Historical geographical location definition. The concept of geopolitical position

Geographical position

the position of a geographic object on the surface of the Earth within a given coordinate system and in relation to any outside data that has a direct or indirect effect on this object. In a specific study of geographical taxa, micro-, meso- and macro-geographic positions are distinguished. The first describes the geographical location of an object in a small area, where local interactions with the components of the geographic environment are significant, and is used in the study of small taxa, for example. cities. The second (on a larger scale) is used when studying a large region and country, the third - on the scale of parts of the world and the Earth as a whole (for example, Russia's macro position relative to the countries of Western Europe and East Asia). Socio-economic geography studies the geographical location for different levels of the spatial hierarchy and its change over time, which is directly related to different stages of socio-economic development, technological progress in means of communication and a change in priorities in world trade. Therefore, special attention has always been paid to the transport and geographical position, which was especially reflected in the emergence and growth of capital cities, including Moscow and St. Petersburg. No less important was and remains the geographical position in political geography, where it influenced the formation of potential and real theaters of military operations in all historical eras.

Geography. Modern illustrated encyclopedia. - M.: Rosman. Under the editorship of prof. A. P. Gorkina. 2006 .

See what "geographical position" is in other dictionaries:

Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

geographical position- Characteristics of the location of an object on the earth's surface relative to other geographical objects and countries of the world ... Geography Dictionary

The position of any point or other object on the earth's surface in relation to other territories or objects; relative to the Earth's surface, the geographical position is determined using coordinates. Distinguish geographic location by ... ... encyclopedic Dictionary

The position of any point or area of the earth's surface in relation to territories or objects located outside this point or area. G. p. in mathematical geography refers to the latitude and longitude of given points or areas, in ... ... Great Soviet Encyclopedia

Position to. l. point or other object on the earth's surface in relation to other territories. or objects; relative to the earth's surface, the geographic distance is determined by means of coordinates. Distinguish G. of the item in relation to natural objects and to ekon. geographic… … Natural science. encyclopedic Dictionary

- ... Wikipedia

- (EGP) is the ratio of the object of the city, region, country to the objects lying outside it, having one or another economic value, it does not matter whether these objects are of a natural order or created in the process of history (according to N.N. Baransky). In other words, ... ... Wikipedia

The position of a region or country relative to other objects of economic importance to it. E. g. p. category is historical, may change in connection with the construction of the railway. or power plants, the beginning of the development of a useful deposit ... ... Geographic Encyclopedia

The position of a deposit, enterprise, city, district, country or other economic and geographical object in relation to other economic and geographical objects of economic importance to it. EGP assessment of an object depends on its position... Financial vocabulary

Books

German. Germany. Geographic location, population, politics. Tutorial. Level B 2, Yakovleva T.A.
Geographic location and territorial structures. In memory of I. M. Maergoiz,. The collection is dedicated to the memory of the outstanding Soviet economic geographer Isaac Moiseevich Maergoiz. The collection received its name - GEOGRAPHICAL POSITION AND TERRITORIAL STRUCTURES - from two ...

Once I got lost in the woods with my cousin. We had a topological map with us, but we couldn’t orient ourselves in it, because we didn’t know our own geographical location.

In the end, we found the way out of the forest. But since then, I have clearly understood for myself what a geographical position is. And now I will share this knowledge.

What is geographic location

Science gives the following definition: this is the position of any geographical object relative to the earth's surface, as well as in relation to other objects with which interaction occurs. The geographical position expresses the place of a particular object in a complex system of connections and flows, determines the relationship of the object with the environment.

But in simple words, the geographical location - is the position of an object on the earth's surface in a given coordinate system.

This concept is central for any system of geographical science. Geography itself originated as a science, the purpose of which was to determine the location of an object. The most important element of research in geography is finding and studying relationships between spatial objects.

History of geographic location

The very original concept of "geographical position" was given even late 18th century. But ideas about the conditionality of the work of society by the surrounding geographical environment expressed by many ancient thinkers(For example, Strabo, Democritus and Herodotus).

The only geographical sources then were descriptions of different regions and peoples, stories about vast distant lands. Special descriptions of sea routes, ports and trade centers were compiled, information was recorded about the features of their geographical location.

A more detailed search for patterns in the location of settlements and the development of models for finding cities began at the beginning of the 20th century. One of the first people who began to deeply study this topic was Veniamin Petrovich Semyonov-Tyan-Shansky.

