1. Chapter 8 Political Geography

2. Old-School Geography Memorization of places, capitals, and locations Why is this still important? Why is it not enough to understand the world? What is political geography?

3. Political Geography The study of how people have organized Earth’s land surface into countries and alliances, what caused these arrangements, and the conflicts that have resulted

4. Chapter 8 Section 1 Where Are States Located?

5. Defining States & Development of the State Concept Problems of defining states – Korea: one state or two? – China & Taiwan: one state or two? – Western Sahara – Varying sizes of states Development of the state concept – Ancient & medieval states – Colonies

6. Political Geography Political geography divides the world up into lands controlled by groups of people Throughout history, people have claimed land This has gotten much more “precise” in the past century Antarctica is the only land really not completely claimed today

7. Political Geography Political geography divides the world up into lands controlled by groups of people Throughout history, people have claimed land This has gotten much more “precise” in the past century Antarctica is the only land really not completely claimed today

8. Political Geography State: an area organized into a political unit and ruled by an established government that has control over its internal and foreign affairs A state occupies a defined territory and has a population of citizens A state also has sovereignty Sovereignty is independence from control by other states

9. Political Geography Why are there problems defining some states? – Disputes over territories and competition – All land has been claimed and turned into a political unit of some type (spare Antarctica) – Different groups living within the state vying for power – Self-determination – Other reasons?

10. Political Geography Antarctica: – UK, Chile, France, NZ, Norway, Australia, and Argentina all claim parts- many overlap – The US, Russia, and many other countries don’t recognize these claims – The Treaty of Antarctica of 1959 created a framework to manage the continent- states can create research station, but no military activities are allowed

11. Antarctica National Claims Fig. 8-2: Antarctica is the only large land mass that is not part of a state, but several countries claim portions of it.

12. Political Geography Some states test the definition of sovereign states, like: – Western Sahara – Somaliland – Taiwan – Korea – Tibet

13. Korea The peninsula divided at the 38 th parallel after WWII, Korean War 1950-1953, issues since then, DMZ to present North Korea: communist, dictatorship, totalitarian, low per capita and GDP, strict censorship and social controls, anti-American South Korea: democracy, republic, capitalist, higher per capita and GDP, more freedoms, pro- American

14. North and South Korea Nighttime satellite image shows the contrasting amounts of electric lighting in South Korea compared to North Korea.

15. Korea Both countries want to unite the peninsula under their terms Have opened relations at periods throughout the years since 1953 Still a lot of tension Both are recognized as sovereign nations currently Both became UN members in 1992

16. UN The United Nations was formed after WWII Its predecessor was the League of Nations It was created to help countries work issues out, work together, avoid conflicts, and help each other as needed There is no true “international” govt. with binding power, but this is the closest thing to it

17. United Nations Members Fig. 8-1: The UN has increased from 51 members in 1945 to 192 in 2007.

18. Sovereign States

19. China and Taiwan Taiwan is an island that is claimed by China Taiwan claims sovereignty and has since 1999 In the 1940s, Nationalists and Communists were fighting for control of China- the Communists won in 1949 Nationalists fled to Taiwan afterward

20. China and Taiwan Most governments today consider China and the island of Taiwan separate and sovereign states The US had supported the Nationalists and recognizes Taiwan (actually as the government for China until 1971, when China got accepted to the UN) Taiwan is the largest country today not in the UN or recognized

21. Western Sahara AKA the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic It is considered by most African countries as a sovereign state It is between Morocco and Mauritania Morocco claims the territory and has built a 3,000 kilometer wall around it to keep out rebels

22. Western Sahara Spain controlled the region until 1976 Morocco controls most of the populated area The Polisario Front, which claims independence, operates the sparsely populated and mostly uninhabited deserts The two parties signed a cease-fire in 1991 and the UN supervises it

23. Western Sahara There are still cities in Morocco controlled by Spain today and after a referendum, they’ve shown that’s how they want it They’ve tried to have a referendum in Western Sahara, but it hasn’t happened

24. Western Sahara AKA the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic It is considered by most African countries as a sovereign state It is between Morocco and Mauritania Morocco claims the territory and has built a 3,000 kilometer wall around it to keep out rebels

25. Varying Size of States Land area varies greatly Shape varies greatly The largest state is Russia- 6.6 million square miles (11% of earth’s land) China, Canada, the US, Brazil, and Australia are the other biggies Microstates are the opposite- states which have very small land areas The smallest state is Monaco- 0.6 square miles- others include many islands

26. Tonga Tonga is a microstate, including 102,000 inhabitants and 169 islands.

27. Development of the idea of States The concept of dividing the world into many independent states is recent Before 1800, most of it was divided into city- states, empires, and tribes and a lot of unorganized territories After increased communication, transportation, and trade, most has been claimed and staked and divided up among sovereign powers

28. Development of the idea of States The modern move to divide the world up started in Europe in the 1800s The development of states, however, goes way back- to the ancient Middle East, in the fertile crescent First civilizations- around 2000-3000 BC: Mesopotamia along the Tigris and Euphrates, India along the Indus, China along the Yellow, and Egypt along the Nile

29. The Fertile Crescent Fig. 8-3: The Fertile Crescent was the site of early city-states and a succession of ancient empires.

30. Development of the idea of States In Mesopotamia, land was divided up into city- states A city-state is a sovereign state that comprises a city and the surrounding countryside Walls are often put up to mark the territory Often a city-state would try to take over others and form an empire

31. Development of the idea of States An empire is a vast territory controlled by one main power Often includes colonies- territories separate from a sovereign motherland, but controlled by her politically, socially, and economically Romans- 509 BC to AD 476 Mongols

32. Development of the idea of States Modern states- Europe during the end of the Middle Ages Spain, Portugal, France, and England Most of central Europe was divided into small kingdoms and seldom loosely united even During the Age of Exploration, more popped up

33. Image of British Colonialism An 1840 painting of Queen Victoria receiving an emissary from Africa.

34. Development of the idea of States Age of Exploration 1400-1800 Colonialism- effort by one country to establish settlements/colonies and to control them politically, socially, and economically Why have them? God, Gold, and Glory- the three G’s

35. Development of the idea of States 1800s-1900s- Imperialism European countries, Russia, Japan, and US tried to dominate weaker nations Imperialism: the domination of a weaker nation by a stronger nation Places dominated- much of Asia, Africa, and Latin America

36. Colonial Possessions, 1914 Fig. 8-4: By the outbreak of World War I, European states held colonies throughout the world, especially throughout Africa and in much of Asia.

37. African States Fig. 8-6: Southern, central, and eastern Africa include states that are compact, elongated, prorupted, fragmented, and perforated.

38. Development of the idea of States Lots of variation in how to rule colonies Affects the world today Created many modern boundaries Colonial powers ignored indigenous populations and their needs often Ignored ethnic and religious differences The main drive was economic Few remaining colonies today Push for independence in the 1900s, particularly post- WWII

39. Colonial Possessions, 2006 Fig. 8-5: Most of the remaining colonies are small islands in the Pacific or Caribbean.