Differences Between a Country, State, Nation and Regime
As a Chinese, the terms country, state, nation and regime are often used interchangeably, but there’s a difference.
- A state is a territory with its own institutions and populations.
- A sovereign state is a state with its own institutions and populations that has a permanent population, territory, and government. It must also have the right and capacity to make treaties and other agreements with other states.
- A nation is a large group of people who inhabit a specific territory and are connected by history, culture, or another commonality.
- A nation-state is a cultural group (a nation) that is also a state (and may, in addition, be a sovereign state).
- Country can be used to mean the same thing as state, sovereign state, or nation-state. It can also be used in a less political manner to refer to a region or cultural area that has no governmental status. Examples include Wine Country (the grape-growing area of northern California) and Coal Country (the coal mining region of Pennsylvania).
- Regime is mode of rule or management, a regime is the form of government or the set of rules, cultural or social norms, etc. that reglate the operation of a government or institution and its interactions with society.
Qualities of a Sovereign State
A sovereign state (sometimes called an independent state) has the following qualities:
- Space or territory that has internationally recognized boundaries
- People who live there on an ongoing basis
- Regulations governing foreign and domestic trade
- The ability to issue legal tender that is recognized across boundaries
- An internationally recognized government that provides public services and police power and has the right to make treaties, wage war, and take other actions on behalf of its people
- Sovereignty, meaning that no other state should have power over the country’s territory
Many geographic entities have some but not all the qualities that make up a sovereign state. As of 2020 there are 195 sovereign states in the world (197 by some counts); 193 are members of the United Nations (the United Nations excludes Palestine and the Holy See). Two other entities, Taiwan and Kosovo, are recognized by some but not all members of the United Nations.
Entities That Are Not Sovereign States
Many entities have geographical and cultural significance and many of the qualities of a sovereign state but are not independent sovereign states. These include territories, non-sovereign states, and nations.
Non-Sovereign States
Territories of sovereign states are not sovereign states in their own right. Many entities have most of the most qualities of sovereign states but are officially considered to be non-sovereign. Many have their own histories, and some even have their own languages. Examples include:
- Hong Kong
- Bermuda
- Greenland
- Puerto Rico
- Northern Ireland, Wales, Scotland, and England, which are non-sovereign parts of the United Kingdom
The word state is also used to refer to geographic sections of sovereign states that have their own governments but are subject to a larger federal government. The 50 United States are non-sovereign states.
Nations
Nations are culturally homogeneous groups of people who share a common language, institution, religion, and/or historical experience. Some nations are sovereign states, but many are not.
Nations that hold territory but are not sovereign states include:
- The Indian Nations of the United States
- Bosnia (Bosnia and Herzegovina)
- Catalonia (in northern Spain)
- Quebec
- Corsica
- Sicily
- Tibet
In addition to nations that are non-sovereign states, it can be argued that some nations govern no territory at all. For example, the Sindhi, Yoruba, Rohingya, and Igbo people share histories, cultures, and languages but have no territory. Some states have two nations, such as Canada and Belgium.
Nation-States
When a nation of people has a sovereign state of its own, it is called a nation-state. Populations living in nation-states share history, language, ethnicity, and culture. Iceland and Japan are excellent examples of nation-states: The vast majority of people born in these nation-states share the same ancestry and culture.
Regime
While the word régime originates as a synonym for any type of government, modern usage has given it a negative connotation, implying an authoritarian government or dictatorship. Webster’s definition states that the word régime refers simply to a form of government, while Oxford English Dictionary defines regime as “a government, especially an authoritarian one”.
In other words, regimes can be defined as sets of protocols and norms embedded either in institutions or institutionalized practices – formal such as states or informal such as the “liberal trade regime” – that are publicly enacted and relatively enduring.
References
Differences Between a Country, State, and Nation by Matt Rosenberg, updated on Jan 27, 2020