View source for Microstate

{{Short description|Sovereign state having a very small population or very small land area}}
{{For|the specific configuration of particles of a material in [[statistical mechanics]]|Microstate (statistical mechanics)}}
{{Distinguish|Micronation}}
[[File:Microstates.PNG|upright=1.4|thumb|The world's five smallest sovereign states by area, from largest to smallest: [[San Marino]], [[Tuvalu]], [[Nauru]], [[Monaco]], and [[Vatican City]] shown in the same scale for size comparison]]
[[File:BlankMap-World-v8 small states.svg|thumb|Map of the smallest states in the world by population or land area]]
{{politics}}

A '''microstate''' or '''ministate''' is a [[sovereign state]] having a very small population or land area, usually both. However, the meanings of "state" and "very small" are not well-defined in international law.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last=Warrington |first=Edward |date=June 1994 |title=Lilliput Revisited |journal=Asian Journal of Public Administration |volume=16 |issue=1 |pages=3–13 |doi=10.1080/02598272.1994.10800284}}</ref> Some recent attempts to define microstates have focused on identifying qualitative features that are linked to their size and population, such as partial delegation of their [[sovereignty]] to larger states, such as for international defense.

Commonly accepted examples of microstates include five historic European microstates: [[Andorra]], [[Liechtenstein]], [[Monaco]], [[San Marino]], and [[Vatican City]]. [[Malta]], [[Iceland]], and [[Luxembourg]] are sometimes included in that list but are generally considered too populous to be genuine microstates. Other examples are small, isolated island states in the Pacific Ocean that gained independence from the European or Australasian powers: [[Nauru]], [[Palau]], and [[Tuvalu]]. The smallest political entity recognized as a sovereign state is Vatican City, with fewer than 1,000 residents and an area of only {{convert|49|ha}}. Some microstates – such as Monaco and Vatican City – are [[city-state]]s consisting of a single municipality.

== Definitions ==
=== Quantitative ===
Most scholars identify microstates by using a quantitative threshold and applying it to either one variable (such as the size of its territory<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Mehmet |first1=Ozay |last2=Tahiroglu |first2=M. |date=1 January 2002 |title=Growth and equity in microstates: Does size matter in development? |journal=International Journal of Social Economics |volume=29 |issue=1/2 |pages=152–162 |doi=10.1108/03068290210413047}}</ref> or population<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Boyce |first1=Peter J. |last2=Herr |first2=Richard A. |date=April 1974 |title=Microstate diplomacy in the south pacific |journal=Australian Outlook |volume=28 |issue=1 |pages=24–35 |doi=10.1080/10357717408444489}}</ref>) or a composite of different variables.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Reid |first=George L. |title=The impact of very small size on the international behavior of microstates |date=1974 |publisher=Sage Publications |isbn=9780803904064 |location=Beverly Hills, Calif}}</ref> While it is agreed that microstates are the smallest of all states, there is no consensus on what variable (or variables) or cut-off point should be used to determine which political units should be labelled as "microstates" (as opposed to small "normal" states).<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite report |url=http://ams.hi.is/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Microstates_OccasionalPaper.pdf |title=Microstates as Modern Protected States: Towards a New Definition of Micro-Statehood |last=Dumienski |first=Zbigniew |date=2014 |publisher=Centre for Small State Studies |access-date=2014-06-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714195156/http://ams.hi.is/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Microstates_OccasionalPaper.pdf |archive-date=2014-07-14 |url-status=dead |series=Occasional Paper}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite thesis |last=Neemia |first=U. |title=Smallness, islandness and foreign policy behaviour: aspects of island microstates foreign policy behaviour with special reference to Cook Islands and Kiribati |date=1995 |publisher=University of Wollongong |url=https://ro.uow.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2439&context=theses |language=en |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240219212327/https://ro.uow.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2439&context=theses |archive-date=19 February 2024 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Dommen |first=E. |title=States, Microstates and Islands |date=1985 |publisher=Routledge Kegan & Paul |isbn=978-0-7099-0862-3 |editor-last=Hein |editor-first=P. |location=London; Dover, N.H}}</ref> According to some scholars the quantitative approach to defining microstates suffers from such problems as "inconsistency, arbitrariness, vagueness and inability to meaningfully isolate qualitatively distinct political units".<ref name=":1" />

