Editing Border (section)

{{Short description|Geographic boundaries of political entity}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Redirect|County line||County Line (disambiguation)}}
'''Borders''' are generally defined as [[geography|geographical]] boundaries, imposed either by features such as [[ocean]]s and [[terrain]], or by [[polity|political entities]] such as [[government]]s, [[sovereign state]]s, [[federated state]]s, and other [[administrative division|subnational entities]]. Political borders can be established through [[war]]fare, [[colonization]], or mutual agreements between the political entities that reside in those areas.<ref>{{cite book |first=Terry |last=Slater |author-link=Terry Slater (geographer) |chapter=The Rise and Spread of Capitalism |editor1-first=Peter |editor1-last=Daniels |editor2-first=Michael |editor2-last=Bradshaw |editor2-link=Michael J. Bradshaw |editor3-first=Denis |editor3-last=Shaw |editor4-first=James |editor4-last=Sidaway |editor5-first=Tim |editor5-last=Hall |title=An Introduction To Human Geography |publisher=[[Pearson Education|Pearson]] |edition=5th |date=2016 |page=47 |isbn=978-1-292-12939-6}}</ref>

Some borders—such as most states' internal administrative borders, or inter-state borders within the [[Schengen Area]]—are [[open border|open]] and completely unguarded.<ref>{{cite book |first=Fernand |last=Fehlen |author-link=:lb:Fernand Fehlen |chapter=Mental Barriers Replacing Nation-State Borders |editor1-first=Mats |editor1-last=Andrén |editor2-first=Thomas |editor2-last=Lindkvist |editor3-first=Ingmar |editor3-last=Söhrman |editor3-link=:sv:Ingmar Söhrman |editor4-first=Katharina |editor4-last=Vajta |editor4-link=Katharina Vajta |title=Cultural Borders of Europe: Narratives, Concepts and Practices in the Present and the Past |publisher=[[Berghahn Books]] |date=2017 |page=122 |isbn=978-1-78533-591-4}}</ref> Most external political borders are partially or fully controlled, and may be crossed legally only at designated [[border checkpoint]]s; adjacent [[Border control#Border zones|border zones]] may also be controlled. For the purposes of [[border control]], [[airport]]s and [[Port#Seaport|seaports]] are also classed as borders. Most countries have some form of border control to regulate or limit the movement of people, animals, and goods into and out of the country. Under international law, each country is generally permitted to legislate the conditions that have to be met in order to cross its borders, and to prevent people from crossing its borders in violation of those laws.

[[File:Panmunjeom DMZ.png|thumb|[[South Korea]]n policemen standing guard at the [[Military Demarcation Line|North Korea-South Korea border]]. View from South Korea.]]
[[File:DMZ seen from the north, 2005.jpg|thumb|[[North Korea]]n policemen standing guard at the North Korea-South Korea border. View from North Korea.]]

[[Buffer zone]]s may be set up on borders between belligerent entities to lower the risk of escalation. While ''border'' refers to the boundary itself, the area around the border is called the [[frontier]].