American geographer William Bunge called geography "science of places". And in this original definition lies the idea that each geographical object has its own unique place in the world.

A significant contribution to the improvement of the theory of the location of objects was made by Soviet geographers. Nikolai Nikolaevich Baransky and Isaac Moiseevich Maergoiz.

Types of geographic location

Modern geography divides the geographical location of an object into many different types. The main ones include:

cultural and geographical position;
political and geographical;
ecological and geographical;
physical and geographical;
military geographical;
economic and geographical;
and mathematical-geographical.

As can be seen from the list, the types of provisions are divided into very different industries. Thanks to this, you can find out a lot of information about the desired object.

Russia is a Eurasian state. The country has a unique geographical and geopolitical position: it occupies the eastern part of Europe and the northern part of Asia.

Russia has huge reserves of natural resources, accounting for about 20% of the world's reserves. This predetermines the raw orientation of the Russian economy.

Potential- sources, opportunities, means, reserves that can be used to solve problems and achieve goals.

The geographical position of the territory can be considered both as a condition and as a factor of economic development.

Geographical position of Russia

Among the geographic features of Russia that affect economic activity, the resettlement of the population and the formation of the habitat as a whole, the following provisions attract attention first of all.

The vastness of the space occupied by the country.
Uneven settlement and economic development of the territory.
Wealth and diversity of natural conditions and natural resources.
The multinational composition of the population and the ethnic mosaic of the territory (the presence, with the widespread settlement of Russians, of a large number of areas of compact residence of individual nationalities).
Strong territorial contrasts in the economic and social spheres.
The CIS countries and other newly independent states (not only the immediate neighbors of Russia, but also the neighbors of the second order: Moldova, Armenia, the states of Central Asia, the countries of the third order - Tajikistan). Second-order neighbors are countries neighboring border states.
Russia may have ties with Tajikistan through the territories of Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan (or Uzbekistan).
The countries of Western and Southern Europe, united in the European Economic Community, among which the role of Germany, the new world geopolitical pole, is growing.
The countries of Eastern Europe, closely linked during the entire post-war period with the USSR, with which Russia must renew and strengthen ties.
Countries of the Baltic and Black Sea basins with which Russia has already concluded multilateral agreements.
The countries of the Asia-Pacific region, especially the poles of the world economy and politics - Japan, China, India.
A special role belongs to the development of Russia's multilateral ties with the United States.

the Russian Federation(RF) is the largest state in the world in terms of territory. It covers the eastern part of Europe and the northern part of Asia, thus being a Eurasian country by geographical position.

The geopolitical position of Russia is interconnected with the economic and geographical position (EGP), i.e. position on the economic map of the world, reflecting the position of the country in relation to the main economic markets and centers of the world economy. For the first time, the concept of EGP was introduced into geographical science by the famous scientist N.N. Baransky (1881-1963). This concept is widely used to assess the place of countries on the world map, and in addition, to determine the relationship of any geographical feature to others located outside it.

The territory of Russia is 17.1 million km 2, which is almost 2 times more than China or the USA. As of January 1, 2010, the population was 141.9 million people, and the population density was 8.3 people per 1 km2. The Russian Federation ranks 1st in the world in terms of territory, 9th in terms of population and 8th in terms of GDP calculated in US dollars at purchasing power parity.

The size of the territory is an important economic and geographical feature of any state. For Russia, the world's largest country by area, it has far-reaching consequences, both geopolitically and economically.

Thanks to the vastness of the territory, all the necessary conditions for a rational geographical division of labor are provided, the possibility of freer maneuver in the deployment of productive forces, the defense capability of the state increases, and other positive results are achieved in the field of economic and social development.

The extreme northern point of the country is Cape Fligeli on Rudolf Island as part of the Franz Josef Land archipelago, and on the mainland - Cape Chelyuskin; the extreme south - on the border with Azerbaijan; the extreme western one is on the border with Poland near the Gulf of Gdansk in the territory of the enclave formed by the Kaliningrad region of the Russian Federation; the extreme eastern one is Ratmanov Island in the Bering Strait. Most of the territory of Russia is located between the 50th parallel and the Arctic Circle, i.e. found in middle and high latitudes. In this regard, only Canada can serve as an analogue among foreign countries. The maximum distance between the western (not counting the Kaliningrad region) and eastern borders is 9 thousand km, between the northern and southern borders - 4 thousand km. There are 11 time zones within Russia. The length of the borders is 58.6 thousand km, including land - 14.3 thousand km, sea - 44.3 thousand km.

