Boundaries and State Shapes

Compact States – smaller size with all boundaries roughly the same distance from the center

Prorupted States – Compact with a projecting area, which may provide access to a resource or cut off other areas from each other

Elongated States – a long narrow shape, which can lead to internal problems because of distance and communication

Fragmented States – a country that is separated into pieces (by another state or water)

Indonesia, US, Russia
If one of the locations is separated by another group of a different ethnicity or nationality, it is known as an exclave (i.e. Alaska)

Perforated States – a state with a sovereign state completely within its borders

Landlocked States – a state without access to ports canals - most difficulty with boundaries because of having to negotiate or pay for water access

Exist now in Antarctica and on the Arabian Peninsula (nomads roam between Saudi Arabia/Qatar and UAE/Oman/Yemen)

Physical Boundaries can be antecedent boundaries, meaning they were there long before political boundaries existed

Mountains – good for obvious boundaries and difficulty crossing, but a straight line divide can be impossible
Deserts – good because hard to cross and not that desirable
Water – common, but can create a problem with the exact line (most countries insist on the line being out at sea, not on their shoreline)

Maritime Boundaries dictate the ownership of oceans and waterways off the coasts
The UN created the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)

Each country has the right to 12-nautical miles of territorial sea off the coast - no other countries can enter this zone without permission
Countries also have 200-nautical miles of Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) - the country will have the right to profit from this area (fishing, drilling, etc.) but other countries can use the water to travel
Anything beyond the 200 miles is part of the high seas - this water does not belong to any one country and is not held to the laws of any one country, but rather is subject to international admiralty law

If the distance between two countries is less than 24 miles this creates a choke point - the countries will establish median lines halfway between both countries waterways

Geometric Boundaries – a straight line drawn in an agreed upon location using the lines of longitude or latitude
Religious Boundaries - Often coincide with state boundaries, but it is not usually the reason for the location of the official boundary (boundaries pushing religions together can lead to conflicts)

India/Pakistan (Hindu and Muslim) and Ireland/Northern Ireland (Catholic and Protestant)

Language Boundaries – An important criterion, considered strongly in dividing land after WWI and WWII

Definitional boundary dispute over the wording of a boundary agreement in a treaty
Locational boundary dispute over the actual point (or interpretation) of the boundary
Operational boundary dispute over the way a boundary will be regulated
Allocational boundary dispute over the resources under a boundary

Superimposed boundaries are placed over existing boundaries by a more powerful group or country – these can follow earlier boundaries or create a totally new one
When boundaries are no longer politically accurate, but still exist these are known as relic boundaries (i.e. the Great Wall of China)
Antecedent boundaries (natural and not man-made) existed before governments created subsequent boundaries (with negotiation)

Balkanization can occur when the borders of a country can no longer hold and the country is divided into smaller political units

This process is named after the division of the former Yugoslavia on the Balkan Peninsula – from one multi-national country to six countries

IMAGES CREATED BY GAVS