Thinking Geographically
Defining States
Shapes of States
100
An individual line marking the extent of a state’s territory.
Boundary
100
A sovereign state that comprises a town and the surrounding countryside.
City-State
100
A state with a long and narrow shape.
Elongated State
200
These states are representatives.
Microstates
200
An area organized into a political unit and ruled by an established government that has control over its internal and foreign affairs.
State
200
A state where the distance from the center to any boundary does not vary significantly.
Compact State
300
A zone where no state exercises complete political control.
Frontier
300
God, gold, and glory were motives for what type of effort.
Colonialism
300
A state with several discontinuous pieces of territory.
Fragmented State
400
This picture shows the technique.
Gerrymandering
400
Independence from control of its internal affairs by other states.
Sovereignty
400
Lesotho is an example
Perforated State
500
A condition of roughly equal strength between opposing alliances.
Balance of Power
500
Desire for power and wealth led to the control of territories already occupied by indigenous societies.
Imperialism
500
A compact state with a large projecting extension.
Prorupted State