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| Type: | Country |
| Identifier: | COUNTRY |
| Description: | Nation-states and similar entities. This includes units which are currently part of another sovereign entity but have a past history of independence, and units with a history of aspirations to indepdence and clear evidence of distinct national identity. |
| Number of units in system: | |
| Geographical Level: | 4 (Country) (i.e. this type is synonymous with a level) |
| ADL Feature Type: | countries |
| May be part of: | Country , Sub-Continent |
| May have as parts: | Irish County , Country |
| Possible status values: | Joint , Sovereign State (Sov) , Disputed , Crown Protectorate (CrProt) , Not independent (Dep) , Federated State (Fed) |
Deciding which units are included here, other than clear current nation-states, is inevitably both controversial and slightly arbitrary. However, two considerations are how for how much of a unit's history has it been independent, and whether its non-independent existence has been primarily as a standard component of a larger entity or as a unique body requiring a special status. Using these tests, Scotland has a much clearer case for being classed as a COUNTRY than Texas.