AP Human Geography AMSCO Guided Notes
Chapter 9: Political Boundaries and Forms of Governance
AP Human Geography Guided Notes
AMSCO 4.9 - Political Boundaries and Forms of Governance
Essential Questions
- What are the types of political boundaries used by geographers?
- What are the nature and function of international boundaries?
- What are the nature and function of internal boundaries?
- What are federal and unitary states, and how do they affect spatial organization?
I. Defining Political Boundaries
1. What is the difference between physical geographic boundaries and cultural boundaries?
2. Why are physical boundaries like oceans and mountains considered more effective political boundaries than rivers?
A. Classifications of Boundaries
1. Genetic Classification of Boundaries
1. What is an antecedent boundary and why are ocean and mountain boundaries typically more effective than river boundaries?
2. How does a subsequent boundary differ from an antecedent boundary in terms of when it was created and what it reflects?
3. What was the Berlin Conference and how did it result in superimposed boundaries across Africa?
4. What challenges do landlocked states face as a result of superimposed boundaries?
5. What is a relic boundary and what are examples of relic boundaries that still exist on the landscape?
2. Geometric and Consequent Boundaries
1. What is a geometric boundary and what are examples of geometric boundaries based on lines of latitude or longitude?
2. How does a consequent boundary differ from a geometric boundary in terms of what it takes into account?
3. What is the difference between a cultural consequent boundary and a physical consequent boundary?
B. Protection of Boundaries
1. What is an open boundary and under what conditions do open boundaries typically exist between countries?
2. What is a militarized boundary and what are examples of militarized boundaries in the world today?
3. How has the number of border walls changed since 1989 and what does this suggest about international relations?
II. The Function of Political Boundaries
1. How do boundaries function as vertical planes that extend beyond the surface of the earth?
A. International and Internal Boundaries
1. Formation of Boundaries
1. What is the difference between a defined boundary, a delimited boundary, and a demarcated boundary?
2. What are informal boundaries and what are examples of informal boundaries at different scales?
2. International Boundary Disputes
1. What is a definitional boundary dispute and how does it differ from a locational boundary dispute?
2. What is irredentism and how does it relate to locational boundary disputes?
3. What is an operational boundary dispute and what types of disagreements can arise from operational disputes?
4. What is an allocational boundary dispute and what resources are commonly at the center of these disputes?
B. Demarcation and Functions of Boundaries
1. How does demarcation indicate the type of relationship that exists between countries?
2. What is an administered boundary and how do changing relations between countries affect boundary administration?
3. What is a controlled boundary and how do controlled boundaries differ from open boundaries?
C. Unique Boundaries: Exclaves and Enclaves
1. What is an exclave and what are examples of exclaves in the world?
2. What is a political enclave and what are examples of political enclaves at the national and local levels?
3. What challenges do exclaves and enclaves face in terms of communication, transportation, and governance?
D. The Effects of Boundaries
1. Shatterbelts
1. What is a political shatterbelt and what causes regions to become shatterbelts?
2. How has Eastern Europe historically functioned as a shatterbelt and what regional differences contributed to this?
3. What is the Caucasus and why has it been a region of conflict and instability?
2. Language and Religion
1. How do boundaries affect language development and what challenges arise when boundaries divide people who speak related dialects?
2. How can religion and boundaries create conflict, and what examples illustrate both conflict and harmony across religious boundaries?
3. What problems did the boundary between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland create regarding religion and political unity?
3. Ethnicity, Nationality, and Economy
1. How did superimposed boundaries in Sri Lanka create conflict between the Sinhalese and Tamil populations?
E. The Law of the Sea
1. What are the four zones defined by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and what rights do coastal states have in each zone?
2. How is the territorial sea divided when two coastal states are less than 24 nautical miles apart?
3. Why are islands valuable to countries in terms of extending their exclusive economic zones?
4. What is the blue economy and how does it benefit small island developing states?
5. What territorial disputes exist in the Arctic Ocean and South China Sea and what resources are at stake?
6. How did Libya's 'line of death' challenge the Law of the Sea and what was the U.S. response?
III. Internal Boundaries
1. How do internal boundaries differ from international boundaries in terms of function and flexibility?
A. Types of Internal Boundary Spaces
1. What is federalism and how does it relate to internal boundaries in countries like the United States?
B. Electoral Geography
1. What is electoral geography and what are voting districts?
2. How does the U.S. census relate to reapportionment and redistricting?
3. Why has reapportionment resulted in states in the South and West gaining representation while Midwest and Northeast states have lost seats?
C. Gerrymandering
1. What is gerrymandering and what are the five main techniques used to manipulate district boundaries?
2. How has gerrymandering been used to reduce representation of African Americans and other minorities?
3. What alternatives have some states adopted to prevent partisan gerrymandering?
IV. Forms of Governance
1. How do federal and unitary states differ in terms of how power is distributed between national and local governments?
A. Different Forms of Governance
1. What is a federal state and what are examples of federal states?
2. What is a unitary state and what are examples of unitary states?
B. Local Powers Vary by Government Type
1. Why do large landmass countries tend to be federal states while smaller landmass countries tend to be unitary states?
2. How does Nigeria use federal governance to accommodate religious differences across its provinces?
3. What are the strengths and weaknesses of federal versus unitary systems of government?
C. Patterns of Local and Metropolitan Governance
1. What are special purpose districts and what functions do they serve in the United States?
2. What is annexation and how does it affect local government competition and tax bases?
Key Terms
physical geographic boundaries
cultural boundaries
antecedent boundary
subsequent boundary
ethnographic
superimposed boundary
Berlin Conference
landlocked states
relic boundary
geometric boundary
consequent boundary
cultural consequent boundary
physical consequent boundary
open boundary
militarized boundary
defined boundary
delimited boundary
demarcated boundary
definitional boundary dispute
locational boundary disputes (territorial disputes)
irredentism
operational boundary dispute (functional dispute)
allocational boundary dispute (resource dispute)
administered boundary
controlled borders
exclaves
political enclaves
shatterbelt
United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)
territorial sea
contiguous zone
exclusive economic zone (EEZ)
high seas
small island developing state (SIDS)
internal boundaries
electoral geography
voting districts
electorate
census
reapportionment
redistricting
gerrymandering
cracking
packing
stacking
hijacking
kidnapping
federal state
unitary state
annexation