So any kind of government with a geographic region is a state. That can include counties.
States can be in other states. A nation is the highest level of state. It's authority is derived from it's people rather than an authority above it (or by whatever means like coup or secession). It's an equal peer on the world stage and able to speak for itself. Also the capacity to go to war is a differentiator.
So for example the US and Belgium don't have a common source of sovereignty but New York and North Carolina do. A nation is an independent source of sovereignty.
I suppose that makes sense.Though, I don't think it's better to ask "how many states can a nation contain?"
The post is wondering about different kinds of people in one country. How many nations are in a country may be better using your terminology and is probably what the writer would like.
(post is archived)