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South America Terms
Term | Definition |
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Altiplano | High-elevation plateau, basin, or valley between even higher mountain ranges, especially in the Andes of South America |
Land alienation | One society or culture group taking land from another |
Liberation theology | A powerful religious movement that arose in South America during the 1950s and gained followers through the global periphery, a belief system that interprets the teachings of Christ as a quest to liberate the impoverished masses from oppression |
Subsistence agriculture | Farmers who eke out a living on a small plot of land on which they are only able to grow enough food to support their families or at best a small community |
Uneven development | The notion that economic development varies spatially, a central tenet of core-periphery relationships in realms, regions, or lesser geographic entities |
Supranationalism | A venture involving three or more states, political, economic, and/or cultural cooperation to promote shared objectives |
Informal sector | Dominated unlicensed sellers of homemade goods and services, the primitive form of capitalism found in many developing countries that takes place beyond the control of the government |
Barrio | A term meaning neighborhood in Spanish and it usually refers to an urban community in a Middle or South American city |
Favela | A shantytown on the outskirts or even well within an urban area in Brazil |
Megacity | A term referring to the world's most heavily populated cities and a metropolis containing a population greater than 10 million, an example is Tokyo |
Dependencia theory | A theory originating in South America during the 1960s, it was a new way of thinking about economic development and underdevelopment that explains the persistent poverty of certain countries in terms of their unequal relations with other rich countries |
Insurgent state | Establishment by anti-government insurgents of a territorial base in which they exercise have full control, thus a state-within-a-state, an example is Iraq |
Failed state | A country whose institutions have collapsed and in which anarchy prevails , an example is Syria |
Triple frontier | The turbulent and chaotic area in South America that surrounds Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay. Lawlessness provides this haven for criminal elements, such as money laundering, arms smuggling, drug trafficking, and links to terrorist organizations |
Primate city | A country's largest city, ranking atop its urban hierarchy, most expressive of the national culture and usually the capital city as well, an example is Paris. |
Buffer state | A country or set of countries separating ideological or political adversaries, Thailand was a buffer state between British and French colonial domains in mainland Southeast Asia |
Entrepot | A place, usually port city, where goods are imported, stored, and transshipped |
Forward capital | A capital city positioned in actually or potentially contested territory, usually near an international border; it confirms the state’s determination to maintain its presence in the area of contention (Rio de Janeiro - Brasilia) |
Cerrado | A regional term referring to the fertile savannas of Brazil's interior Central West that make it one of the world's most promising agricultural frontiers, soybeans are the leading crop as well as other grains and cotton |
Elongation | It refers to the territorial configuration of a state that is at least six times longer than its average width, Chile is the most common example |