=== Qualitative ===
[[File:Panorama Vatican, St. Peter's Basilica and Gardens of Vatican City (39834994173).jpg|upright=1.15|thumb|[[Vatican City]], the smallest independent country in the world, with {{convert|0.49|km2|acre|abbr=on}}]]
Some academics have suggested defining microstates according to the unique features that are linked to their geographic or demographic smallness.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":3">{{Cite journal |last=Amstrup |first=Niels |date=June 1976 |title=The Perennial Problem of Small States: A Survey of Research Efforts |journal=Cooperation and Conflict |language=en |volume=11 |issue=2 |pages=163–182 |doi=10.1177/001083677601100202 |issn=0010-8367}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite book |title=Small States in International Relations: Lilliputians in Gulliver's World? |date=May 2006 |publisher=University of Washington Press; University of Iceland Press |isbn=978-0-295-98524-4 |editor-last=Ingebritsen |editor-first=Christine |series=New directions in Scandinavian studies |location=Seattle : Reykjavik |publication-date=May 2006 |oclc=ocm63171147 |editor-last2=Neumann |editor-first2=Iver |editor-last3=Gstöhl |editor-first3=Sieglinde |editor-last4=Beyer |editor-first4=Jessica}}</ref> Newer approaches have proposed looking at the behaviour or capacity to operate in the international arena in order to determine which states should deserve the microstate label.<ref name=":4" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Wivel |first1=Anders |last2=Oest |first2=Kajsa Ji Noe |date=September 2010 |title=Security, profit or shadow of the past? Explaining the security strategies of microstates |journal=Cambridge Review of International Affairs |language=en |volume=23 |issue=3 |pages=429–453 |doi=10.1080/09557571.2010.484047 |issn=0955-7571}}</ref> Yet, it has been argued{{By whom|date=September 2020}} that such approaches could lead to either confusing microstates with weak states<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":3" /> (or [[failed states]]) or relying too much on subjective perceptions.<ref name=":1" />

An alternative approach is to define microstates as "modern protected states".<ref name=":1" /> According to the definition proposed by Dumienski (2014): "microstates are modern protected states, i.e. sovereign states that have been able to unilaterally depute certain attributes of sovereignty to larger powers in exchange for benign protection of their political and economic viability against their geographic or demographic constraints."<ref name=":1" /> Adopting this approach permits limiting the number of microstates and separating them from both small states and autonomies or [[dependent territory|dependencies]].<ref name=":1" />

The smallest political unit recognized as a sovereign state is the [[Vatican City]], though [[legal status of the Holy See|its precise status]] is sometimes disputed, e.g., [[Maurice Mendelson]] argued in 1972 that "[i]n two respects it may be doubted whether the territorial entity, the Vatican City, meets the traditional criteria of statehood".<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Mendelson |first=M. H. |date=October 1972 |title=Diminutive States in the United Nations |journal=International and Comparative Law Quarterly |language=en |volume=21 |issue=4 |pages=609–630 |doi=10.1093/iclqaj/21.4.609 |issn=0020-5893}}{{better source needed|This was published more than half a century ago, when Liechtenstein was not accepted to join the UN for instance.|date=February 2023}}</ref>
[[File:St.Kitts and Nevis -Two Islands One Paradise.jpg|upright=1.15|thumb|[[St. Kitts and Nevis]] in the [[Caribbean Sea]], the smallest independent country in the [[Americas]] with {{convert|261|km2|sqmi|abbr=on}}]]

