Political Geography

Introduction
Humans have been organizing and structuring themselves from the beginning. Geographers are interested in
such structuring because it is an expression of the human organization of space and is closely related to other
spatial evidences of culture, such as religion, language and ethnicity.

The simple answer to the question “what is political geography about?” is what it says it is about: politics and
geography. But that is altogether too simple.

Political geography is by no means the sum of its two parts. In political geography, “geography” is drawn on in
selective ways: in ways which illumine the political. By the same token, “politics” is drawn on in ways which
shed light on the geographic. Above all, political geography focuses on the twin ideas of territory and
territoriality.

Territory and territoriality are the defining concepts of political geography in that they bring together the ideas
of power and space: territories as spaces that are defended, contested, claimed against the claims of others; in
short, through territoriality. Territory and territoriality mutually presuppose one another. There can’t be one
without the other. Territoriality is activity: the activity of defending, controlling, excluding, including; territory
is the area whose content one seeks to control in these ways. But again, that only takes us so far. To understand
territory and territoriality as opposed to describing what they are about, we need understandings of space
relations and politics.

As geographic concepts territory and territoriality have their roots, their conditions, in other spatial practices; in
particular those relating to movement and those that have to do with the embedding of people and their
activities in particular places – ideas that are fundamental to contemporary human geography. Likewise, in
order to understand the political in political geography we need to come to terms with the central concept of
modern political science, the state. The state is itself an expression of territorial power: it has an area over
which it claims jurisdiction, it has boundaries and it has powers to influence movement and what goes on in any
part of its jurisdiction.

Political Geography is the study of the organization and distribution of political phenomena, including their
impact on other spatial components of society and culture.

Political geography is concerned with the study of both the spatially uneven outcomes of political processes and
the ways in which political processes are themselves affected by spatial structures. Conventionally political
geography adopts a three-scale structure for the purposes of analysis with the study of the state at the center,
above this is the study of international relations (or geopolitics), and below it is the study of localities. The
primary concerns of the sub-discipline can be summarized as the inter-relationships between people, state and
territory.

Political geography has extended the scope of traditional political science approaches by acknowledging that the
exercise of power is not restricted to states and bureaucracies, but is part of everyday life. This has resulted in
the concerns of political geography increasingly overlapping with those of other human geography sub-
disciplines such as economic geography, and, particularly, with those of social and cultural geography in
relation to the study of the politics of place. Modern political geography often considers:

how and why states are organized into regional groupings, both formally (e.g. the European Union) and
informally (e.g. the Third World)

the relationship between states and former colonies, and how these are propagated over time, for example
through neo-colonialism

the relationship between a government and its people

the relationships between states including international trades and treaties

the functions, demarcations and policing of boundaries

the influence of political power on geographical space

how communications (telephone, radio, TV, Internet, social networks) have political implications

the study of election results (electoral geography)

Historical Background of Political Geography

‘Politics’ refers not simply to the formal organization of political life through government, elections, parties,
etc., but all aspects of social life involving governance or where some degree of contentiousness or conflict may
arise. Interpreted more broadly, therefore, political geography can encompass all those ideas about the
relationships between geography and politics extending beyond academic contexts.
Political geography has meant and studied different things in different contexts. In the late 19th century it was
partly synonymous with human geography as a whole. Friedrich Ratzel is credited with the first use of the term
in his book Politische Geographie, in which he aligned non-physical geography with the study of the state in
space. 

Mackinder similarly distinguished political and physical geography. The work of geographers in France,
Germany, Britain, and the USA in exploring the geographical foundations of state power is now more
commonly classified as geopolitics. Anxious to distance themselves from the German school
of geopolitik because of its close links to the Nazi regime, prominent US geographers such as Isaiah
Bowman and Richard Hartshorne described their work as ‘political geography’. But, actual empirical research
in the field dried up, perhaps because of the taint of geopolitics, and theoretical advance halted.

The main exception was work on boundaries and boundary disputes, which was a preoccupation of French and
German geographers before the Second World War and of interest to British geographers in the subsequent
phase of decolonization. In terms of theory, a notable exception was the work of French geographer Jean
Gottmann who, like Hartshorne, tried to understand the relations between the modern state, territory,
and identity. His recognition of the significance of iconography and the state idea prefigured later contributions.

In the 1960s, political geography was reframed in terms of political studies from spatial perspectives, with
elections, boundaries, and subnational administrative organization among its subject matter (see electoral
geography; spatial science). A core problem for example, was the effect of international boundaries on spatial
interaction. The impact of the cultural and political upheavals across the world in the late 1960s was twofold.
On the one hand, impelled by radical geography and informed by Marxism, feminism, and socialism, swathes of
human geography became politicized, i.e. were more attentive to conflict and difference and prepared to
challenge the existing order. In one sense, most if not all, human geography could be described thereafter as
political.

