Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
GREENLAND
Arctic Circle
FINLAND
ICELAND
NO
R
WAY
RUSSIA
60
°
ESTONIA
LITHUANIA
60
°
SWEDEN
LATVIA
UNITED KINGDOM
DENMAR
K
NETH.
IRELAND
BELARUS
UKRAINE
POLAND
GER.
MOLDOVA
BELG.
ATLANTIC
OCEAN
AUS.
KAZAKHSTAN
SWITZ.
HUNG.
MONGOLIA
ROM.
BULG.
FRANCE
GEORGIA
ARMENIA
AZERBAIJAN
KYRGYZSTAN
TAJIKISTAN
N.
KOREA
SPAIN
PORTUGAL
UZBEKISTAN
40
°
40
°
ITALY
TURKEY
TURKMENISTAN
JAPAN
GREECE
CHINA
ALBANIA
S.
KOREA
SYRIA
TUNISIA
CYPRUS
IRAN
AFGHANISTAN
PACIFIC
LEBANON
IRAQ
MOROCCO
BHUTAN
JORDAN
ISRAEL
NEPAL
PAKISTAN
ALGERIA
KUWAIT
LIBYA
BAHRAIN
WESTERN
SAHARA
EGYPT
QATAR
BANGLADESH
TAIWAN
Tropic of Cancer
U.A.E.
SAUDI
ARABIA
MYANMAR
INDIA
20
°
LAOS
MAURITANIA
OMAN
OCEAN
MALI
NIGER
SUDAN
THAILAND
CAMBODIA
VIETNAM
SEN
EG
AL
GAMBIA
GUINEA-
BISSAU
GUINEA
SIERRA
LEONE
LIBERIA
CHAD
PHILIPPINES
ERITREA
YEMEN
BURKINA
FASO
DJIBOUTI
NIGERIA
SRI LANKA
IVORY
COAST
CENTRAL
AFRICAN REP.
SOUTH
SUDAN
ETHIOPIA
BRUNEI
SOMALIA
CAMEROON
INDIAN
TOGO
BENIN
MALAYSIA
UGANDA
GHANA
KENYA
Equator
CONGO
0
°
RWANDA
SINGAPORE
GABON
EQUATORIAL
GUINEA
THE
CONGO
OCEAN
BURUNDI
PAPUA
NEW
GUINEA
I
NDONESI
A
T
ANZANIA
COMOROS
ATLANTIC
EAST
TIMOR
ANGOLA
ZAMBIA
MALAWI
MOÇAMBIQUE
FIJI
VANUATU
MADAGASCAR
ZIMBABWE
BOTSWANA
0
°
20
°
20
°
20
°
20
°
NAMIBIA
MAURITIUS
NEW
CALEDONIA
Tropic of Capricorn
AUSTRALIA
OCEAN
SWAZILAND
SOUTH
AFRICA
LESOTHO
NEW
ZEALAND
40
°
40
°
40
°
0
°
20
°
40
°
60
°
100
°
120
°
140
°
160
°
60
°
60
°
60
°
60
°
SOUTHERN
OCEAN
Antarctic Circle
Nation-State
The European idea that the map of
states
should look
like the map of
nations
became the aspiration of govern-
ing elites around the world. A
nation-state
is a politi-
cally organized area in which nation and state occupy the
same space. Since few (if any) states are nation-states, the
importance of the concept of the nation-state lies primar-
ily in the idea behind it. In the effort to form nation-states,
some states have chosen to privilege one ethnic group at
the expense of others, and other states have outlined a
common history and culture. Either way, the state works
to temper identities that might challenge the state's
territorial integrity.
of the French territorial state, the people came to think
of themselves as French—not because the French nation
existed as a primordial group that has always been distinct.
People in a nation tend to look to their past and
think, “we have been through much together,” and when
they look to their future they often think, “whatever hap-
pens we will go through it together.” A nation is identi-
fi ed by its own membership; therefore, we cannot simply
defi ne a nation as the people within a territory. Indeed,
rarely does a nation's extent correspond precisely with a
state's borders. Many countries have multiple nations
within their borders. For example, in the country of Bel-
gium, two nations, the Flemish and the Walloons, exist
within the state borders.
