The entire world is constantly changing. It is hard to keep up with all the newly independant states spouting out one after another. Just a few years back, there was a very tumultuous period for East Timor when it fought for independance from Indonesia, and finally they got it. Apparently now Acheh is trying to do the same.
About a decade or so ago, Europe and Asia went through major changes by new states coming up. These include the former Soviet Union, the former Yugoslavia, and the splitting of the former Czechoslovakia.
All the new countries include Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan and Kyrgyzstan, central western Asian countries that were once part of the Soviet Union. I wonder if Turkimenistan was also part of the Soviet Union before as well.
And then in Europe itself, there is the Czech Republic and Slovakia, two independant countries split from the former Czechoslovakia. Then there is also Bosnia and Herzegovina (why are there two names to one country anyway?), Croatia, Slovenia, some of which used to be from the former Yugoslavia. I am a little confused whether Ukraine has always been a country of its own or was formerly part of the Soviet Union as well.
Why do countries start splitting and causing major changes to the atlas of the world? I think the main reason is to be independant and the people can have their own government and run the country the way they like. It is just like living with your parents and living on your own. Which would you prefer? Most will of course prefer living on their own so they can have complete freedom to do whatever they like without any restrictions.
But often when states fight for independance, there is always bloodshed and war. Look at the American Revolution in 1776. Americans wanted to be free from British rule. And India's fight for independance last century, brought about by Gandhi. Not to mention Nehru and his Pakistan vision - a separate Indian Muslim state independant of India. Even Singapore, in her Nationalisation and split from Malaysia to become a truly independant nation, there were lots of political turmoils and racial riots. It was exactly like a "divorce" of a joint union.
A pity I chose to study World History and not Political History, otherwise I would have known the reasoning behind all the wars of independance. Perhaps it is the same case as a parent-child relationship - the child wants to be free, but the parent refuses to let go, bringing about all the wars and so many innocent and patriotic people being killed. Of course an idealistic situation would be to let the state go without all these bloodshed, but face it, which country's government in their right minds would let a colony or state go without a struggle? And which state or colony can actually become independant without a struggle?
There is one question that has always been bugging me : How did the States of America came about? The country started off with thirteen original states. If I am not mistaken, the eastern part of US is known as New England. How did the other states come about and where do their names derived from? How did the country becmme fifty (or is it fifty-one?) states. And is DC a state by itself?
Let me see if I can get all the states and their capitals right, according to alphabetical order.
Alabama - Montgomery
Alaska - Juneau
Arizona - Phoenix (the Grand Canyon State!)
Arkansas - Little Rock
California - Sacramento (I used to think the capital city was Los Angeles or San Francisco)
Colorado - Denver
Connecticut - Hartford
Delaware - Dover (If I am not mistaken, I think this was the very first state, although I really would like to find out its origins)
Florida - Tallahassee (I used to think the capital was Miami)
Georgia - Atlanta (not to be confused with the country in Africa, or is it Europe?)
Hawaii - Honolulu (the newest state - wonder why it became a state but not a colony like Guam)
Idaho - Boise
Illinois - Springfield
Indiana - Indianapolis (wonder if this was named after the Native Americans?)
Iowa - Des Moines
Kansas - Topeka
Kentucky - Frankfort (incidentally, I believe all of you should know the Colonel's chicken originated from here - the state, not sure of the city though)
Louisiana - Baton Rouge (used to think it was New Orleans)
Maine - Augusta
Maryland - Annapolis
Massachusetts - Boston (Harvard University...... my dream.....)
Michigan - Lansing (Lake Michigan is really beautiful, really hope to see it one day)
Minnesota - Saint Paul
Mississippi - Jackson
Missouri - Jefferson City (the infamous Gateway Arch is here in the state)
Montana - Helena
Nebraska - Lincoln
Nevada - Carson City (not Las Vegas unfortunately, although the casino hotels in Las Vegas are really cool!)