The Federal Agency for the Development of the State Border of the Russian Federation conducts international legal formalization and measures on the development of the Russian state borders. International agreements on the state border have been concluded with China, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Poland, Georgia, Finland and Norway. A complete list of countries adjacent to the Russian Federation is given in Table. 2.1.

In many aspects of international relations, Russia is the legal successor of the former USSR and, in this capacity, performs the functions of a permanent member of the UN Security Council and is a member of the most important international organizations.

Geopolitical position of the country is its place on the political map of the world and its relation to various states.

The geopolitical position of Russia in modern conditions is determined by many factors of different levels - from global to regional.

As a Eurasian country, Russia has ample opportunities for economic and political cooperation with foreign countries of various geopolitical orientations. Communications of world importance pass through its territory, providing transport links between west and east, north and south.

Russia is a single economic space, within which the free movement of people, goods, services and capital is ensured, intra-regional and inter-regional communications are carried out, covering both material production and the non-productive sphere. This space is consolidated by a unified transport, energy and information system, a unified gas supply system, various networks and communications, and other infrastructure facilities.

The size of the territory predetermines the variety of regional conditions and resources for economic activity. In terms of the scale of its natural resource potential, Russia has practically no analogues. At the same time, most of the territory is located in the temperate and cold agro-climatic zones. The need to overcome huge distances poses serious problems for transport, which are exacerbated by harsh climatic conditions in a large part of the territory. With regard to transport accessibility, the conditions are very differentiated. With large territorial spaces, despite the fact that this is considered to be a favorable condition for the development of the economy and ensuring the economic independence of the country, intensive development of the economy is possible only with a developed transport system.

Significant differences in the degree of economic development of the territory, the level of provision with natural and labor resources are reflected in the quantitative and qualitative characteristics of the economy. The production potential of the European part is much greater, and the structure of the economy is much more complex, more diversified than in the eastern regions.

Russia is a federal state - the Russian Federation (RF), uniting the subjects of the Federation on the basis of the Constitution of the Russian Federation and the Federal Treaty as an integral part of it. The subjects of the Federation consist of self-governing territorial communities and independently determine their territorial structure.

The Russian Federation includes 21 republics, 9 territories, 46 regions, 2 federal cities, Autonomous Region I, 4 autonomous districts (in 2010, 83 subjects in total).

Cities of federal significance - Moscow and St. Petersburg.

Republics of Russia: Adygea (Maikop), Altai (Gorno-Altaisk), Bashkortostan (Ufa), Buryatia (Ulan-Ude), Dagestan (Makhachkala), Ingushetia (Nazran), Kabardino-Balkaria (Nalchik), Kalmykia (Elista), Karachayevo -Cherkessia (Cherkessk), Karelia (Petrozavodsk), Komi (Syktyvkar), Mari El (Yoshkar-Ola), Mordovia (Saransk), North Ossetia-Alania (Vladikavkaz), Tatarstan (Kazan), Tyva (Kyzyl), Udmurtia ( Izhevsk), Khakassia (Abakan), Chechen (Grozny), Chuvashia (Cheboksary); Sakha (Yakutsk).

Territories: Altai, Trans-Baikal, Kamchatka, Krasnodar, Krasnoyarsk, Perm, Primorsky, Stavropol, Khabarovsk.

Autonomous districts: Nenets (Naryan-Mar) in the Arkhangelsk region, Khanty-Mansiysk (Khanty-Mansiysk) and Yamalo-Nenets (Salekhard) in the Tyumen region, Chukotsky (Anadyr).

On the territory of Russia there is one autonomous region in the Far Eastern economic region - the Jewish Autonomous Region (Birobidzhan).

We note the peculiarity of the territorial-state structure of Russia under the Constitution of the Russian Federation of 1993. Nine autonomous districts (with the exception of Chukotka) were part of larger territorial units, but in accordance with the Constitution of the Russian Federation, both a territorial part (autonomous district) and an entire territory (krai or region) were equal subjects of the Federation. Since 2003, Russia has been gradually merging autonomous regions and the corresponding subjects of the Federation. This is a step-by-step process, including holding a national referendum, preparing and approving a bill, choosing government bodies, and unifying budgets.

