{"schema":"https://ver.cy/schemas/card/1.0.0","id":"vr.tr.historical-country","code":"thing-q3024240","url":"https://ver.cy/models/thing/q3024240/","name":"historical country","alternateNames":["Griqua state","historic state of Italy","Beja Kingdoms","feudal state","feudal states of Kerala","Frontier states of the Gupta Empire","Pre-modern Korea","Roman client kingdoms in Britain","former proto-state","historical Chinese state","beylik","marcher lordship"],"kind":"thing","status":"published","version":"0.2.0-wave.2","language":"en","classifiers":{"family":"Thing Registry","category":"Physical world and living systems","entryKind":"thing","plane":"PHY","domain":["PHY.PLC"],"industry":[],"navPath":"","tags":[],"facets":{}},"whatItIs":"A state or polity that existed in the past and no longer exists as a sovereign or autonomous entity, including empires, kingdoms, republics, feudal states, princely states, city states and short-lived polities, such as the historic states of Italy, the feudal states of Kerala, the Beja kingdoms and the Griqua states; historical countries are studied for their institutions, borders and legacies, and their names, extents and dates are often contested and described with attribution.","purpose":"Let an agent explain historical countries as a category, identify former states with dates, extents and successors from sources, describe their institutions and legacies, and present contested claims about them neutrally.","scope":{"in":[],"out":[],"boundaries":[]},"distinguishingFeatures":["No longer existing","Defined by period","Successor states","Contested boundaries"],"structure":{"bundles":[{"id":"understand","name":"Understand","description":"What historical countries are.","layers":[{"id":"concept","name":"Concept","description":"Concept and kinds.","findings":[{"id":"concept-finding","name":"Concept","description":"Concept.","questions":[{"text":"What counts as a historical country, and how do empires, kingdoms, feudal states and city states differ?","kind":"definition"},{"text":"Which state or period is meant?","kind":"boundary"}]}]},{"id":"identify","name":"Identify","description":"Identifying a state.","findings":[{"id":"identify-finding","name":"Identify","description":"Identification.","questions":[{"text":"What were the dates, extent, capital and successors of this historical state, according to sources?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which entry fits a specific state?","kind":"action"}]}]}]},{"id":"study","name":"Study","description":"Institutions and legacies.","layers":[{"id":"institutions","name":"Institutions","description":"Institutions.","findings":[{"id":"institutions-finding","name":"Institutions","description":"Institutions.","questions":[{"text":"How were historical states governed, and what institutions did they have?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which entry fits political history?","kind":"action"}]}]},{"id":"legacy","name":"Legacy","description":"Legacies.","findings":[{"id":"legacy-finding","name":"Legacy","description":"Legacy.","questions":[{"text":"What legacies of historical states persist in borders, law, language and identity?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which entry fits a successor state?","kind":"action"}]}]}]},{"id":"contested","name":"Contested","description":"Contested claims.","layers":[{"id":"succession","name":"Succession","description":"Succession claims.","findings":[{"id":"succession-finding","name":"Succession","description":"Succession.","questions":[{"text":"How do modern states and movements claim continuity with historical countries, with positions attributed?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Is the presentation neutral?","kind":"boundary"}]}]},{"id":"maps","name":"Maps","description":"Maps and names.","findings":[{"id":"maps-finding","name":"Maps","description":"Maps.","questions":[{"text":"How should historical borders and names be represented without anachronism?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which entry fits historical cartography?","kind":"action"}]}]}]},{"id":"learn","name":"Learn","description":"Resources and teaching.","layers":[{"id":"resources","name":"Resources","description":"Resources.","findings":[{"id":"resources-finding","name":"Resources","description":"Resources.","questions":[{"text":"Which atlases, databases and gazetteers document historical countries?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which references are standard?","kind":"provenance"}]}]},{"id":"teach","name":"Teach","description":"Teaching.","findings":[{"id":"teach-finding","name":"Teach","description":"Teaching.","questions":[{"text":"How can historical states be taught with maps and timelines?","kind":"action"},{"text":"Which misconceptions arise?","kind":"provenance"}]}]}]}]},"agentConduct":{"may":["Describe a historical country, its dates and territory from historical sources.","Distinguish between historical and present-day states with the same name."],"mustNot":["Use a historical country to support present-day territorial claims as if settled.","Present nationalist myths about a former state as established history.","Draw borders of a historical state with false precision."],"requiresHuman":["Publishing maps or statements that touch on contested territories."]},"ethics":{"considerations":["Histories of former states are used to justify conflict and exclusion.","Descendant communities have their own memory of these states."],"affectedParties":["Descendant communities","Neighbouring peoples"]},"owners":{"steward":"Nobody: a past polity; historians and archives keep its record.","roles":[],"masterSystems":["National archives"]},"relations":[{"target":"Q19832712","type":"parent","note":"registry parent class"},{"target":"Q19953632","type":"parent","note":"registry parent class"},{"target":"historical administrative division","type":"related","note":"category"},{"target":"former administrative territorial entity","type":"related","note":"category"},{"target":"dynasty","type":"related","note":"ruling houses of former states"},{"target":"chronology","type":"related","note":"dating of states"}],"interaction":{"identity":{"applicability":"required","items":["Vercy registry: vr.tr.historical-country","Wikidata: Q3024240 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q3024240)"]},"properties":{"applicability":"not-applicable","items":[]},"recognition":{"applicability":"required","items":["Former sovereign or autonomous state","Empires, kingdoms, feudal states, city states","Historical regions were not states; current states are separate","Not physical; former polities shown on historical maps."]},"capabilities":{"applicability":"required","items":["explain the category","identify former states","describe institutions and legacies","present contested claims neutrally"]},"hazards":{"applicability":"required","items":["Anachronistic borders and names","Taking sides in succession claims","Confusing states with regions"]},"interfaces":{"applicability":"required","items":["Historical cartography conventions","Standards for historical place name authorities","No regulation of the category"]},"context":{"applicability":"required","items":["States that no longer exist.","empires and kingdoms","feudal and princely states","city states and republics","short-lived and unrecognised polities","colonial and dependent territories"]}},"sources":[{"title":"Wikidata item Q3024240: historical country","url":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q3024240","note":"identity and sense of the item"},{"title":"Wikipedia: Historical country","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historical_country","note":"general description of the item"}],"openQuestions":["Should each historical country be a separate entry?","How should historical atlases be linked?","How should contested successions be attributed?"],"resources":{"spec":"/models/things/publications/thing-q3024240/spec.json"},"provenance":{"origin":"thing registry research (pass 2)","builtFrom":["models/things/publications/thing-q3024240/spec.json"],"providers":["Claude"],"researchStatus":"unreviewed","generatedAt":"2026-09-12T04:49:18Z","builder":"tools/build_cards.py@1.0.0"},"completeness":{"sections":{"classifiers":"filled","whatItIs":"filled","purpose":"filled","distinguishingFeatures":"filled","structure":"filled","agentConduct":"filled","ethics":"filled","owners":"filled","relations":"filled","interaction.identity":"filled","interaction.properties":"not-applicable","interaction.recognition":"filled","interaction.capabilities":"filled","interaction.hazards":"filled","interaction.interfaces":"filled","interaction.context":"filled","sources":"filled"},"notes":{"_gate":"Published through the thing publication gate 1.0 on 2026-10-07T10:10:29+00:00: completeness 1.00; sense: Wikidata description; 2 live sources; review by codex: pass","interaction.properties":"A historical country is a political and historical entity whose former territory can be measured, but it has no intrinsic physical properties as a category."},"score":1.0}}