New Hampshire - Concord
New Jersey - Trenton
New Mexico - Santa Fe (wonder if this was due to all the Mexican migrants who settled here?)
New York - Albany (incidentally, New York City is the largest megapolis in this state, consisiting of cities like Brooklyn, Manhattan, Long Island, etc)
North Carolina - Raleigh (I used to think it was Charlotte)
North Dakota - Bismarck (is this state where all the Native Americans were resettled?)
Ohio - Columbus (I always thought was Cincinnati or Chicago)
Oklahoma - Oklahoma City
Oregon - Salem (same name as the Salem Witch Trials of the seventeenth century, although this Salem would be in the current state of Connecticut I think)
Pennsylvania - Harrisburg
Rhode Island - Providence (is this the smallest state?)
South Carolina - Columbia
South Dakota - Pierre
Tennessee - Nashville (Elvis Presley's hometown! Or is it at Memphis?)
Texas - Austin
Utah - Salt Lake City (home of the Mormons)
Vermont - Montpelier
Virginia - Richmond (still wonder why it is so named. Sounds so misleading. Although it was home to Pocahontas' tribe and one of her descendants founded Jamestown; in which case, why is Jamestown not the capital city then?)
Wasington - Olympia (Washington, DC, is the capital of the country, where the White House is)
West Virgina - Charleston (isn't that the name of the dance famous during the 1920s?)
Wisconsin - Madison
Wyoming - Cheyenne (somehow I seem to remember knowing someone with exactly the same name - Cheyenne somebody)
Looks like my Geography is still not that good after all. Must read and research more already.
About a decade or so ago, Europe and Asia went through major changes by new states coming up. These include the former Soviet Union, the former Yugoslavia, and the splitting of the former Czechoslovakia.
All the new countries include Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan and Kyrgyzstan, central western Asian countries that were once part of the Soviet Union. I wonder if Turkimenistan was also part of the Soviet Union before as well.
And then in Europe itself, there is the Czech Republic and Slovakia, two independant countries split from the former Czechoslovakia. Then there is also Bosnia and Herzegovina (why are there two names to one country anyway?), Croatia, Slovenia, some of which used to be from the former Yugoslavia. I am a little confused whether Ukraine has always been a country of its own or was formerly part of the Soviet Union as well.
Why do countries start splitting and causing major changes to the atlas of the world? I think the main reason is to be independant and the people can have their own government and run the country the way they like. It is just like living with your parents and living on your own. Which would you prefer? Most will of course prefer living on their own so they can have complete freedom to do whatever they like without any restrictions.
But often when states fight for independance, there is always bloodshed and war. Look at the American Revolution in 1776. Americans wanted to be free from British rule. And India's fight for independance last century, brought about by Gandhi. Not to mention Nehru and his Pakistan vision - a separate Indian Muslim state independant of India. Even Singapore, in her Nationalisation and split from Malaysia to become a truly independant nation, there were lots of political turmoils and racial riots. It was exactly like a "divorce" of a joint union.
A pity I chose to study World History and not Political History, otherwise I would have known the reasoning behind all the wars of independance. Perhaps it is the same case as a parent-child relationship - the child wants to be free, but the parent refuses to let go, bringing about all the wars and so many innocent and patriotic people being killed. Of course an idealistic situation would be to let the state go without all these bloodshed, but face it, which country's government in their right minds would let a colony or state go without a struggle? And which state or colony can actually become independant without a struggle?
There is one question that has always been bugging me : How did the States of America came about? The country started off with thirteen original states. If I am not mistaken, the eastern part of US is known as New England. How did the other states come about and where do their names derived from? How did the country becmme fifty (or is it fifty-one?) states. And is DC a state by itself?
Let me see if I can get all the states and their capitals right, according to alphabetical order.
Alabama - Montgomery
Alaska - Juneau
Arizona - Phoenix (the Grand Canyon State!)
