AP Human Geography Barron’s Book AP Exam Vocabulary Chapter 4: Political Geography
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Antecedent Boundaries
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A boundary line established before an area is populated.
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Balkanization
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The contentious political process by which a state may break up into smaller countries.
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Buffer State
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A relatively small country sandwiched between two larger powers. The existence of buffer states may help to prevent dangerous conflicts between powerful countries.
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Centrifugal Forces
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Forces that tend to divide a country.
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Centripetal Forces
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Forces that tend to unite or bind a country together.
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Colonialism
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The expansion and perpetuation of an empire.
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Commonwealth of Independent States
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Confederacy of independent states of the former Soviet Union that have united because of their common economic and administrative needs.
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Compact State
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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.
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Confederation
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A form of an international organization that brings several autonomous states together for a common purpose.
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Democratization
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The process of establishing representative and accountable forms of government led by popularly elected officials.
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Devolution
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The delegation of legal authority from a central government to lower levels of political organization, such as state or country.
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Domino Theory
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The idea that political stabilization in one country can lead to collapse of political stability in neighboring countries, starting a chain reaction of collapse.
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East/West Divide
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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.
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Electoral College
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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.
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Electoral Vote
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The decision of a particular state elector that represents the dominant views of that elector's state.
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Elongated State
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A state whose territory is long and narrow in shape.
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Enclaves
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An small and relatively homogeneous group or religion surrounded by another large and different group or religion.
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European Union
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International organization comprised of Western European countries to promote free trade among members.
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Exclave
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A bounded territory that is part of a particular state but is separated from it by the territory of a different state.
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Federalism
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A system of government in which power is distributed among certain geographical territories rather than concentrated within a central government.
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Fragmented State
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A state that is not a contiguous whole but rather separated parts.
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Frontier
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An area where borders are shifting and weak and where peoples of different cultures or nationalities meet and lay claim to the land.
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Geometric Boundary
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Political boundaries that are defined and delimited by straight lines.
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Geopolitics
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The study of the interplay between political relations and the territorial context in which they occur.
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Gerrymandering
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The designation of voting districts so as to favor a particular political party or candidate.
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Heartland Theory
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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.
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Imperialism
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The perpetuation of a colonial empire even after it is no longer politically sovereign.
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International Organization
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An alliance if two or more countries seeking cooperation withe each other without giving up either's autonomy or self determination.
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Landlocked State
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A state that is completely surrounded by the land of other states, which gives it a disadvantage in terms of accessibility t and from international trade routes.
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Law of the Sea
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Law establishing states' rights and responsibilities concerning the ownership and use of the Earth's seas and oceans and their resources.
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Lebensraum
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Hitler's expansionist theory based on a drive to acquire \"living space\" for the German people.
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Microstate
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A state or territory that is small in both populations and area.
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Nation
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Tightly knit group of individuals sharing a common language, ethnicity, religion, and other cultural attributes.
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Nationalism
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A sense of national pride to such an extent of exhalting one nation above all others.
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Nation-State
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A country whose population possesses a substantial degree of cultural homogeneity and unity.
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North American Free Trade Agreement
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Agreement signed on January 1, 1994, that allows the opening of borders between the United States, Mexico, and Canada.
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North Atlantic Treaty Organization
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An international organization that has joined for military purposes.
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North/South Divide
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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.
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Organic Theory
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The view that states resemble biological organisms with life cycles that include stages of youth, maturity and old age.
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Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries
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An international economic organization whose member countries all produce and export oil.
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Perforated State
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A state whose territory completely surrounds that of another state.
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Physical Boundary
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Political boundaries that correspond with prominent physical features such as mountain ranges or rivers.
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Political Geography
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The spatial analysis of political phenomena and process.
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Popular Vote
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The tally pf each individual's vote within a given geographic.
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Prorupted State
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A state that exhibits a narrow, elongated land extension leading away from the main territory.
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Reapportionment
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The process of reallocation of electoral seats to defined territories.
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Rectangular State
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A state whose shape is rectangular in shape.
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Redistricting
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The drawing of new electoral district boundary lines in response to population changes.
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Relic Boundaries
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Old political boundaries that no longer exist as international borders, but that have left an enduring mark on the local cultural or environmental geography.
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Rimland Theory
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Nicholas Spykman's theory that the domination of the coastal fringes of Eurasia would provide the base for world conquest.
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Self- Determination
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The right of a nation to govern itself autonomously.
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Sovereignty
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Supreme or independent political power.
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State
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A politically organized territory that is administered by a sovereign government is recognized by the international community.
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Stateless Nation
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A group of people with a common political identity who do not have a territoriality defined, sovereign country of their own.
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State's Right
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Rights and powers believed to be in the authority of the state rather than the federal government.
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Subsequent Boundaries
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Boundary line established after an area has been settles that considers the social and cultural characteristics of the area.
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Superimposed Boundaries
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Boundary line drawn in an area ignoring the existing cultural pattern.
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Supranational Organization
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Organization of three or more states to promote shared objectives.
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Territorial Organization
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Political organization that distributes political power in more easily governed units of land.
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Territorial Dispute
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Any dispute over land ownership.
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Theocracy
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A state whose government is either believed to be divinely guided or a state under the control of a group of religious leaders.
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Unitary State
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A state governed constitutionally as a unit, without internal divisions or a federalist delegation of powers.
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United Nations
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A global supranational organization established at the end of World War 2 to foster international security and cooperation