== Politics ==
Statistical research has shown that microstates are more likely to be [[Democracy|democracies]] than larger states. In 2012, [[Freedom House]] classified 86% of the countries with fewer than 500,000 inhabitants as "free".<ref name=":6">{{Cite journal |last=Veenendaal |first=Wouter P. |date=2015 |title=Democracy in microstates: why smallness does not produce a democratic political system |journal=Democratization |language=en |volume=22 |issue=1 |pages=92–112 |doi=10.1080/13510347.2013.820710 |issn=1351-0347}}</ref> This shows that countries with small populations often had a high degree of [[political freedom]] and [[civil liberties]], which is one of the hallmarks of democracies. Some scholars have taken the statistical correlation between small size and democracy as a sign that smallness is beneficial to the development of a democratic political system,<ref name=":7">{{Cite journal |last=Anckar |first=Dag |date=July 2004 |title=Regime choices in microstates: the cultural constraint |journal=Commonwealth & Comparative Politics |language=en |volume=42 |issue=2 |pages=206–223 |doi=10.1080/1466204042000299263 |issn=1466-2043}}</ref> mentioning [[Group cohesiveness|social cohesiveness]], opportunities for direct communication and homogeneity of interests as possible explanations for why this is the case.<ref name=":6" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Corbett |first=Jack |date=January 2015 |title="Everybody knows everybody": practising politics in the Pacific Islands |journal=Democratization |language=en |volume=22 |issue=1 |pages=51–72 |doi=10.1080/13510347.2013.811233 |issn=1351-0347|hdl=10072/60226 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>

[[File:General hotel.jpg|upright=1.15|thumb|[[Seychelles]] in the [[Indian Ocean]], the smallest independent country in [[Africa]] with {{convert|459|km2|sqmi|abbr=on}}]]
[[Case study]] research, however, has led some researchers to believe that the statistical evidence belies the anti-democratic elements of microstate politics.<ref name=":6" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Erk |first1=Jan |last2=Veenendaal |first2=Wouter |date=July 2014 |title=Is Small Really Beautiful?: The Microstate Mistake |journal=Journal of Democracy |language=en |volume=25 |issue=3 |pages=135–148 |doi=10.1353/jod.2014.0054 |issn=1086-3214}}</ref> Due to small populations, family and personal relations are often decisive in microstate politics. In some cases, this impedes neutral and formal decision-making and instead leads to undemocratic political activity, such as [[clientelism]], [[corruption]], [[Political particularism|particularism]] and [[Elective dictatorship|executive dominance]].<ref name=":6" />

The high number of democracies amongst microstates could be explained by their colonial history.<ref name=":6" /><ref name=":7" /> Most microstates adopted the same political system as their colonial ruler.<ref name=":8">{{Cite journal |last=Anckar |first=Dag |date=February 2008 |title=Microstate Democracy: Majority or Consensus; Diffusion or Problem-Solving? |journal=Democratization |language=en |volume=15 |issue=1 |pages=67–85 |doi=10.1080/13510340701768158 |issn=1351-0347}}</ref> Because of the high number of microstates that were [[Great Britain|British]] colonies in the past, microstates often have a [[Majoritarianism|majoritarian]] and [[Parliamentary system|parliamentary]] political system similar to the [[Westminster system]].<ref name=":7" /> Some microstates with a history as British colony have implemented some aspects of a [[Consensus democracy|consensus]] political system, to adapt to their geographic features or societal make-up.<ref name=":8" /> While the colonial history often determines what political systems microstates have, they do implement changes to better accommodate their specific characteristics.

=== Microstates and international relations ===
Microstates often rely on other countries in order to survive, as they have a small military capacity and a lack of resources. This had led some to believe that microstates are forced to subordinate themselves to larger states which reduces their [[sovereignty]].<ref name=":9">{{Cite journal |last=Sharman |first=J.C. |date=October 2017 |title=Sovereignty at the Extremes: Micro-States in World Politics |journal=Political Studies |language=en |volume=65 |issue=3 |pages=559–575 |doi=10.1177/0032321716665392 |issn=0032-3217|hdl=10072/353417 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> However, research has shown that microstates strategically engage in [[Clientelism|patron-client relationships]] with other countries.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Veenendaal |first=Wouter P. |date=2017 |title=Analyzing the Foreign Policy of Microstates: The Relevance of the International Patron-Client Model |journal=Foreign Policy Analysis |language=en |pages=561–577 |doi=10.1111/fpa.12068}}</ref> This allows them to trade some privileges to countries that can advance their interests the most. Examples of this are microstates that establish a [[tax haven]] or sell their support in international committees in exchange for military and economic support.<ref name=":9" />

