The word territory refers to the defined area that is in the legal possession of an individual, organization, institution, State or country.
The concept of territory is broad and diverse. In geography it is widely used, and if in some cases its use has a political conception, in others it is more closely linked to variants of landscape, region, space and climate. In physics, for example, territory refers to land surface or relief, and therefore is linked to the notions of lithosphere, atmosphere and others. For ecology, the territory is synonymous with the natural environment, the environment of the human being in its relationship with nature. In astronomy and space tradition, the territory no longer contains a political or legal aspect, but has to do with systems understood as places interconnected by networks and flows. For the study of landscaping, to cite another example, territory is synonymous with natural or cultural landscape that involves a relationship with the use that society makes of the land.
Of all these branches and disciplines, the one that has studied the concept of territory with the greatest degree of interest is political geography. As such, it investigates the use of a territory as a physical space dominated by one person or social group in front of others. Many times the territory is synonymous with the State and national power, closely related to the concepts of territorial organization and administrative division that are inherent to the development of a Nation that boasts of such.
But the concept of territory is complex and does not always have a connotation of legality. In certain cases or contexts the territory, the land, the land, can be usurped and / or usufruct by individuals or social groups that do not own it and, given the conditions, these individuals can eventually become legal owners of the territory in question.
Such a situation is a fairly frequent occurrence throughout the world, that is, lands that suddenly do not have a present owner and for this reason are occupied by families who in some cases can even get the ownership of it if in the In the middle, there are no eviction lawsuits by the real owners or if after a prudent time imposed by law nobody claims them and then those who occupy it become their formal owners even if they have not paid a sum of money for it, which is the normal modality with which any individual accedes to the possession of land.
National territory
We will speak of national territory to refer to that surface of land that belongs to a certain nation and over which a state will exercise sovereignty. It not only concerns the land area but also the air and sea, if the territory in question has coasts.
Normally, national territories are divided into sub-national portions (cities, provinces, municipalities, among others) that are governed by a local administration, although it will be subject to the provisions dictated by the national administration.
Animals and territory
Finally, the notion of territory is commonly used to refer to areas controlled or dominated by certain groups of animals. Marking the territory is the practice that many animals - even domestic ones - carry out to delimit that physical space that they assume is their property with respect to other opponents or pairs of the same species.
Felines for example are a type of animal that show off what is indicated, that is, the defense of their territories.
Adult tigers, to cite one of the most recognized cases of this type of situation, are extremely territorial animals that defend their territory with great ferocity.
Female tigers are capable of having a territory of up to 20 square kilometers and not to mention the males that can control an even larger area, which reaches 80 kilometers. It should be noted that tigers usually accept the entry of females into their territory, although not that of males, such a fact they do not tolerate it and this is where they demonstrate their great violence.
Almost always fights between male tigers for territorial reasons are very violent and end with the death of one.
Among the typical actions of felines when marking their territorial property, the one to urinate the trees stands out.
Although we refer exclusively to tigers, as indicated in the paragraphs above, territoriality is a common characteristic of many cats. Domestic cats are also great defenders and watchdogs of their houses and they usually mark that property also by urinating certain limits of the house and rubbing some parts of the property with their whiskers.
