CSS Geography Political, Tourism and Medical Geography Syllabus

Political, Tourism and Medical Geography syllabus — full chapter and topic list

Expand any chapter to see its topics and sub-topics. This is the whole examinable outline for Political, Tourism and Medical Geography in CSS Geography, not a summary of it.

1. 1

   Political Geography

   5 topics

   • Politics, geography and political geography
   • State as a politico-territorial phenomenon
   • State, nation and the nation-state
   • World politics and international relations
   • Geopolitics of uneven development and globalization of capital
2. 2

   Geography of Tourism and Recreation

   3 topics

   • Demand for tourism and recreation
   • Supply for tourism and recreation
   • Impacts of tourism and recreation
3. 3

   Medical Geography

   3 topics

   • Global patterns in health and diseases
   • Models in medical geography
   • Recent issues and developments

Political, Tourism and Medical Geography flashcards for CSS Geography

19 of 66 cards from the Political, Tourism and Medical Geography deck — real questions with worked answers.

1. Define political geography.

   The branch of human geography that studies the spatial distribution of political processes and how they are affected by geographic space. It examines the interaction of geography, states, territory, boundaries, and power at scales from the local to the global.

2. How does 'politics' differ from 'political geography' as a field of study?

   Politics is the activity through which people make, preserve and amend the general rules under which they live (the exercise of power and decision-making). Political geography adds the explicitly spatial/territorial dimension, studying how political processes shape, and are shaped by, geographic space and place.

3. Who is regarded as the founder of modern political geography, and for what concept?

   Friedrich Ratzel, who in his 1897 work 'Politische Geographie' introduced the organic theory of the state, treating the state as a living organism that must grow (expand its territory) to survive.

4. What is the core idea of Ratzel's 'organic theory of the state' and the concept of Lebensraum?

   The state behaves like a living organism, born, growing, and declining; its vitality depends on acquiring 'Lebensraum' (living space). A healthy state must expand its territory to gain resources and population, which was later distorted to justify Nazi expansionism.

5. In political geography, what are the three essential constituents of any state?

   Territory (a defined land area), Population (people inhabiting it), and Sovereignty/Government (supreme authority and effective control over both).

6. What does it mean to describe the state as a 'politico-territorial phenomenon'?

   That a state is a unit of political organisation defined by control over a bounded portion of the Earth's surface; political power is exercised through and bounded by territory, making territory inseparable from statehood.

7. Distinguish between a state, a nation, and a nation-state.

   A state is a political-legal entity with defined territory, population and sovereignty. A nation is a culturally cohesive group sharing language, history, ethnicity or identity. A nation-state is where the boundaries of the nation and the state largely coincide (one nation governed by one sovereign state).

8. What is the difference between a 'nation' and a 'nationality'?

   A nation is a people with a strong sense of common identity who often aspire to or possess self-government. Nationality is the legal status of belonging to a particular state (citizenship), regardless of cultural identity.

9. Define a 'multinational state' and give an example.

   A state that contains more than one nation or major ethnic/cultural group within its borders. Examples include the former USSR, India, Belgium, and Canada.

10. Define a 'stateless nation' and give an example.

    A cultural nation that lacks its own sovereign state, its people spread across or contained within other states. Examples include the Kurds, the Palestinians, the Basques, and the Roma.

11. What is the difference between a unitary state and a federal state?

    In a unitary state, power is concentrated in a single central government that may delegate authority to local units. In a federal state, sovereignty is constitutionally divided between a central government and regional units (e.g. provinces/states) that have their own guaranteed powers.

12. Classify states by shape: name the five basic morphological types.

    Compact, Elongated (attenuated), Prorupted (protruded), Fragmented, and Perforated states.

13. What is a 'compact' state and why is it considered advantageous?

    A state in which the distance from the centre to any boundary is roughly equal, giving an almost circular shape (e.g. Poland, Zimbabwe). It is advantageous because communication and administration are easier and boundaries are shorter to defend.

14. What is a 'fragmented' state? Give an example.

    A state composed of several discontinuous pieces of territory separated by water or another country (e.g. Indonesia, the Philippines, the former East and West Pakistan). Fragmentation hinders communication, unity and defence.

15. What is a 'perforated' state? Give an example.

    A state that completely surrounds another state, so it is perforated by an enclave. The classic example is South Africa surrounding Lesotho; Italy is perforated by San Marino and the Vatican.

16. Define an 'enclave' and an 'exclave'.

    An enclave is a territory entirely surrounded by another state (e.g. Lesotho within South Africa). An exclave is part of a state geographically separated from the main body and surrounded by foreign territory (e.g. the former West Berlin, Kaliningrad relative to Russia).

17. What is a landlocked state and what disadvantage does it face?

    A state with no direct access to the sea, surrounded entirely by other countries' territory (e.g. Nepal, Bolivia, Afghanistan). It faces disadvantages in trade because it must depend on neighbours' transit routes for maritime access.

18. Distinguish between an 'antecedent' and a 'subsequent' boundary.

    An antecedent boundary is drawn before an area is heavily settled (e.g. the US-Canada 49th parallel). A subsequent boundary is drawn after settlement, evolving with the cultural landscape (e.g. boundaries between European nations).

19. Distinguish between 'superimposed' and 'relict' boundaries.

    A superimposed boundary is forced onto an existing cultural landscape by an outside power, ignoring local patterns (e.g. colonial African borders). A relict boundary no longer functions as a border but its imprint remains on the landscape (e.g. the boundary between former East and West Germany).

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