== Historical anomalies and aspirant states ==
A small number of tiny sovereign political units have been founded on historic anomalies or eccentric interpretations of law. Those types of states, often labelled as "microstates," are usually located on small (usually disputed) territorial enclaves, generate limited economic activity founded on [[tourism]] and [[philatelic]] and [[numismatic]] sales, and are tolerated or ignored by the nations from which they claim to have seceded.

The [[Republic of Indian Stream]], now the town of [[Pittsburg, New Hampshire]], was a geographic anomaly that had been left unresolved by the [[Treaty of Paris (1783)|Treaty of Paris]], which ended the [[American Revolutionary War]], and was claimed by both the [[United States]] and [[Canada]]. Between 1832 and 1835, the area's residents refused to acknowledge either claimant.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Doan |first1=Daniel |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/35651345 |title=Indian Stream Republic: settling a New England frontier, 1785-1842 |last2=Daniell |first2=Jere R. |last3=MacDougall |first3=Ruth Doan |date=1997 |publisher=University Press of New England |others=Jere R. Daniell, Ruth Doan MacDougall |isbn=978-0-87451-767-5 |series=Library of New England |location=Hanover, NH |oclc=35651345}}</ref>

The [[Cospaia Republic]] became independent by a treaty error and survived from 1440 to 1826.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Jepson |first=Tim |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/743223039 |title=The rough guide to Tuscany & Umbria |date=2009 |publisher=Rough Guides |others=Jonathan Buckley, Mark Ellingham, Rough Guides |isbn=978-1-4053-8529-9 |edition=7th |location=New York |oclc=743223039}}</ref> Its independence made it important in the introduction of tobacco cultivation to [[Italy]].
[[File:Malediven Atoll Luftbild (28800485916).jpg|upright=1.15|thumb|[[Maldives]] in the [[Indian Ocean]], the smallest independent country in [[Asia]] with an area of {{convert|298|km2|sqmi|abbr=on}}]]

[[Couto Misto]] was disputed by [[Spain]] and [[Portugal]] and operated as a [[sovereign state]] until the [[Treaty of Lisbon (1864)|1864 Treaty of Lisbon]] partitioned the territory, with the larger part becoming part of Spain.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=United Nations |date=2001-02-14 |title=Treaty Series 1889 |series=United Nations Treaty Series |language=en |publisher=UN |doi=10.18356/a43b73bc-en-fr |isbn=978-92-1-045419-3 |issn=2412-1495}}</ref>

[[Jaxa (state)|Jaxa]] was a small state that existed during the 17th century at the border between [[Tsardom of Russia]] and [[Qing dynasty|Qing China]]. Despite its location in East Asia, the state's primary language was [[Polish language|Polish]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Sulewski |first=Wojciech |url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/69483582 |title=Konterfekty dziwnych Polaków |date=1973 |publisher=Iskry |oclc=69483582}}</ref>

== See also ==
{{Div col|colwidth=40em}}
* [[City-state]]
* [[European microstates]]
* [[Free State of Fiume]]
* [[Free Territory of Trieste]]
* [[Island country]]
* [[List of countries and dependencies by population density]]
* [[List of countries and outlying territories by total area]]
* [[List of countries by population]]
* [[Microstates and the United Nations]]
* [[Neutral Moresnet]]
{{div col end}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

== Further reading ==
* {{Cite book |last1=Sack |first1=John |author-link=John Sack |url=https://archive.org/details/reportfrompracti00sack |title=Report from Practically Nowhere |last2=Silverstein |first2=Shel |author-link2=Shel Silverstein |publisher=Harper & Brothers |year=1959 |asin=B0006D96LU |oclc=1321371 |url-access=registration}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Microstates| ]]
[[Category:Types of countries]]