Definitions:
For now we will define State on the international level as an independent political unit occupying a defined,
permanently populated territory and having full sovereign control over its internal and foreign affairs. In
contrast a Nation is a cultural concept defining a group of people with a common culture occupying a
particular territory, bound together by a strong sense of unity arising from shared beliefs and customs.
The composite term nation-state properly refers to a state whose territorial extent coincides with that occupied
by a distinct nation or people. There are very few 100% nation-states.
The nation is a culture group residing within the territory of the political state. A group of people are
considered a nation if (1) they are permanent residents of a defined territory, (2) they exhibit some
form of government, (3) they have a common culture, and (4) they declare themselves to be, and are
considered by others to be, sovereign. When a group becomes a nation, older loyalties to family or
tribe must be subordinated to the new political order, and a common literature, history, and a sense
of a common future develop (Walter, 2004).
States are independent political unit that claim exclusive jurisdiction over defined territories and over
all of the people and activities within them. The governments are not always able to exercise this
jurisdiction completely, but states can encourage or even force patterns of human activities to
conform the political map. (Rubinstein, Service, Science, & &, 2002)
The continuous growth in size and complexity of societies led people to seek political organization
first in clans based on kinship, later in tribes that were collections of clans, and finally in city-states.
Around the fifteenth century, city-states gradually began to emerge as nation-states. A nation-state
is a specific form of state, which exists to provide a sovereign territory for a particular nation, and
derives its legitimacy from that function. In the ideal model of the nation-state, the population
consists of the nation and only of the nation: the state not only houses it, but protects it and its
national identity. The nation-state did not always exist, and most of the present nation-states are
located on territory that once belonged to another, non-national, state. They came into existence at
least partly as a result of political campaigns by nationalists. The establishment of a nation-state can
be considered the central demand of any nationalist movement.
Japan is considered a nation as it has defined territories, government and the residents share a
common culture. Moreover Japan traditionally seen as an example of a nation-state and also the
largest of the nation states, with population in excess of 120 million. It should be noted that Japan has
a small number of minorities such as Ryūkyū peoples, Koreans, and Chinese, and on the northern
island of Hokkaidō, the indigenous Ainu minority. However, they are either numerically insignificant
(Ainu), their difference is not as pronounced (though Ryukyuan culture is closely related to Japanese
culture).
Japan is also seen as a state due to the limited authority powers of the Emperor he is seen as a
ceremonial figurehead, he is defined by the constitution as “the symbol of the state and of the unity
of the people”. Power is held chiefly by the Prime Minister of Japan and other elected members of the
Diet, while sovereignty is vested in the Japanese people (National Diet of Japan, 2007) The Emperor
effectively acts as the head of state on diplomatic occasions. Akihito is the current Emperor of Japan.
Naruhito, Crown Prince of Japan, stands as next in line to the throne.
Nation-state in Japan express a shared identity of its own population, it has national symbols, above
all a national flag and a national anthem, often a wide range of national emblems. In fact it promotes
the Japanese national identity in almost every area of human social and cultural life, from the national
library to the national airline. Additionally it attempt to create and maintain national unity, and at least
a minimal internal uniformity. Nation states have a cultural policy and a language policy for this
purpose, and the educational system is often subordinated to this goal. The desire for uniformity had
positive economic effects, because nation-states generally try to reduce internal disparities in income
and regional GDP. Most have a regional policy for that purpose.

Iceland
Denmark
Poland
Japan

A multi-nation state (or multinational state) is one that contains more than one nation … the opposite of a
nation-state.
Canada
Cyprus

A part-nation state occurs when a nation is dispersed across and is predominant in two or more states.
Arab Nation

A stateless nation is a people without state … The world is populated by more than 1,600 stateless nations, most
of which are in one way or another engaged in national movements. The classic instance of a stateless nation
has been the Jewish people who for long centuries suffered for lack of a homeland until 1948. Other examples
include many indigenous peoples that have been maneuvered into minority status in their home countries by
colonial powers the gypsy / Roma people of Europe

The Palestinians
The Basques (Basques are indigenous to and primarily inhabit an area traditionally known as the Basque
Country (Basque: Euskal Herria), a region that is located around the western end of the Pyrenees on the coast
of the Bay of Biscay and straddles parts of north-central Spain and south-western France.)

