Countries, States, Territories, and Global Population Trends

Posted on Dec 13, 2024 in Geography

Chapter 4: Countries, States, and Territories

Countries of the World

Country: An organization consisting of a society, territory, and state.

The States

Status: The form of political organization of countries.

Attributions:

  • Regulate the economy and legal standards.
  • Provide educational services, health, and transport.
  • Issue currency.
  • Organize armies.
  • Defend the geographical scope from external threats.

Government: State administration. Citizens elect the executive and the legislature. The elected executive branch.

The Territories

Territory: The geographical scope of the powers of a state. In the territory, the state exercises its sovereignty or may exert its dominance, powers, and rights.

Defining areas can lead to disputes. Solutions include peaceful arbitration in a third country or armed confrontation.

Colonial Territories

Colonies: Territories occupied by another country.

Before the First World War, the occupation of a territory was a valid argument to assert dominance over it. Hence, many European and Asian countries invaded the Americas and Africa, establishing colonies.

In 1919, the Wilson Doctrine won, decreeing that nations have the right to self-determination.

The Nations

Nation: A community that shares a history, a past, and the idea of a common destination. Sometimes, it also unites a language, religion, or even traditions, dances, and songs of their own. Furthermore, being born in the same geographical area is considered a condition to form a nation.

The Process of State Formation

Modern States: An organizational form that became popular in the 21st century. By the 16th century, the form of organization was the kingdom, ruled by a monarch. As the kingdom grew larger, it ultimately became an empire.

Colonial Expansion and Decolonization

Colonization Processes:

  1. 16th to 19th Century: Spain and Portugal took America and parts of Asia and Africa.
  2. 1870 to 1914: Britain, France, Holland, Belgium, and Germany occupied Asia and Africa.

Decolonization Process:

  1. 18th to 19th Century: American territories became independent.
  2. 20th Century: Independence of many African and Asian countries.

European States and Territories After the World Wars

Consequences of World War I:

  • Dismemberment of the Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman Empires.
  • Treaty of Versailles: Reduced the territory of Germany, Alsace-Lorraine was taken over by France, and the independence of Finland and Poland was established. Slavic countries became part of Yugoslavia.

Consequences of World War II:

  • Divided the world into two: Capitalist (USA) and Socialist (USSR).
  • The USSR increased its territory, adding Poland, Finland, and Romania.
  • Germany was divided into West Germany (Federal) and East Germany (Democratic). East Berlin was in the hands of the Soviets, and West Berlin was in the hands of the Socialists.
  • Some 30 million people were forced to leave their home countries (including 60% German).
  • Treaties: Yalta, Potsdam, and Paris.

Limits

Limits: Indicate the extent of a territory and are plotted on maps. Often, a natural element is chosen to set the limit, but that does not mean that the element itself is the limit. The limit should be set exactly. Sometimes boundaries are drawn according to parallels and meridians.

The definition of limits has always been disputed, not only for the very existence of the limit.

Chapter 5: Population

Population Growth

The pace of population growth has not been consistent. It has had some peaks and population explosions. These explosions are characterized by a positive balance between the number of deaths and births.

Population Explosions:

  • Neolithic Revolution (6000-8000 BC): The passage from nomadic to a sedentary life meant a better chance of feeding.
  • Industrial Revolution (17th-19th Century): Improvements in medicine generated a decrease in the number of deaths.
  • After the Second World War: The advent of antibiotics and vaccines produced an improvement in the quality of life.

The Uneven Distribution of Population in the World

The uneven distribution of the population is because every human community chooses the place that seems more suitable to live, according to natural conditions, resources, and economic and cultural conditions of the place.

General Rules of Global Population Distribution:

  • The most populated areas are less than 200km from the coast.
  • 80% of the population is on plains or plateaus, between parallels 20º and 60º.
  • The Northern Hemisphere concentrates 90% of the world’s population.
  • Most of the remaining 10% of the population is in the north of the Tropic of Capricorn.
  • Unpopulated regions are those that offer fewer natural resources.

Urbanization and Urban Populations

Throughout the 20th century, the population trend toward urbanization was consolidated. This is because cities offer more job opportunities, as factories are usually located in cities.

Areas with Low Population

In places where difficulties are multiplied for settlement and production, population density is low.

