Territory

For other uses, see Territory (disambiguation).

A territory is a term for types of administrative division, usually an area that is under the jurisdiction of a state. In most countries' terminology, such as the United States and Nigeria, it refers to an organized division of an area that is under control of a country but not formally developed into, or incorporated into, a political unit of that country of equal status to other political units such as states or provinces. In international politics, the term is used particularly in reference to a non-sovereign geographic area which has come under the authority of another government; which has not been granted the powers of self-government normally devolved to secondary territorial divisions; or both.

Types

Common types of territory include:

Capital territory

A capital territory is normally a specially designated territory where a country's seat of government is located. As such, in the federal model of government, no one state or territory takes pre-eminence because the capital lies within its borders. A capital territory can be one specific form of federal district.

Overseas territory

Overseas territory is a designation for a territorial entity that is separated from the country that governs it by an ocean.

Examples include:

Special areas of a country

In a country, a territory may be the equivalent of a state or province which has less local control. For example, the major difference between a Canadian province and a Canadian territory is that the federal government has more direct control over the territories, while the provinces are run by provincial governments empowered by the constitution. The same distinction applies between States and territories of Australia, territories of the United States (and former territories of the United States which later became states), and former national territories of Argentina

Note that the Territories of the Democratic Republic of the Congo are not unincorporated units, but are regular subdivisions of the country.

A less common usage of the term "territory" refers to any administrative division of a country or subunit. Examples:

See also

References

    External links

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