microstate
Sign in to saveupright=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]] thumb|Map of the smallest states in the world by population or land area
AI overview
A microstate is a very small independent country, typically covering just a few hundred square miles or having only tens of thousands of people—examples include Vatican City, Monaco, and San Marino. These tiny nations matter because they demonstrate that countries can function at a very small scale, and they often play outsized roles in international affairs through banking, tourism, and diplomacy despite their limited size and population.
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Article
9 sectionsContents
- Definitions
- Quantitative
- Qualitative
- Politics
- Microstates and international relations
- Historical anomalies and aspirant states
- See also
- References
- Further reading
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]] thumb|Map of the smallest states in the world by population or land area
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. 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.