Political Organization of Space - AP Human Geography

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.

The geographic term for a country that is completely surrounded by the territory of more than one other country and has no direct access to the sea is “landlocked.” Being landlocked is generally considered to be a major disadvantage for a country because that country must rely on another country for any goods that are transported by sea. Many wars have been started by landlocked countries seeking to carve a path to the ocean through another country's territory.

Vatican City is an example of an enclave because it is an independent state that is completely surrounded by the borders of another state, in this case, Italy. Switzerland, although landlocked, is bordered by many countries and is thus not technically an “enclave.”

The Philippines is considered a fragmented state because its territory is physically divided, by the ocean, into several distinct regions that make it harder for a centralized government to wield control. Although the territories of the United Kingdom and the United States are not wholly contiguous they are not usually considered to be fragmented states because the vast majority of their significant territory is contiguous.

Puerto Rico came into American possession in 1898, following American victory over the Spanish in the Spanish-American War. For a time it was administered as a territory of the United States; however, in the 1950s its status was changed to that of a commonwealth territory. The meaning of this is controversial and often debated, but it essentially means that Puerto Rico retains autonomy in some areas but is under the control of the American government in other areas.

The term “annexation” is used to describe the internationally legal addition of new territory into an existing state. When we use the phrase “internationally legal” this is of course a dubious distinction, but essentially a nation can “annex” more territory in certain situations without it being considered an act of war. The United States, during its history of westward expansion, consistently annexed new territory, primarily because the Native Americans were not considered legitimate claimants to the land by the international community.

“Centrifugal forces” are forces within a country that work to pull that country apart. They are more common in larger states, particularly states that contain a large number of different nationalities competing for control and/or self-determination.

A “forward-thrust capital” is a capital that is deliberately located, or relocated, to a specific region within a country. Islamabad in Pakistan and Brasilia in Brazil are the two most notable examples of “forward-thrust capitals."

The Abyei dispute arose between Sudan and South Sudan and involves an oil-rich area of land on the border of the two nations. The Kashmir dispute arose between Pakistan and India, while the Cyprus dispute arose between Turkey and Greece.

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.

Balkanization is a term used to describe the division or fragmentation of a larger state due to disputes amongst different ethnicities in its population. The term derives its name from the division of the Balkan peninsula in the nineteenth century.

The North Atlantic Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was signed in 1994 between Canada, the United States, and Mexico. The primary goal of the treaty was to eliminate barriers to trade between the three countries and provide mutual advantages designed to encourage growth.

The European Union was codified in 1993 by the Treaty of Maastricht. It was signed by twelve nations originally, but has since expanded to include the majority of the European continent. The Treaty of Maastricht created the common economic union of Europe and provided impetus for the creation of a standard currency—the Euro.

During the Cold War years the world was divided into two political and economic ideological camps. The western world was capitalist and largely democratic, whereas much of the eastern world (the Soviet Union, China, parts of South Asia) was communist and largely autocratic. In geographic terminology this is referred to as the “East-west divide.”

Turkey, despite being in Eastern Europe and territorially very close to the Soviet Union, was a staunch ally of the United States and NATO throughout the Cold War. American nuclear warheads were kept on Turkish soil for several years, and the Turkish government served as a useful buffer for the United States between the Soviet Union and the other states of the Middle East.

NAFTA aimed to create a free trade area between the United States, Mexico, and Canada- including market expansion and integration, and eliminating tariffs between the member states. The U.S. money supply in controlled by the Federal Reserve and the Treasury, and unaffected by NAFTA.