The Growth Rate of World Population

For years, the pace of global population growth was low and unstable. But in the last three centuries, the world’s population rose ninefold. On the contrary, natural or vegetative population growth has slowed. This is due to the tendency of the population toward urban development and the incorporation of women into the workplace.

The population difference between developed and underdeveloped countries is enormous. In underdeveloped countries, the rural population is greater, and the vegetative population is constantly increasing because, in the countryside, many families have more children.

The Demographic Transition Theory

Some scholars have developed a model of population growth. This model consists of four stages:

  1. The natural increase is low, as though there are many births, there are also many deaths.
  2. Vegetative growth is triggered. Due to an improved quality of life (drugs, medicine, hygiene, nutrition), the number of deaths decreases, and vegetative growth accelerates.
  3. The mortality rate remains low, but fertility begins to decline. Population growth is high but decreases its speed compared to the previous stage.
  4. In the fourth stage, the two levels remain low, and there is little vegetative growth.

The Demographic and Social Situation in Different Countries

To categorize developed or underdeveloped countries, a number of parameters are used, such as GDP, the volume of exports, the degree of industrialization, etc. The United Nations has made an index to assess the human development of the population. Development can be high, medium, or low, but it has nothing to do with the level of economic development.

Inequalities Between Rich and Poor

By 1820, the gap between rich and poor was 3 to 1. In 1913, it was 11 to 1. In 1950, it was 35 to 1. And in 1992, it was 72 to 1.

Proposals for the UN:

  • Standards as social protection.
  • International cooperation.
  • Union of NGOs, businesses, communities, and the state to move the country forward.

Demographic and Social Characteristics of Rich Countries

Similar economic characteristics, in social terms, differ on some issues. But there are not many differences in economic characteristics, except that when more liberal policies are implemented in the population, the greater the economic gap between social classes.

Demographic and Social Characteristics of Poor Countries

They have different economic conditions. There are countries where life expectancy is high, as in developed countries, while there are others where life expectancy is minimal. This makes the UN differentiate the two kinds of underdeveloped countries.

The Mobility of the Population

The biggest increase in the mobility of the population was recorded since the late 19th century, throughout the 20th century. Migrations involve large volumes of people. Most who saw the wave were Europeans who landed in America between the 19th and 20th centuries.

Most migrations are motivated by economic reasons. The destinations are generally places that offer great opportunities.

Internal migration is almost always destined for the capital city.

International Migration

International migrants usually choose states with cultural similarity to their places of origin. When volumes are very large, people often transform the state, either culturally or socially.

Migration from Rural to City

The urbanization of the countryside or travel to the city is called rural exodus, and the main consequence is the acceleration of urbanization in a state.

Questions:

Chapter 4

  1. What do you call home?
  2. What is the state?
  3. What are the powers of the state?
  4. How does the process of globalization affect the functions of the state?
  5. What are NGOs?
  6. What is the area?
  7. What is the relationship between state and territory?
  8. What kinds of processes were developed in order to define the territories of the states?
  9. What is often called a nation?
  10. What were the origins of the modern nation-states?
  11. What is called for the decolonization effect?
  12. What effect did the world wars have on the territorial organization of Europe?
  13. What are the limits?
  14. What is the importance of limits in the organization of modern states?
  15. Why can the definition of the limits of a state lead to conflicts?

Chapter 5

  1. What is a population explosion?
  2. What were the most significant demographic explosions of the world’s population?
  3. What are the most densely populated areas of the world?
  4. What conditions must be combined to produce a population explosion?
  5. Why is the world’s population distributed unevenly on the planet?
  6. What are the factors explaining the distribution of the world’s population today?
  7. What are the dominant patterns of population distribution in the world?
  8. What is the importance of natural conditions for human habitation?
  9. Why is the population concentrated in cities?
  10. What are the characteristics of areas with low population density?
  11. What are the factors determining the growth rate of a population?
  12. Why has natural population growth slowed in the world?
  13. What is the demographic transition theory?
  14. What elements are taken into account in assessing the demographic and social situation of different countries?
  15. What features does the gap between rich and poor have?
  16. What does the UN propose to reduce the inequalities between rich and poor?
  17. How do the demographic and social indicators behave in rich countries?
  18. What causes the displacement of people?
  19. What is internal migration? What about international migration?