AP HUMAN GEOGRAPHY MODELS REVIEW CHART
Notable Geographer
John Borchert
Urban
Boserup
Rural Land Use
Lester Brown
Agricultural Production
Judith Carney
Rural Land Use
Johan Heinrich von Thunen
1783-1850
Rural Land Use
Walter Christaller
1896-1969
Rural/Urban Land Use
Ernest Burgess
1920
Urban Land Use
Homer Hoyt
1939
Urban Land Use
Chauncey Harris/E.L. Ullman
1945
Urban Land Use
Mark Jefferson
Urban
T.G. McGee
1967
Urban/Development
Gideon Sjoberg
Urban
Briefly Explain Their Theory
Importance of Model/Further Notes
Stage of evolution of American Metropolis
based on transportation: 1. Sail-Wagon, 2.
Iron Horse, 3. Steel Rail, 4. Auto-Air, 5.
High Tech
Boserup Hypothesis – Stage 1: ForestFallow, 2: Brush-Fallow, 3: Fallow
Shortens, 4: Annual Cropping, 5: MultiCropping – From Extensive to Intensive
Uses transportation advances as key to
development of urban areas
Ecological effects of increasing population
on agriculture/rural land use
Soil Degradation – pressure to produce
more leads to soil depletion.
Studied changing agriculture practices in
Gambia – as agriculture
changed/progressed so did the culture –
especially women’s role
Agricultural Theory of Land Use.
Concentric circles – 1: city center, 2:
market gardening, 3: forest, 4: Grains, 5:
Ranching (livestock) – Pre Central Place
Central Place Theory – Urban Hieracrchy,
Range, Threshold, Low/High Order Goods.
Hexagon Shape – Trade Areas
Distribution of agricultural activities
around a city depends on bulk and
perishability of products. First effort to
analyze spatial economic activity/land use
Spatial distribution of Hamlets, Villages,
Towns and Cities, and the economic
relationships between them.
Formalized the transition from extensive
forms of agriculture to more intensive
cultivation – Increased productivity
counters loss of fertility
Concentric Zone – grows out from the
CBD. 5 zones – 1:CBD, 2: Transition –
Industry/poor housing, 3: Stable working
class, 4: Middle class, 5: Commuter zone –
suburbs
Sector Model – sectors, not rings, certain
areas more attractive – as city
grows/expands outward – best housing
corrider from CBD out, industry & retail
develop in sectors along transportation
routes
Multiple Nuclei Model – modern cities
develop with many nodes. CBD loses role
as center of city. Cities within cities
Helps to determine use and value of land
surrounding cities. Transportation has
impacted the model.
Every country has a “Primate City” – a city
that dominates in economics, social
factors and politics.
Rank Size Rule – 2nd largest city is ½ the
size of the Primate City, 3rd largest is 1/3
the size and so on
Land use in Southeast Asian cities. Old
colonial port cities surrounded by a new
commercial district with no formal CBD
“The Law of the Primate City”
4 stages: 1-Folk-preliterate, 2-Feudal, 3Pre-Industrial, 4.Urban/Industrial
Cities are products of their socities
Illustration is important. Refinement of
concentric zone theory. This model
claimed to represent social patterns of
Chicago
Note the fluid design of model illustration.
Cities evolve in a non determined manner
Manila, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur
AP HUMAN GEOGRAPHY MODELS REVIEW CHART
Notable Geographer
Immanuel Wallerstein
1970
Development
W.W. Rostow
1960
Development
Thomas Malthus
1766-1834
Population
E.G. Ravenstein
Migration
Carl Sauer
1889-1975
Culture
Vidal De La Blache
1845-1918
Culture
Ellsworth Huntington
Political/Development
Briefly Explain Their Theory
Core-Periphery Model: Core/MDC –high
socioeconomic level. Periphery/LDC –
dependent on core, supplier of raw
materials and labor
Modernization Model – 5 stages of
economic development – 1. Traditional
society, 2. Pre-Conditions to take off, 3.
Take-off, 4. Maturity, 5. High Mass
Consumption
Demographic Transition Model
Importance of Model/Further Notes
Malthusian Theory – Population growth
relating to food production.
Food grows arithmetically
Population grows exponentially
Neo Malthusians – Kaplan, Homer-Dixon,
Look at Africa
Critics – Boserup, Kuznet, Simon, Engels –
More people more growth, science will
find a way, distribution of wealth, etc.
Laws of Migration (11 of them) – 1. Most
people migrate for economic reasons, 2.
Most long distance migrants are male, 3.
Long distance migrants head for major
cities
Cultural Landscape – Human activity
superimposes itself on the physical
landscape – each cultural group leaves
imprints
Possibilism – Human/Environmental
Interaction – Humans have a wide range
of potential actions within an
environment – they respond based on
their value systems, attitudes, and
cultural attributes
Environmental Determinism – Climate and
terrain were a major determinate of
civilization
“The Morphology of Landscape’
The cultural landscape reflects a culture’s
values
“Principles of Human Geography” Culture
determines a peoples response to the
environment
Temperate climate of Europe lead to
greater human efficiency and better
standards of living