Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
arch, Queen Elizabeth, is not a king. Nearly all of these kingdoms are constitutional monarchies in which
the figurehead king or queen's actual powers are largely symbolic and political power rests with an elected
body such as the British Parliament. But in several of them, notably Jordan and Saudi Arabia, the king
retains substantial, if not total, ruling power.
Principality
This one is easy enough. It's like a kingdom, except that it's ruled by a prince. The three
existing principalities are the small European states of Andorra, Liechtenstein, and Monaco. All three are
constitutional monarchies in which elected governments actually rule. In addition to kingdoms and prin-
cipalities, nations that are headed by some sort of royal family include the Sultanates of Oman and Brunei,
the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the Emirate of Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates.
Republic
Taken from the Latin meaning “thing of the people,” this is the word most independent na-
tions apply to themselves today. In a general sense,
republic
means a political entity whose head of state is
not a monarch and, in modern times, is usually a president. Theoretically, the supreme power in a republic
lies with a body of citizens who are entitled to vote for representatives responsible to them. Theoretically,
that is, since there are any number of “people's republics” in which the people have little or no say in the
appointment of officials or the course of their government.
State
This is really one of the more confusing terms because it can go two ways.
State
can be applied to
an entire nation, as in the “state of Israel” or the “Eastern European states,” or to one of the territories and
political units comprising a federation under a sovereign government, as in the United States of America
or the various states of India. In the first sense, a state is the equivalent of a nation, an area of land with
clearly defined boundaries and which has internationally recognized legal independence.
Afghanistan to Zimbabwe: How Many Nations Are There in the World?
With the shake-up of Eastern Europe, the demise of the Soviet Union, and numerous other assorted changes
to the world map, there are now 178 member countries in the United Nations. (See Appendix III: The Na-
tions of the World.)
But don't put your calculators away. The pace of country-making hasn't slowed since 1992. The new
republics of Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Macedonia have already splintered off from
the former Yugoslavia, which also split into Serbia and Montenegro.
This total also does not include Greenland, a fairly significant piece of real estate that is an autonomous
country within the Kingdom of Denmark. Also not included in this count are the four so-called republics of
Bophuthatswana, Ciskei, Transkei, and Venda. These are tribal “homelands” that lie within the boundaries
of South Africa but have only been recognized by South Africa as independent republics. For all practical
purposes, these homelands are still governed by South Africa.
And if returning land to rightful ownership was the point of the Gulf War against Iraq, why stop at
Kuwait? Since much decision-making power in the UN Security Council rests in the hands of the “Big
Five” permanent members, start with their record of invasions, annexations, incursions, and general mis-
behavior.
The United Kingdom
Few nations were more vocally outraged over the invasion of Kuwait than the
British. As Parliament resolutely glared at Iraq, it may have been easy for them to ignore their own back-
yard. Northern Ireland hasn't gone away, and British troops still occupy a piece of land that is obviously
attached to another country. While the rest of Ireland gained independence in 1922, the British retain
this vestigial bit of colony based on a centuries-old conquest. The British also hold several other jewels,
baubles from its shattered imperial crown, including Gibraltar, the Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands,
