Chapter 8 Section 2 Why do boundaries cause problems?

Boundaries & Boundary Problems of States Shapes of states – Five basic shapes – Landlocked states Types of boundaries – Physical boundaries – Cultural boundaries Boundaries inside states – Unitary & federal states – Trend toward federal government – Electoral geography

Boundaries A boundary is an (often) invisible line marking the extent of a state’s territory They separate one state from another Some are based on physical features, cultural features, historical reasons, etc… They are often tough to set They often cause problems People always want more territory (even if it is “uninhabitable”)

Shapes of States The shape of a state is how its boundaries look and lay The shape can affect communication, transportation, international involvement, trade, economics, conflict, ease or difficulty in governance, social unity or discord, etc… There are five basic shapes

Shapes of States Compact States (Efficient States): these are states whose distance from the center to any boundary does not vary significantly The ideal theoretical shape of this would be circular and they tend to be compact and smaller states Pros: compact, easy communications and transportation, can create unity, easy to control, easier to defend, shorter borders Cons: often small- fewer resources and less land area, often a smaller population, can be crowded, crowd in different groups, can cause internal discord Examples: Uganda, Rwanda, Luxembourg, Belize

Shapes of States Prorupted States: this are compact states with a large projecting extension They are generally created for one of two reasons: – The proruption provides a state access to a resource like the sea – The proruption can also try to prevent a border between other countries or a country and a resource  Pros: Help reach resources, help divide other countries or resources, foreign policy goals  Cons: non-compact, can reduce efficiency in communication, transportation, unity, etc…  Examples: Aghanistan, the German Caprivi Strip in former South West Africa (Namibia)

India: The Tin Bigha Corridor Fig. 8-7: The Tin Bigha corridor fragmented two sections of the country of Bangladesh. When it was leased to Bangladesh, a section of India was fragmented.

Shapes of States Elongated States: states with a long and narrow shape Pros: often natural- someone’s going to control it, often have natural boundaries- sometimes good for defense Cons: can decrease communication and transportation efficiency, can reduce unity, long border to defend, often restricted by the physical landscape Example: Chile, Italy, Vietnam

Shapes of States Fragmented States: this is a state that includes several discontinuous pieces of territories Can include islands, can include lands separated Pros: you have more land, islands can be assets, might just be separated by water, might help trade, more resources Cons: divided, fragmented, harder for unity, may have more groups of peoples, less efficiency communication and transportation, harder to defend Examples: Japan, US, India, Turkey, Panama until 1999, Azerbaijan

Shapes of States Perforated States: A state that completely surrounds another state Pros: You can exploit their need for outside access, may promote trade Cons: You have a foreign nation inside you, can hurt unity, can cause tension with different groups Examples: South Africa surrounding Lesotho

Landlocked States States that have no direct outlet to the sea or a major body of water with access to the sea Examples: Lesotho, Swaziland, 14 countries in total in Africa Pros: more protection from tsunamis, not many pros Cons: hurts trade, which hurts everything else, more dependence on other countries, forced alliances, need middlemen

Types of Boundaries Frontiers: a zone where no state exercises complete political control (represented a very common boundary until the 1800s- most are gone now other than in Antarctica and the Arabian Peninsula) Nations want to claim even seemingly worthless land (possible resources, more of a buffer, etc…) Physical boundaries: physical features on earth’s surface separate nations- mountains, deserts, or water Cultural boundaries: boundaries created by different ethnicities, cultures, languages, history

Frontiers in the Arabian Peninsula Fig. 8-8: Several states in the Arabian Peninsula are separated by frontiers rather than precise boundaries.

Physical boundaries Mountains: effective boundaries, particularly if they are hard to cross (easier today, but most boundaries have been long-established by them) Pros: Can provide protection- less likely to be attacked over mountains Cons: mountains are harder to rule and control Examples: Andes for Chile, Alps for Italy, Himalayas for India and China

Physical boundaries Desert: hard to cross and difficult to separate, sparsely inhabited Examples: North African countries like Egypt, Algeria, and Libya in the north from Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Chad, and Sudan on the south, Asian countries like Mongolia and China Pros: good buffer, good defense Cons: hard to keep track of, hard to control

Physical boundaries Water boundaries: rivers, lakes, oceans, seas are the physical features most commonly used as boundaries Pros: source of water, transportation and communication, defensive, good for trade, a real link Cons: dividing, small bodies may be easier to cross than deserts and mountains Example: Lake Victoria between Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda

Physical Boundaries Man-made fences Pros- clear border, can be defended Cons- hard to build, hard to enforce, most can be gotten over, under, or through Examples: US/Mexico border in places, Great Wall of China

Great Wall of China The wall was built in the 3rd century B.C. and extended during the following century.

