Geojurisprudence is "a

system A system is a group of Interaction, interacting or interrelated elements that act according to a set of rules to form a unified whole. A system, surrounded and influenced by its environment (systems), environment, is described by its boundaries, ...

ic approach to the connections of

legal science Legal science is one of the main components in civil law tradition (after Roman law, canon law, commercial law, and the legacy of the revolutionary period). Legal science is primarily the creation of German legal scholars of the middle and late ...

geography Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and ...

and

geopolitics Geopolitics (from Greek γῆ ''gê'' "earth, land" and πολιτική ''politikḗ'' "politics") is the study of the effects of Earth's geography (human and physical) on politics and international relations. While geopolitics usually refers to ...

" ( Manfred Langhans-Ratzeburg - ''Begriff und Aufgaben der Geographischen Rechtswissenshaft (Geojurisprudenz)'' published by Kurt Vowinkel in 1928 as a companion volume to Karl Haushofer's ''Zeitschrift für Geopolitik'' (ZfG). Haushofer opened the topic in his essay "Geopolitik und Geojurisprudenz" which appeared in ''Zeitschrift für Völkerrecht'' in 1928. Here he lamented the lack of geographical understanding in

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

legal studies. He said this contributed towards the general failure of the German populace to understand the nature of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. He heralded Langhans-Ratzeburg as the chief representative of this new discipline, which he suggested would overcome the "thin, sterile air of legal scientific concepts and the fraudulent, political scientific, treaty-waving political posture of the so-called central powers". With a return to putatively "German" concepts of legal relations between states, invigorated by incorporating a geographical perspective, then borders as durable legal structures rooted in geography would emerge. With this introduction, ''Langhans-Ratzeburg'' in turn praised not only Haushofer, but also

Alfred Hettner Alfred Hettner (August 6, 1859 in Dresden – August 31, 1941 in Heidelberg) was a German geographer. He is known for his concept of chorology, the study of places and regions, a concept that influenced both Carl O. Sauer and Richard Hartsho ...

, Walther Vogel and Albert von Hoffmann for their attempts to link geography, history, politics and culture.

References

*''Begriff und Aufgaben der Geographischen Rechtswissenshaft (Geojurisprudenz)'' by Manfred Langhans-Ratzeburg, 1928 Geopolitics International law Philosophy of law {{International-law-stub