self-determination the autonomy possessed by a community when it is politically independent; in a strict sense, territorial sovereignty. Within international law, the principle of self-determination appears to grant every people a right to be self-determining, but there is controversy over its interpretation. Applied to established states, the principle calls for recognition of state sovereignty and non-intervention in internal affairs. By providing for the self-determination of subordinate communities, however, it can generate demands for secession that conflict with existing claims of sovereignty. Also, what non-self-governing groups qualify as beneficiaries? The national interpretation of the principle treats cultural or national units as the proper claimants, whereas the regional interpretation confers the right of self-determination upon the populations of well-defined regions regardless of cultural or national affiliations. This difference reflects the roots of the principle in the doctrines of nationalism and popular sovereignty, respectively, but complicates its application. See also POLITICAL PHI- LOSOPHY. T.K.