The Kurd: numbering an estimated 20 million, are commonly seen as the world's largest nation without a state. About 10
million are in Turkey, 4 million in Iraq, 5 million in Iran and a million in Syria. There may be another million in the
former Soviet Union. About 400,000 of the 1.8 million guest workers from Turkey living in Germany are of Kurdish
origin

The Modern State

The earliest forms of the state emerged once it became possible to centralize power in a durable way. Agriculture allowed
for the production and storing of a surplus, which in turn allowed and encouraged the emergence of a class of people who
controlled and protected the agricultural stores and thus did not have to spend most of their time providing for their own
subsistence. Writing made possible the centralization of vital information.
The story of the development of the specifically modern state begins with the dissolution of the western Roman Empire.
This led to the fragmentation of the imperial state into the hands of private and decentralized lords whose political,
judicial and military roles corresponded to the organization of economic production. In place of the fragmented system of
feudal rule, with its often indistinct territorial claims, large unitary states with extensive control over definite territories
emerged. This process gave rise to the highly centralized and increasingly bureaucratic forms of absolute monarchical rule
of the 17th and 18th centuries, when the principal features of the contemporary state system took form, including the
introduction of a standing army, a central taxation system, diplomatic relations with permanent embassies, and the
development of state economic policy — mercantilism.
The Peace of Westphalia ended both the Thirty Years' War in Germany and the Eighty Years' War between Spain and the
Netherlands. The treaties involved the Holy Roman Emperor, the Kingdoms of Spain, France and Sweden, the Dutch
Republic and their respective allies among the princes of the Holy Roman Empire. The Peace of Westphalia resulted from
the first modern diplomatic congress and initiated a new order in central Europe based on the concept of state sovereignty.
Sovereignty is the exclusive right to control a government, a country and a people.
The now universal idea of the modern state was developed by European political philosophers in the 18 th century which
advanced the
concept that
people owe
their allegiance to
a state and the
people it
represents rather
than its leader or
king. The new
concept coincided
in France with the
French Revolution
and spread
throughout Western Europe to England, Spain and Germany.

The idea of separate statehood grew slowly at first. In 1800 there were 35 countries in the world. By 1939 there were 70
countries. After World War II, the end of the colonial era brought a rapid increase in the number of sovereign states. At
present there are over 200 sovereign states.

Geographic Aspects
Size, shape and location have great effect on the power and stability of states. Keep in mind that some states are bigger
than others but resources are not evenly distributed

Size

In general, the larger the state, the better the chance that there will be enough resources to support the state, but Canada,
Russia and Australia are large states with relatively small areas capable of supporting agriculture,
Size can also hinder the effective control of a state’s people and/or resources

Shape

Like size, shape can affect the well-being of a state by fostering or hindering effective organization. Compact states: states
that are roughly circular in shape … the distance from the center to any point on the boundary exhibits little variation …
Cambodia, Poland, Zimbabwe and Uruguay are examples,
Prorupt states: nearly compact but possess one or sometimes two narrow extensions of territory. Proruption may simply
reflect peninsular elongations of land area, such as with Thailand. In other instances, the extensions have an economic or
strategic significance - securing access to resources or water routes. Namibia strip was designed by the Germans to give
access to the Zambezi River.

Elongated states: a state whose territory is decidedly long and narrow; its length is at least six times greater than its
average width. the least efficient shape administratively is represented by countries like Vietnam, Norway or Chile which
are long and narrow. Parts of the country far from the capital are likely to be isolated. These countries are likely to
encompass more diversity of climate, resources and people

Fragmented states: countries composed entirely of islands (Philippines, Indonesia), countries partly on islands and partly
on mainland (Italy and Malaysia) and countries that are chiefly on the mainland, but whose territory is separated by
another state (US). Pakistan was once a fragmented country until 1971 when the eastern part broke away and became
Bangladesh.

Perforated states: state whose territory completely surrounds the territory of another state so that it has a hole in it. South
Africa (Lesotho) and Italy (San Marino and Vatican City) are examples
      
.
     

Boundaries:
The whole world, even Antarctica, is divided up and claimed by countries
Natural boundaries: those based on recognizable physical features, such as mountains, rivers or lakes. Even though these
natural boundaries seem like a good idea, in practice there are problems
Artificial boundaries: alternative to natural boundaries … geometric boundaries
Antecedent boundary: one drawn before an area is well populated and prior to the cultural landscape features, such as
the 49th parallel separating the US and Canada
Subsequent boundaries: boundaries drawn after the development of the cultural landscape … There are two types of
subsequent boundaries
Consequent boundary: which is a border drawn to accommodate existing cultural differences … Northern Ireland and
Ireland
Superimposed boundary: a boundary imposed on an area by a conquering or colonizing power that is unconcerned about
pre-existing cultural patterns … Africa, Yugoslavia, Afghanistan
Relict boundary: a former boundary line that once had meaning but no longer functions as such, usually marked by
landscape features (forts, castles). The abandoned castles dotting the frontier zone between Wales and England constitute
a relict boundary
Boundary Disputes
Boundary disputes are constant sources of problems in the world. Since World War II almost one-half of the countries in
the world have been involved in some kind of boundary dispute
There are four general types of boundary disputes
Positional disputes occur when states disagree about the interpretation of documents that define a boundary. The
boundary between Argentina and Chile was to follow the highest peaks and the watersheds between the east and west
flowing rivers. These two things do not always coincide. Argentina and Chile nearly went to war in the late 70’s over this
when oil and gas deposits were discovered in the disputed area