During the period of June 2003 (June 11, the governor of the Perm region and the head of the administration of the Komi-Permyatsky Autonomous Okrug signed an appeal to the President of Russia with the initiative to form the Perm Territory by merging the Perm Region and the Komi-Permyatsky Autonomous Okrug) to the present, 5 new subjects of the Federation have been formed :

Perm Territory, which united the Perm Region and the Komi-Permyatsky Autonomous Okrug into a single subject of the Federation (date of formation - December 1, 2005):
Krasnoyarsk Territory on the basis of the unification of the territory of the Territory, the Taimyr (Dolgano-Nenets) and Evenk Autonomous Okrugs (1.01.2007);
Kamchatka Territory, which united the Kamchatka Region and the Koryak Autonomous Okrug (July 1, 2007);
Irkutsk region as a result of the merger of the region and the Ust-Orda Buryat Autonomous Okrug (1.01.2008);
Trans-Baikal Territory, which united the Chita Region and the Aginsky Buryat Autonomous Okrug (March 1, 2008). Autonomous okrugs within the constituent entities of the Federation received the status of municipal districts with a special status determined by the statutes of the constituent entities and the legislation of the Russian Federation.

Each region - a subject of the Federation (except Moscow and St. Petersburg) is divided into administrative districts. In addition, the administrative-territorial division includes cities, urban districts and districts, urban-type settlements, village councils and volosts.

The subjects of the Federation are united into larger administrative territorial entities - federal districts. On May 13, 2000, in accordance with Presidential Decree No. 849 “On the Plenipotentiary Representative of the President of the Russian Federation in the Federal District”, the territory of Russia was divided into 7 federal districts. The federal district has its own center and administrative apparatus, headed by the Plenipotentiary Representative of the President of the Russian Federation in the federal district.

In January 2010, the North Caucasus Federal District was separated from the Southern Federal District by a presidential decree, which included the republics of the North Caucasus (except Adygea) and the Stavropol Territory.

List of federal districts and corresponding administrative centers: Central (the center of the federal district is Moscow), Northwestern (St. Petersburg), Southern (Rostov-on-Don), North Caucasian (Pyatigorsk), Volga (Nizhny Novgorod), Ural (Ekaterinburg), Siberian (Novosibirsk), Far East (Khabarovsk).

There are 11 economic regions on the territory of Russia: North-Western, Northern, Central, Central Black Earth, Volga-Vyatka, Volga, North Caucasus. Ural, West Siberian, East Siberian, Far East (the Kaliningrad region is not part of the economic regions). Economic regions differ from each other in the conditions and features of formation in the past and strategic directions of development in the future, scale, specialization and structure of production, and many other features.

Each of these regions performs certain functions in the general system of territorial division of labor within the country.

Russia in many respects - territory, population, natural resource potential, industrial, scientific, technical and intellectual potential, participation in solving global problems of our time, primarily related to the exploration of outer space, assistance in maintaining peace and security - is a great power.

Features of the geographical position of Russia

In terms of territory, Russia is the largest country in the world - 17.1 million km 2, which is almost an eighth of the Earth's land mass. Let's compare: Canada is the second largest state covering an area of about 10 million km2.

Being in the north of Eurasia, Russia occupies about 1/3 of its territory, including 42% of the territory of Europe and 29% of the territory of Asia.

The entire territory of Russia is located in the Eastern Hemisphere, with the exception of Wrangel Island and the Chukotka Peninsula, which belong to the Western Hemisphere.

From the north, a significant part of the territory of Russia is washed by the seas of the Arctic Ocean: White, Barents, Kara, Laptev, East Siberian, Chukchi. The extreme northern point of Russia - Cape Chelyuskin on the Taimyr Peninsula - has coordinates 77 ° 43 "N, 104 ° 18" E. d.

From the east, Russia is washed by the seas of the Pacific Ocean: Bering, Okhotsk, Japan. The extreme eastern point of our country is located on the Chukchi Peninsula - Cape Dezhnev (66 ° 05 "N, 169 ° 40" W).

According to international agreements, the maritime borders of states, including Russia, pass at a distance of 12 nautical miles (22.7 km) from the coast. These are the territorial waters of a coastal state. Foreign ships have the right of innocent passage through territorial waters, subject to the laws and regulations of the coastal state, as well as international agreements.

Rice. 1. Russia: geographical location

UN convention under the Law of the Sea 1982 defines the boundaries economic zone coastal states at a distance of two hundred nautical miles (370 km) from the coast of the mainland and islands. Within the economic zone, fish and mineral resources are the property of the coastal state.

