It is often noted that few States recognize the seven national claims to Antarctic territory. Australia, one of the claimants, asserts title over 42 per cent of the continent and yet only four States have recognized its claim. Some States have expressly rejected Australia's claim. This article examines the legal significance of such widespread non-recognition. It does so through interrogating the evolution of the legal regime of territorial acquisition, its historical function and application to Antarctica, and relevant decisions of international courts and tribunals. The article identifies, and distinguishes amongst, several categories of non-recognition and considers the relevance of each. The analysis finds that the seemingly meagre level of recognition of Australia's title to the Australian Antarctic Territory does not detract from the validity of that title. This article points to possible reasons as to why a number of polar scholars may have suggested otherwise.

中文翻译：

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不承认澳大利亚的南极领地所有权无关紧要

人们经常注意到，很少有国家承认对南极领土的七项国家主张。声索国之一的澳大利亚对非洲大陆 42% 的领土主张所有权，但只有四个国家承认其主张。一些国家明确拒绝了澳大利亚的主张。本文探讨了这种普遍不承认的法律意义。它通过询问领土获取法律制度的演变、其在南极洲的历史功能和应用以及国际法院和法庭的相关决定来做到这一点。本文识别并区分了几类不承认，并考虑了每类的相关性。分析发现，对澳大利亚的认可程度看似微薄 对澳大利亚南极领地的所有权不减损该所有权的有效性。本文指出了一些极地学者可能提出其他建议的可能原因。