Territorial disputes arise when a superimposed boundary divides an ethnically homogeneous population. Conflicts can
arise when one of the states wants to annex part of another state to reunite a group of people. Hitler used this as an excuse
to invade Czechoslovakia and Poland to reunite pockets of German minorities residing in these states. Somalia has had
 border clashes with Ethiopia over Somalis living in that country. Kashmir, a disputed area between India and Pakistan
have caused two wars so far.
Resource disputes arise when neighboring states want access to resources from another state. The US has had a dispute
with Mexico over water rights from the Colorado River and with Canada over fishing grounds. The Gulf War was also
related to this. Iraq helped justify its invasion of Kuwait because of a large oil reserve that mostly lies in Iraq that Kuwait
pumps oil from
Functional disputes arise when neighboring states disagree over policies applied over a boundary. US-Mexican border
disputes over drugs and immigration
Types of Governments
Classification of governments can be based on several different variables

Economy: Who provides the goods and services that are bought, sold and used?
Capitalism Socialism Communism
(Russia) (Norway) (Cuba)
In a capitalist or free-market Socialist governments own In a communist country, the
economy, people own their own many of the larger industries government owns all
businesses and property and and provide education, health businesses and farms and
must buy services for private and welfare services while provides its people's
use, such as healthcare. allowing citizens some healthcare, education and
economic choices. welfare.

Political Conflict
At any moment in time, a state can be characterized by forces that promote unity and by forces that disrupt unity.
State Cohesiveness
Centripetal Forces
Forces form within a state that unite it … forces that keep a country together
One of the most powerful centripetal forces is nationalism which is an identification with the state and the acceptance of
its national goals. Nationalism is based on the concept of allegiance to a single country, its ideals and way of life. Most
countries have more than one culture and in multi-cultural societies, nationalism helps to integrate groups into a unified
population. This kind of consensus nationalism has emerged in the US
Unifying institutions like schools are expected to instill a society’s goals, values and traditions, and to teach a common
language.
Organization and administration is a binding force when there is public confidence in the effective organization of the
state.
Good transportation and communication networks foster political integration by promoting interaction between areas and
by joining them economically and socially

Other Examples:    a strong common culture, religion, language, history, a popular national hero, a common outside threat,
colonialism, an historical enemy

Centrifugal Forces

Forces from within a state that tend to divide it … causes of conflicts

within a state.

Nationalism is one of the most powerful centripetal forces but it also

can be a disruptive centrifugal force. The idea of the nation-state is
that states are formed around nations of people. It is a small step from
that to the idea that every nation has the right to its own state or
territory

A dissident minority that has total or partial secession of the state as its primary goal is said to be guided
by separatism or autonomous nationalism. Canada, for example, has a powerful secessionist movement in French-
speaking Quebec … a vote in 1995 just barely lost 51 to 49%.
Separatist movements are expressions of regionalism, which is minority group identification with a region rather than a
state. Other Examples:    religion, language, ethnicity, ideology
Balkanization
 The fragmentation of a region into smaller, often hostile, political units usually results in a new independent
state. The term comes from the Balkan Peninsula of Europe, a region that has Balkanized many times and is still
undergoing balkanization.
Examples:        Yugoslavia, USSR, East Timor
Unsuccessful Attempts:    Kashmir, Sri Lanka, Kurdistan
Devolution
The process by which regions within a state demand and gain political strength and is growing autonomy
at the expense of the central government. Devolutionary pressures result in increased autonomy for a
region. (If strong enough, these devolutionary pressures may result in balkanization.)
Examples:    US Indian Reservations, Scotland, Chechnya in Russia (changing), Quebec
Irredentism
A policy of cultural extension and potential political expansion aimed at a national group living in a
neighboring country. For example, when India mistreated Muslims living in the states of Jammu and
Kashmir, the Muslim government of neighboring Pakistan threatened and ultimately went to war.
Irredentism is often a cause of cultural conflicts as countries protect members of their cultural group
living in neighboring countries.
Examples:        the Marsh Shiites, Armenians in Azerbaijan, Muslims in Kashmir, Serbs in Bosnia,
Somalis in Ethiopia and Kenya, Afghanis in Pakistan
Solutions:          relocate borders, resettle population, devolution / autonomy