Arkansas - Little Rock
California - Sacramento (I used to think the capital city was Los Angeles or San Francisco)
Colorado - Denver
Connecticut - Hartford
Delaware - Dover (If I am not mistaken, I think this was the very first state, although I really would like to find out its origins)
Florida - Tallahassee (I used to think the capital was Miami)
Georgia - Atlanta (not to be confused with the country in Africa, or is it Europe?)
Hawaii - Honolulu (the newest state - wonder why it became a state but not a colony like Guam)
Idaho - Boise
Illinois - Springfield
Indiana - Indianapolis (wonder if this was named after the Native Americans?)
Iowa - Des Moines
Kansas - Topeka
Kentucky - Frankfort (incidentally, I believe all of you should know the Colonel's chicken originated from here - the state, not sure of the city though)
Louisiana - Baton Rouge (used to think it was New Orleans)
Maine - Augusta
Maryland - Annapolis
Massachusetts - Boston (Harvard University...... my dream.....)
Michigan - Lansing (Lake Michigan is really beautiful, really hope to see it one day)
Minnesota - Saint Paul
Mississippi - Jackson
Missouri - Jefferson City (the infamous Gateway Arch is here in the state)
Montana - Helena
Nebraska - Lincoln
Nevada - Carson City (not Las Vegas unfortunately, although the casino hotels in Las Vegas are really cool!)
New Hampshire - Concord
New Jersey - Trenton
New Mexico - Santa Fe (wonder if this was due to all the Mexican migrants who settled here?)
New York - Albany (incidentally, New York City is the largest megapolis in this state, consisiting of cities like Brooklyn, Manhattan, Long Island, etc)
North Carolina - Raleigh (I used to think it was Charlotte)
North Dakota - Bismarck (is this state where all the Native Americans were resettled?)
Ohio - Columbus (I always thought was Cincinnati or Chicago)
Oklahoma - Oklahoma City
Oregon - Salem (same name as the Salem Witch Trials of the seventeenth century, although this Salem would be in the current state of Connecticut I think)
Pennsylvania - Harrisburg
Rhode Island - Providence (is this the smallest state?)
South Carolina - Columbia
South Dakota - Pierre
Tennessee - Nashville (Elvis Presley's hometown! Or is it at Memphis?)
Texas - Austin
Utah - Salt Lake City (home of the Mormons)
Vermont - Montpelier
Virginia - Richmond (still wonder why it is so named. Sounds so misleading. Although it was home to Pocahontas' tribe and one of her descendants founded Jamestown; in which case, why is Jamestown not the capital city then?)
Wasington - Olympia (Washington, DC, is the capital of the country, where the White House is)
West Virgina - Charleston (isn't that the name of the dance famous during the 1920s?)
Wisconsin - Madison
Wyoming - Cheyenne (somehow I seem to remember knowing someone with exactly the same name - Cheyenne somebody)
Looks like my Geography is still not that good after all. Must read and research more already.
4 comments:
Just a few years back, there was a very tumultuous period for East Timor when it fought for independence from Indonesia, and finally they got it.
Fought for independence? It's mostly due to some country pressurizing Indonesia to let the East Timorese to decide through the referendum.
The "coincidental" timing of the efforts put up by this 'some country' to pressurize Indonesia and the discovery of the untapped potential of oil deposit in Timor Gap will do nothing to hush those who are sceptical of this 'some country' motives.
Ah I see. I've always wondered about this.... so my suspicions are valid after all.
Other side of the coin: merging of countries causes map changes too (I think most recent was Germany) whether it's peacefully or through annexation (argument for the East Timor one). And possibly causes future changes too (USSR split is a prime example); one possible reason of split: just reverting to the previous state.
And then you should start exploring the state before the previous state, and the one predating it, and so on way back to the formation of the first nation ...
Wa... I've never really thought of it this way. Thanks for the insightful information!
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