A vast continental shelf stretches along the northern coast of Russia. A special status has been established for the continental shelf: the coastal state exercises sovereign rights over it for the purpose of exploration and development of its natural resources.

In the east, our country has maritime borders with the United States along the Bering Strait and Japan along the La Perouse and Kunashir Straits, which separate our islands - Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands - from the Japanese island of Hokkaido.

Russia has a huge length of external borders - about 60 thousand km, including land borders of about 20 thousand km. The southern and western borders of Russia are land, with the exception of the maritime border with Ukraine along the Kerch Strait and with Finland along the Gulf of Finland.

Most of our neighbors to the south and west are former republics of the Soviet Union. In the west: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Belarus; in the south: Ukraine, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan. Many of these countries, with the exception of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, are members of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). In addition to the former republics of the USSR, our country borders on European countries: Norway, Finland and Poland, as well as on the countries of Central and East Asia: Mongolia, China and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).

The extreme southern point of Russia is located in the North Caucasus on the border with Azerbaijan - Mount Bazarduzu (41 ° 11 N, 47 ° 51 E).

And the extreme western one is on the Baltic Spit near the city of Kaliningrad (54 ° N, 19 ° 38 "E).

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia retained an advantageous geographical position in relation to a number of CIS countries, which can maintain economic ties with each other only through the territory of our country. Nevertheless, some countries of the former USSR turned out to be second-order neighbors for Russia (they do not have common borders with it). These are Moldova, Armenia and the republics of Central Asia: Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. The Republic of Tajikistan is a third-order neighbor for Russia.

The absence of common borders complicates our country's ties with these states.

The collapse of the USSR not only changed the geographical position of Russia, but its geopolitical and geoeconomic position.

The territory of the country decreased, the established industrial and economic ties were destroyed. A number of former republics of the USSR are oriented in their development to other countries and regions of the world, and this orientation does not always correspond to the strategic interests of Russia. These include, first of all, the Baltic countries - Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, as well as the Transcaucasus - Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia.

After 1991, the territory of the USSR turned, according to experts, into an arena of rivalry between many developed countries of the world for acquiring political and economic influence on new states.

The geopolitical position of Russia is becoming more complicated due to the expansion of NATO.

On March 29, 2004, Bulgaria, Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia joined the NATO military-political bloc, which complicated Russia's geographical position. Lithuania occupies a special place, since most of the links between the Kaliningrad region and other regions of Russia are carried out through its territory.

You don't have to be an economist to imagine the problems associated with the change in the geo-economic position of Russia after 1991. Imagine a single economic complex, a single energy system, close production ties in terms of raw materials, fuel, as well as technological and scientific and technical ones. All this contributed to the development of a capacious consumer market within the country.

In the 1970s-1980s. economic integration both within the country and between the socialist countries was a state policy. The situation changed dramatically in 1991 and required a quick solution. It was found.

On December 21, 1991, an agreement was signed in Alma-Ata (Kazakhstan) on the establishment of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). It was signed by 11 sovereign states. Georgia later joined them. Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania are not included in the CIS.

According to experts, the rupture of economic ties within Russia with the former Soviet republics reduced the output of final products by 35-40%. Not a single country - the former republic of the USSR has reached the level of 1990, with the exception of Uzbekistan and Belarus. The production of agricultural products has sharply decreased (by 35-40%). Only the extraction and production of raw materials, fuel and energy resources increased.

The specifics of the geographical position of Russia

The main features of its nature are connected with the geographical position of Russia. Russia is located in the most severe northeastern part of Eurasia. The cold pole of the Northern Hemisphere (Oymyakon) is located on the territory of the country. Most of the territory of Russia lies north of 60° N. latitude. South of 50°N is only about 5% of the country. 65% of Russia's territory is located in the zone of permafrost. About 140 million people are concentrated in such a northern territory. Nowhere in the world, neither in the northern nor in the southern hemisphere, is there such a concentration of people in such high latitudes.

The northern specificity of Russia leaves its mark on the living conditions of people and the development of the economy. This is manifested in the need to build insulated dwellings, heat housing and industrial premises, and provide stall keeping for livestock (which provides not only for the construction of special industrial premises, but also forage harvesting). It is required to create equipment in the northern version, snow removal equipment for clearing roads. It is necessary to spend additional fuel reserves for the operation of equipment at low temperatures. All this requires not only the organization of special production facilities, but also huge material resources, primarily energy costs, which ultimately leads to huge financial investments.

