-level decision-making position in the government.

Working as a commercial plumber is not a high-ranking position. Even if said plumber owns their own small business, that person is not making high-level decisions that influence the economy.

Researching genetic-engineering for a government-funded firm is also not high-ranking. Researchers are low-level employees who gain data for the people that make decisions, but they themselves do not usually make the decisions for a company or firm.

Teaching new methods of irrigation for an NGO does require making decisions, but the decisions being made are not the high-level decisions that influence the economy of the NGO or a country.

Managing a Subway restaurant can require high-level decision making, but it is not the decision-making the ultimately influences the economic growth of the Subway company. The CEO of Subway is the only position within the company that would be considered to carry the high-level decision-making duties.

An antecedent boundary is the name of a boundary between two states that is created before the area is populated with human society. An antecedent boundary may come to be more relevant in the future if people begin to settle in the area; this is what happened with the boundary between the United States and Canada in Oregon.

An elongated state is a state that is long and narrow. It stretches a long way in one direction (either north-south or east-west) and a very short way in the other direction. Chile is the classic example of an elongated state because it spans thousands of miles top to bottom, but only a few hundred from side-to-side. The opposite of an elongated state is a compact state.

According to the Heartland Theory, a government that controls Central Eurasia (much of Russia, some of Eastern Europe, and the Middle East) is likely to eventually dominate much of the world. Mackinder believed that this region was central to interaction between Europe and Asia and to the rest of the world. Most contemporary geographers disagreed with him.

A perforated state is a state that completely surrounds another state. Two classic examples are Italy, which completely surrounds San Marino and the Vatican, and South Africa, which completely surrounds Lesotho. Due to the vulnerability of the surrounded state, it is often vital for that state to maintain good relations with the perforated state that surrounds them.

When a line of latitude or longitude is used to delineate the political barrier between two states we call that boundary a “geometric boundary.” One famous example of a “geometric boundary” is the 49th parallel between the United States of America and Canada.

A prorupted state is a state that has a primary body of territory that comprises most of the state, but that also has a long extension that can dramatically increase the territorial power and significance of the country. The classic example of a prorupted state is Thailand.