Brazil (photo), Paraguay and Argentina converge in the “Triple Border” trifinium
The Latin word trifinium came to Spanish as trifinio . This is the name given to the place where the limits of three territorial divisions or jurisdictions converge .
An international point
Three national or internal borders , therefore, come together in a trifinium. Many times these points are marked with milestones that allow them to be identified and that highlight their particularity.
There are more than a hundred international trifiniums , although at first glance the concept may seem peculiar. While it is true that many countries simply do not meet the geographical requirements to be part of a convergence of this type, we can point to more than one example.
Triple Frontier
One of the best known on the American continent is the Triple Frontier , or Tríplice Fronteira in the Portuguese language. This trifinio is a popular tourist attraction since it is close to the Iguazú Falls .
The borders of Paraguay , Brazil and Argentina converge in the Triple Border . The limits are marked by the Paraná and Iguazú rivers.
One of the elements that stands out in this trifinium is the obelisk: there is one for each country, appropriately decorated with the colors of the national flag. We can also talk about the Three Borders Milestone , located in Puerto Iguazú, Argentina. It is a tourist space that, in its park, houses a monument in which you can see the flags and coats of arms of the three countries.
It is worth mentioning that in 2019 an American film titled Triple Frontier was published that has no relation to this trifinio. It was directed by JC Chandor and starred Ben Affleck, Adria Arjona and Garrett Hedlund , among other actors.
Trifinio-Fraternity
Also in America is the Trifinio-Fraternidad Transboundary Biosphere Reserve . In this protected area , which has an area of 221 square kilometers, the borders of Honduras , Guatemala and El Salvador meet. The trifinio is located in the Montecristo massif .
The creation of this trifinium took place in 1987 with the aim of providing protection to the cloud forest of the Montecristo massif, where the three countries meet, to preserve both its fauna and flora. There we can find laurel and oak trees whose height reaches 30 meters, as well as rare wild species , such as the long-eared owl, the pygmy antbird, spider monkeys and the Central American agouti.
Kolmen valtakunnan vajapyykki
The crossing of the borders of Finland , Norway and Sweden , meanwhile, occurs in a trifinium marked with a stone monument. The name of this point varies depending on the language : Kolmen valtakunnan vajapyykki for the Finns; Treriksrøysa in Norwegian; and Treriksröset (Swedish).
Regarding its striking name, we can translate it as "mound of the three nations", although its original meaning has nuances that are impossible to express in our language with so few words. The term mound refers precisely to one of stones that Russia and Norway erected there in 1897, a time when it was under the administration of Finland.
In «Treriksröset» Sweden (photo), Finland and Norway come together
The tri-state area
In the United States , on the other hand, we speak of a tri-state area to refer to the regions formed by the relationship established by three contiguous states. There are cases where these areas also represent a trifinium, such as in Colorado-Kansas-Oklahoma and Indiana-Michigan-Ohio , with different monuments and signs that mark the confluence .
It should be noted that in the United States there are 62 points in which only three states meet: 27 of them are in the water and the rest, on land . In the first group we find, among many others: Arizona, California and Nevada; Delaware, New Jersey and Pennsylvania; Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin; Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. The mainland triphiniums include the following: Alabama, Florida and Georgia; Arizona, Nevada and Utah; California, Nevada and Oregon; Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island.