The nature of Russia creates great restrictions in the development of agriculture. The country is in the zone of risky agriculture. There is not enough heat for the development of agricultural crops, and in the southern part there is not enough moisture, so crop failures and crop failures are a common occurrence for domestic agriculture. Every decade there are major crop failures. This requires the creation of significant state stocks of grain. Harsh conditions limit the possibilities of growing high-yielding fodder crops. Instead of sufficiently heat-loving soybeans and corn in Russia, it is necessary to grow mainly oats, which do not give high yields. These factors, together with the cost of stall keeping livestock, affect the cost of livestock products. Therefore, without state support (subsidies), Russian agriculture, achieving self-sufficiency, is able to ruin the whole country: all the industries associated with it, and above all its main consumer - the population.

Thus, the northern position of Russia determines the complexity of managing the entire economy of the country and the high costs of energy resources. To maintain the same standard of living as in Western Europe, Russia needs to spend 2-3 times more energy than European countries. Only in order to survive one winter without freezing, each inhabitant of Russia, depending on the region of his residence, needs from 1 to 5 tons of reference fuel per year. For all residents of the country, this will amount to at least 500 million tons (40 billion dollars at modern world fuel prices).

concept "geographical position"(GP) is the key to the entire system of geographical sciences. Actually, geography was born as a science of methods for determining and fixing the location of objects on the earth's surface relative to each other or in a certain coordinate system. Later it turned out that determining the location of an object not only helps to find it (for example, to a navigator), but also to explain some of the properties of this object and even predict its development. The most important element of geographical research is the establishment and analysis of links between objects located in space, determined precisely by their location. The ability to characterize in all essential respects the position of the object under study is necessary for a geographer-researcher. GP is usually interpreted as the position of any point or area of the earth's surface in relation to territories or objects located outside this point or area. GP is considered as a kind of external condition for the existence, functioning and development of objects, a characteristic of a given object, expressing its relationship to any geographical objects outside it.

Often the term "position" is understood as the internal state of the object (by analogy with the international position, economic position, etc.). But HP is always an attitude to external circumstances. And this is a position in two-dimensional space, because it is determined on the basis of a geographical map. On it, all objects are represented either as points (as if having no dimension on a given scale), or linear, having only one dimension, or areal (areal) - with two dimensions. On a small-scale map, a city is a point object, a river or a railway is a linear object. Therefore, we can talk about the position of the object relative to points, lines and areas.

The concept of "geographical location" was used in the 19th century, its meaning was analyzed in general terms and on specific examples in the works of K. Marx and F. Engels, among geographers - by F. Ratzel. The GP category was proposed in the USSR at the turn of the 20-30s of the 20th century. I. Alkin and later developed in detail by N.N. Baransky, I.M. Maergoiz and a number of other authors. N.N. Baransky, highlighting the essence of the GP, emphasized that the position is the relationship of a given point or area to some geographical data taken outside this point or area. THEM. Maergois wrote that the question is not so much where there is an object (it goes without saying), how much in that, how it lies relative to what is beyond it. These ideas have enduring value many years after they were expressed.

Through the system of relations of a given object (areal) with other objects (areas), the GP substantively reveals the individual features and properties of any territory. It determines many of the most important features of countries, regions, cities, highlights the properties of their originality and individuality.

In its most formalized form, geographic location is the position of objects recorded on a map in a two-dimensional space of the earth's surface. In physical geography, less often in economic geography, the third dimension is also estimated - absolute or relative height. On the map, all objects are depicted as point, linear (with off-scale conventional signs) or areal (contour, occupying a certain area). In fact, of course, both point and line objects on a small-scale map (settlement, multi-lane highway) occupy areas, but with an appropriate scale of study, this circumstance can be neglected. Then the following options for the mutual arrangement of these categories of objects are possible:

a) a point relative to another point: Moscow relative to St. Petersburg;
b) point relative to the line (and vice versa): Saratov on the Volga;
c) a point relative to the area - the capital in the state;
d) line relative to the line: BAM route relative to the Great Siberian Railway;
e) line within the range: the Yana River in the northeast of Yakutia;
f) area relative to another area: the Republic of Mordovia and Chuvashia.

