1. Chapter 4, Section 3
Political Geography

2. Political Geography 4.3
State - an independent unit that occupies a specific territory and has full control of its internal and external affairs
This control is known as sovereignty
Sometimes we call a state a country
Nation - a group of people with a common culture living in a territory and having a sense of unity
When a nation and a state occupy the same territory, that territory is called a nation-state
It is possible for a nation to not have a territory
Called a stateless nation
Palestinians, Kurds, Basques

3. Four general categories of government
Democracy – power rests with the citizens, either directly or through elected representatives- example: USA
Monarchy – a ruling family has the power and may or may not share with the people
Constitutional Monarchy: United Kingdom
Absolute Monarchy : Saudi Arabia
Dictatorship – an individual or group hold complete political power – example: Myanmar
Communism – based on an economic system, most political power and means of production are held by the government in the name of all people – example: Cuba

4. orange – parliamentary republics green - presidential republics, executive presidency linked to a parliament yellow - presidential republics, semi-presidential system blue - presidential republics, full presidential system red – parliamentary constitutional monarchies in which the monarch does not personally exercise power magenta – constitutional monarchies in which the monarch personally exercises power, often (but not always) alongside a weak parliament purple – absolute monarchies brown - republics where the dominant role of a single party is codified in the constitution beige - states where constitutional provisions for government have been suspended olive – military dictatorships grey - countries which do not fit any of the above systems

5. When describing a country geographers refer to three characteristics
Size – large countries may have more potential (More people and resources), but small countries can be successful too (Singapore, Denmark)
Shape-
Compact – Germany
Long – Chile
Fragmented – Malaysia
Relative location
A landlocked country may be disadvantaged for trade
Bolivia (landlocked) vs. Singapore (located on a major shipping lane)
A nation surrounded by hostile neighbors must deal with issues of security and protection
Israel

6. Boundaries or borders set limits of the nation-state
Within borders a nation can collect taxes, set up legal code, declare official language and claim resources
Natural Boundaries – formed by physical features such as rivers, lakes and mountains
Easy to draw
What if river changes course?
Artificial boundaries – drawn by humans, often along a parallel or meridian
Who draws the borders?
Africa
Pakistan/India

7. Regional political units
Countries are often divided into smaller units: cities, town and villages, school districts
Countries who have regional entities (states, provinces) that have powers not given to the national governments are called federal
Countries where the national government has all the power are called unitary
Countries that band together for certain purposes can be called confederations
European Union, United Nations