An enclave is a ‘wrong piece’ in a geographical puzzle. This often creates difficulties, but also opportunities. The textbook example of an enclave that causes tensions, but also provides opportunities, is Guantánamo Bay, an American base on Cuban territory.
Enclave
The word enclave comes from Latin and means ‘to be confined’. And that literally applies to the residents of an enclave: they live in a piece of land that is surrounded by a country. This creates difficulties and opportunities. Enclaves can arise consciously or unconsciously. For example, it may be contractually agreed to establish an enclave. But it may also be the case that due to geographical changes, certain areas overlap, thus creating enclaves.
Llivia (Spain/France)
In the 17th century, France and Spain fought a war. When the peace was signed, Spain promised to give the region of Cerdagne to France. That is to say: all villages and surrounding lands that were in the region. However, there was a problem, the town of Llivia was not a village and therefore remained Spanish, while all the surrounding fields became French. The enclave of Llivia remains a Spanish territory within France to this day. There is a road between this area and the motherland. For years this was a death road, as Spanish motorists did not want to give way to French road users coming from the side roads. Because didn’t the 1660 treaty state that they should be able to travel to Spain ‘unhindered’? The French Public Works Department solved the problem by building viaducts.
Jungholz (Austria/Germany)
Anyone who lives in the Austrian village of Jungholz and wants to go to Vienna, for example, can get excited. To get to the rest of Austria, you have to climb over the Sorgschrofen mountain (1636 meters). The top of the mountain is the only point where Jungholz is connected to the rest of the motherland via a footpath one meter wide. Geographers call such a point connection a ‘binational quadripoint’. Or you get in the car, but then the only way to the outside world is through Germany. That is why the 323 residents of Jungholz have been given a German postal code. Because the Austrian postman doesn’t like climbing over mountains, so he leaves the delivery of letters to his German colleague. The valley is only 7 square kilometers in size, but it desperately wants to remain part of Austria.
San’kova-Medvezh’e / Sankovo-Medvezhye (Russia/Belarus)
The saddest enclave of all time. These two small Russian villages are located in neighboring Belarus, but have become uninhabitable after the Chernobyl nuclear power plant exploded in nearby Ukraine. Because the Russians did not want to disinfect the villages (which was too expensive due to their enclave status), the villagers were evacuated. To never come back. The enclave was created when a group of Russian guest workers returned from America just before the First World War. The group decided to buy land in Belarus and build two villages there. Their houses are now overgrown, the roads impassable.
Temburong (Brunei/Malaysia)
Actually you could call the whole of Brunei an enclave. This mini-state on the coast of Borneo is completely surrounded by Malaysia. The sultan is the boss in this absolute monarchy. The area of just under 6,000 square kilometers (about 1/10 of the Netherlands) also consists of two parts: Brunei itself and the Temburong enclave further away. If you want to travel from one part to another, it is better to take the ferry. Because the roads that partly run through Malaysia are narrow and customs sometimes cause delays.
Fergana Valley (Uzbekistan/Tajikistan)
The fertile Fergana Valley in Central Asia is a true tangle of borders and enclaves. There are six enclaves in Kyrgyzstan, four from Uzbekistan and two from Tajikistan. Moreover, the Tajiks also have an enclave in Uzbekistan. That wouldn’t have to be such a problem if the three countries could get along a little better. Uzbekistan in particular regularly closes all borders so that residents cannot leave their enclaves. Also, some boundaries have not yet been definitively drawn. And as a result, several countries sometimes claim the same area.
Compione d’Italia (Italy/Switzerland)
Just because you live in an enclave does not necessarily mean that you are not proud of your (distant) homeland. On Lake Lugano in Switzerland lies a small Italian enclave with a grand name: Campione d’Italia, or ‘Champion of Italy’. This enclave does not have much: a few streets, three pizzerias and two churches. But the residents of Compione are very proud of it. Local artists have even invented their own Compionese style. Waiter Marco of Pizzeria Monella thinks the Swiss people around him (who also speak Italian) are nice people, but he wouldn’t want to live 300 meters away for the world, where the border of his enclave is. And not in Italy itself, by the way. ‘We are actually a country in itself. We are Campions, people who live in a village that has been independent since time immemorial.’
Point Roberts (United States/Canada)
When America and Canada drew their border in 1855, they decided to do so on the western part of their continent along the 49th parallel. That resulted in a beautiful straight border, but also an enclave: Point Roberts. This village is the southern tip of Canada’s Vancouver Island, just south of 49 degrees north latitude and surrounded by water. It is only 12.65 square kilometers in area, a small area, with only one border crossing into Canada. From there it is a 45-minute drive to the rest of the US. If you want to take the boat to the homeland, you have to sail an hour. Life in Point Roberts is quite difficult. There is no dentist, no high school and no pharmacy. But the 1300 inhabitants don’t care one bit. They are happy, as evidenced by their motto ‘Almost Canada, almost heaven’.