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Statehood: A politico-geographic and legal perspective

  • The Middle East and the Emerging New World Order
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Abstract

The political geographical literature of focuses on the State yet little attention has been placed on the basic criteria and attributes of statehood. This paper presents a linked politico-geographic and legal perspective on statehood. The criteria and attributes identified and discussed are: a particular defined territory; a permanent resident population; a constituted effective government; independence; sovereignty; recognition; permanence; the capacity to enter into relations with other States; a State apparatus; a circulation system; and an organized economy. Certain conceptualizations and the importance of discourse are discussed.

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Knight, D.B. Statehood: A politico-geographic and legal perspective. GeoJournal 28, 311–318 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00817908

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