Other position options are also possible:

1. Point on the line or outside it: Tver on the Moscow-St. Petersburg railway, Nvgorod - outside it.
2. A point within the range, on its border, outside it: Naryan-Mar is located in the tundra zone, Kudymkar is outside it; Brest is located on the border of Belarus and Poland, another Brest is on the French coast of the Atlantic Ocean.
3. The lines are located in isolation from each other, like the Pechora and the Northern Dvina, or intersect, like the BAM with the Lena River.
4. The line is completely within the range (like the Yana River) or partially (the Lena River) in Yakutia, or entirely outside the range (for example, the Dudinka-Norilsk railway has no connection with the country's railway network).
5. The ranges are adjacent (Mordovia and Chuvashia) or remote from each other (Mordovia and Tatarstan).

To determine the relative position of objects, indicate the distance between them and the direction (north, southeast). To determine the position of a point, line, smaller

range as part of a larger one, the following terms are used: central, deep, peripheral, marginal, border position. The position of the capital of Brazil was chosen as close to the central one in the country; the position of the city of Rio Grande (in the south) is close to the border; The city of Fortaleza (in the northeast) has a peripheral position, and the city of Manaus (in the Amazon) has a deep position. Some territories, even states, in their names carry an indication of a marginal position (Ukraine, Krayna in the former Yugoslavia).

Investigating the GP, it is necessary to determine the main thing both in its essence and in its impact on the most important aspects of the development of the territory.

And first of all, it is necessary to identify and understand its most characteristic features.

First, GP - it is a complex system of concepts, including:

a) mathematical and geographical location(position in the system of geographical coordinates);
b) physical and geographical location(position relative to natural objects that affect the nature of a given place - seas, rivers, forests, natural zones, etc.; while the object itself can be both within the range and outside it);
in) economic and geographical position(EGP) - provision: 1) regarding the elements of social production;
2) in relation to the district, region, country; EGP is one of the most important factors determining the location, nature, and dynamics of the development of productive forces;
G) political and geographical position(position on the political map - relative to the centers and areas of concentration of social, class and political forces);
e) military geographical position(the position of any point or any area relative to the centers and countries of military power or creating the danger of military conflicts, as well as in relation to the territories of various military blocs);
e) geopolitical position: closely related to the two above-mentioned types of GP, it reflects the position regarding the "centers of power", centers of economic and military power, various political, economic and military alliances, religious associations;
g) ecological and geographical position(the position of a particular territory relative to regions of ecologically unfavorable or even ecological disasters, relative to the movement of air masses and other flows that carry massive amounts of pollution;
h) cultural and geographic location- regarding the most important centers and regions of the development of spiritual culture, cultural and geographical formations of different territorial rank and significance.

Each of the named types of HP is a multifaceted, synthetic phenomenon, and therefore it is necessary to analyze not only these types “individually”, but especially their combinations in complex interaction and “interweaving” of various sides of HP. So, in the EGP system, the transport-geographical, industrial-geographical, demogeographical, market (or sales-geographical) position and its other components are distinguished, and each of them, in turn, also has a certain structure.

A particularly important role is played by the transport and geographical position, the quality of which is determined by the following circumstances: 1) the economic potential of neighboring territories; 2) the density of economic development of the environment;

3) the presence (quantity and quality) of direct transport access to neighbors, their frequency.

Second, GP - historical category. It should be borne in mind that if the physical and geographical position changes relatively slowly, with the development of the geographical environment, as well as as a result of human activity, then all other types of HP are very dynamic, changeable and their significance (and the consequences of influence) in various historical conditions ambiguously.

N.N. Baransky gives an example of characterizing the historical variability of the US GP. Their germ was the English colonies located on the east coast of North America between the Atlantic Ocean and the Appalachian Mountains. Everything that lay to the west of these colonies was not known to the Europeans, and when the English kings gave some lord or some joint-stock company a piece of the coast, they called only the southern and northern borders along the parallels, and to the west it became possible to go , anywhere. Thus, these colonies were "at the end of the world." Subsequently, the areas lying to the west of the Appalachians were explored, settled and generally mastered, and from the position "at the end of the world" the position "between two oceans" was created. That's how dramatically the situation in the US has changed. Ya.G. Mashbitz, considering the example of the Ancient

Russia, emphasizes that the Tatar-Mongol yoke, feudal disunity and the shift of the center of gravity of world development to Western Europe largely negated the exceptional favorable geographical position of Ancient Russia. Medieval Russia found itself on the periphery of European socio-economic development.