Cultural boundaries Different ethnic groups, languages, religions Some are simply political Main three: – Geometric – Religious – Language

Cultural boundaries Geometric boundaries: these are boundaries established for geometric ease of use (straight lines, lines along latitudinal or longitudinal lines) Pros: ease of use, not as hard to figure out, clean maps, etc… Cons: may not pay attention to ethnicity, religion, language, or other natural cultural boundaries Example: the straight line between Canada and the US along the 49 th parallel and the straight line between Chad and Libya drawn in 1899 by the British and French

Aozou Strip: a Geometric Boundary Fig. 8-9: The straight boundary between Libya and Chad was drawn by European powers, and the strip is the subject of controversy between the two countries.

Cultural Boundaries Religious boundaries- boundaries that divide people according to the religion they practice Often coincide with political boundaries, not often did religion create the boundary, but the separation of this group on this side and this religious group on that side took place afterward Example: Islamic Pakistan and Hindu India, Northern Ireland and Ireland, parts of Israel

Cultural Boundaries Language boundaries: boundaries that divide people according to the language they speak Often language groups were used to determine nationalities in Europe- you speak French then you are French, etc… Example: most countries in Europe

Cultural Boundaries Cyprus’s “Green Line” Boundary: Cyprus is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and has two major nationalities- Greeks and Turkish Greeks make up 78% of the population, but the island is closer physically to Turkey (Turks make up 18% of the population) When Cyprus gained independence from Britain in 1960, it guaranteed the Turkish minority a share of political offices and some societal controls The two nationalities have never been successfully integrated In 1974, pro-Greek government supporters staged a coup, Turkey then sent in troops and took over 37% of the island

Division of Cyprus Fig. 8-10: Cyprus has been divided into Greek and Turkish portions since 1974.

Cultural Boundaries The Greek coup ended but the Turkish army stayed After the coup- the two groups segregated to parts of the island- the northeastern part of the island is mostly Turkish and the southern part is mostly Greek In 1983, the Turkish part announced its independence but only Turkey recognized it A buffer zone patrolled by UN soldiers crosses the entire island to prevent Greeks and Turks from crossing The UN has pushed reunification- the border was opened more in 2003 between the two and since then, but distrust still exists

Nicosia, Cyprus Checkpoint Checkpoint between Greek and Turkish portions of Nicosia, the capital of Cyprus.

Boundaries inside States Within countries, local government boundaries are sometimes drawn to separate distinct regions with specific interests, nationalities, religions, or ethnicities or sometimes for political parties The world goes through phases- sometimes there is a move for a strong, central government with full power and sometimes there is a push for federalism (dividing power between the federal government and states or smaller units within it) A unitary state puts the power in the federal government’s hands A federal state divides up power between the federal government and states Most countries are pushing for the latter right now

Boundaries inside States Unitary states- best for smaller, more homogeneous states Limits disagreement, differential treatment, pushes unity and nationalism, can be equalizing, can limit diversity, can overshadow local groups, can overlook local concerns Federal states- best for larger, more heterogeneous states Allows for more differential treatment, allows local issues to be dealt with, can promote local diversity, can limit unity, can hinder nationalism, can miss the big picture The US is a federal state Communist countries tend to be unitary The current trend is federal though

Boundaries inside States France is pushing toward a federal government- they have departments and communes and both are gaining more authority Poland is also pushing a new federal government- they were unitary under communist control

Boundaries within states Electoral Geography- sometimes countries divide up into electoral districts to provide representation that is more local and attuned to specific areas In the US, each state is represented by 2 senators who represent the whole state in Congress and a number of representatives who each represent a district within a state (the districts are created to be roughly equal in population- around 640, ,000 people each) They are reapportioned after each census (occurs every 10 years- a population count for the whole nation) When districts are drawn to help or hurt a group- that is called gerrymandering- it is illegal

Gerrymandering Florida & Georgia Fig. 8-11: State legislature boundaries were drawn to maximize the number of legislators for Republicans in Florida and Democrats in Georgia.