What is a territory? Comparative federalism and state formation in North America

Abstract

ABSTRACT Territories are a common form of subnational government in the United States and Canada, but their jurisdictional purpose within each country’s federal system remains ill-defined. This article presents a new theoretically driven definition for sub-state territories and explains the purposes for their creation within the imperial land systems of both countries. It defines territories as federal possessions with circumscribed self-government and limited pathways to full constitutional membership within their respective federations. It argues that territories were created for two purposes: (1) to provide a mechanism for the orderly absorption of new land and (2) to impose uniform political systems across that land in Canada and the continental United States. This remains the case in Canada, while American territories now serve an administrative tool for the management of overseas empire.