Thirdly, GP has a potential character. Certain favorable aspects of the GP are far from being realized in all cases. Only with a combination of relevant factors of the historical and socio-economic development of a given territory (country), these favorable aspects are realized. Thus, it is known that many features of the development of Japan are due to its oceanic position. But this GP could be realized only thanks to the buildup of Japan's industrial and financial potential.

Fourthly, as a geographical category, GP has a certain mechanism of influence, the study of which requires a transition from “simple”, qualitative, subjective characteristics to quantitative assessments. Noting the need for a theoretical deepening of understanding of the EGP, I.M. Maergois emphasized that the EGP is always concrete and to some extent contradictory, that it is necessary to analyze the probabilistic nature of the GP, the distance factor (the study of the distance, or distance, between geographical objects as one of the properties of space), as well as the interaction of objects, their specific subordination.

In this regard, it is important to distinguish between macro-, meso- and micropositions. The first of these corresponds to a more or less extensive territory; mesoposition - a line that cuts it in important directions, and microposition - a point on this line. These types of GPs interact with each other, but their reflection on the development of certain objects can be very different. In rare cases, they are all equally favorable. It is believed that cities with outstanding macro- and meso-locations, located in foci of connections that hold together large territories, in the centers of rapidly developing industrial and agricultural areas... at the points of contact of various zones, differences in economic potentials, in support nodes areas of new development.

For St. Petersburg, for example, the macro location is described as being in the North-West of the European part of the Russian

Federation, near the border with Finland, on the coast of the Gulf of Finland; mesolocation - approximately in the center of the Leningrad region, at the mouth of the Neva; microlocation - on the islands of the Neva delta and adjacent territories. By analogy, it is possible to determine the rank of the position of an object within an urban area by detailing it. Red Square is located in Moscow near the walls of the Kremlin (microlocation), in the city center - within the Garden Ring (mesolocation).

For some objects, the most important is the micro-, for others, the meso- or macro-position. For example, the size of the differential rent in agriculture is very sensitive to the micro- and meso-location of the site. The same can be said about the position of the store, consumer service point in the city in relation to public transport stops and transfer points. When deciding on the development of fuel and energy and metallurgical bases, an assessment of the macro situation comes to the fore.

Fifth, the GP has close links with the configuration of the territory and its boundaries. which has a great influence on many aspects of the development of a given territory (country) as a whole and its individual parts. Thus, the configuration of the territory of Russia had a great impact on its historical and geographical development. The latitudinal extent of the vast territory of Russia in Eastern Europe and Asia is combined with its continentality and depth. This is the reason for the remoteness of most of the territories from sea coasts and borders. These factors hampered the economic development of the territories east of the Urals, the external economic relations of most regions of Russia.

Plays a big role border position regions of the country, the relationship between their configuration and the borders of the country. So, in modern Russia, this often creates complex problems for them (border regions) (for example, ethnic conflicts, an influx of refugees, the impact of socio-political tensions in neighboring states, etc.).

Geographical position

the position of any point or area of the earth's surface in relation to territories or objects located outside this point or area. In mathematical geography, geographic positions are understood as the latitude and longitude of given points or localities; in physical geography, their position in relation to physical geographical objects (continents, mountains, oceans, seas, rivers, lakes, etc.). In economic and political geography, geographical location is understood as the position of a country, region, settlement, and other objects in relation to other economic-geographical (including communication routes, markets, economic centers, etc.) and physical-geographical objects. as well as the position of the country relative to other states and their groups. Urban settlement is one of the conditions for the development of countries, regions, cities, and other settlements. The practical significance of G. p. changes in various socio-economic formations.

Great Soviet Encyclopedia. - M.: Soviet Encyclopedia. 1969-1978 .

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geographical position- Characteristics of the location of an object on the earth's surface relative to other geographical objects and countries of the world ... Geography Dictionary

The position of a geographic object on the surface of the Earth within a given coordinate system and in relation to any data located outside it that has a direct or indirect effect on this object. With a specific study ... ... Geographic Encyclopedia

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Books

German. Germany. Geographic location, population, politics. Tutorial. Level B 2, Yakovleva T.A.
Geographic location and territorial structures. In memory of I. M. Maergoiz,. The collection is dedicated to the memory of the outstanding Soviet economic geographer Isaac Moiseevich Maergoiz. The collection received its name - GEOGRAPHICAL POSITION AND TERRITORIAL STRUCTURES - from two ...