POSC Specifications
Version 3.0
Epicentre Standard Values
ref_geopolitical_area

ref_geopolitical_area

Standard Instance Values

identifier description source version status
      ref _version .identifier  
city An inhabited geopolitical area that is within a country. It need not be contiguous to other cities. POSC epicentre 2.1 current
county A subdivision of a country, state, or province into contiguous land areas. A county is not a sovereign state. POSC epicentre 2.1 current
state or province A subdivision of a country. The division of the nation is such that any land portion of the nation must be in a state, or an equivalent administrative area such as a federal district, protectorate, or province. A nation need not be divided into states or provinces. For purposes of classification, if the basic administrative area of a country is state or province, the other equivialent areas (commonwealths, territories, etc.) shall also be classified as state or province. A primary administrative district of a country that is not a non-sovereign country or county shall be considered a state or province. POSC epicentre 2.1 current
dependent area A non-sovereign area that is subject to the rule of a sovereign nation. This is different than the division of a sovereign nation into counties, states, and/or provinces. A dependency is not considered part of the nation it is dependent on. An example would be a UN protectorate. POSC epicentre 2.1 current
non-sovereign country A subdivision of a sovereign nation that is intermediate between states, provinces, and counties, and the sovereign nation as a whole. An example would be the United Kingdom - country - under which England and Scotland would be non-sovereign countries. For purposes of classification, if a country is a sovereign country, it should be classfied as a country. POSC epicentre 2.1 current
country The land and the peoples represented by a national government. A country must be contiguous to another country, body of water, or a subdivision of another sovereign nation. A country is one that is recognized as a sovereign by the United Nations. POSC epicentre 2.1 current
confederation A grouping of countries into a political body. An example would be the European Community. POSC epicentre 2.1 current
miscellaneous Geopolitical entities that are not appropriately classified into any of the above categories. POSC epicentre 2.1 current
offshore area The offshore area of a related geopolitical feature that is under the jurisdication of the geopolitical feature. This value is meant to be the offshore area only. Combined with the onshore area, it would represent the total feature. POSC epicentre 2.2.1 provisional
onshore area The onshore area of a geopolitical feature. This value is meant to specifically exclude the offshore area. Combined with the offshore area, it would represent the total feature. POSC epicentre 2.2.1 provisional
state Deprecated. Use state or province. POSC epicentre 2.1 deprecated
province Deprecated. Use state or province. POSC epicentre 2.1 deprecated

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