* Asterisk denotes vocabulary not
specified in the TEKS, but deemed
Critical Vocabulary
WORLD GEOGRAPHY
Vocabulary
REPORTING CATEGORY 1:
HISTORY, GOVERNMENT & CITIZENSHIP
Democracy— A government by the people; decisions based
on direct input from citizens
Spatial Analysis*— Examining geographic patterns to identify
relationships; Thinking necessary to answer questions like:
Why is what where? What are the patterns?
Dictatorship—A government which has the power to govern
without the consent of the governed; the power rests in the
hands of an individual or a small group and was taken by
force or by inheritance; power is unrestricted by constitution
Colonization— One country taking over another area to be
used for their benefit
Diffusion— Spread of ideas, inventions or patterns of
behavior
Migration— People moving from one country to another or
within a country
Push Factors— Things that cause a person to leave his/her
country (war, famine, unemployment)
Pull Factors—Things that attract a person to move to a new
country (jobs, better way of life, stable government)
Columbian Exchange— Cultural diffusion resulting from
Columbus’ voyages and the interchange between regions of
contact (Europeans and the Americas)
Phenomena—A fact, occurrence, or circumstance observable
(i.e. to examine the phenomena of American popular culture)
Monarchy— A government in which the power is passed
down through a single family, power can range from absolute
to one limited by constitution
Republic—A government in which the leadership is elected
Theocracy—A government where religious leaders hold
political power
Totalitarian—A government that exercises total (absolute)
control over its people
Voting— Count of population for or against specific political
candidates or legislation
Public policy— Ideals of the general public commonly defined
in constitutions, legislative acts, and judicial decisions which
influence government action, regulatory measures, laws, and
funding priorities
Region— Small areas connected by common characteristics
(3 types)
Sovereign nations— An area with population that has
recognized final authority within their borders; independent
nations
Perceptual Region— Reflects human feelings and attitudes,
defined by people’s shared subjective images of those areas
(i.e. Dixie, Aggieland)
Stateless nations—People groups without established
sovereign borders; such as Kurds or Palestinians
Functional Region— A node or focal point linked by
infrastructure or an economic association with the
surrounding area (i.e. Metroplex, Central Business District)
Formal Region—Defined by a common human characteristic
(culture, religion) or by a common physical characteristic
(climate, continent) (i.e. states, physiographic regions)
Boundaries— Man-made or naturally created lines dividing
parts of the earth’s surface (i.e. political units, coast lines)
Political— Anything to do with government, laws, boundaries
Political Units—Man-made government units (i.e. cities,
states, countries)
United Nations (UN) — International organization
established to provide diplomatic options for conflicts
between nations
European Union (EU) — Regional alliance established to
increase commerce between member nations
Nationalism— A devotion to one’s country or one’s ethnic
group
Patriotism—Pride in one’s country
Regionalism—People being more loyal to an area than a
nation
REPORTING CATEGORY 2:
GEOGRAPHY
Physical Patterns/Processes
Lithosphere— Earth’s crust and solid upper mantle, broken
into tectonic plates
Plate tectonic theory— Idea that the lithosphere is made up
of moving tectonic plates
Ring of Fire—Area around the Pacific Ocean known for
frequent earthquakes and volcanoes
Tsunami—Large displaced walls of water created by
earthquakes under or near oceans
Barriers—Obstacles, physical or human blocks to movement
Assists*—Factors which support unrestricted movement
Atmosphere— The air, layers of gases surrounding Earth
Climate—Average weather conditions of a place over a long
period of time
Latitude—Coordinate measuring north and south of the
equator (0 degrees); primary element of climate and a strong
influence on settlement
Water cycle (hydrologic cycle) — Movement of water
between evaporation, condensation, precipitation, and
transpiration
Precipitation—Water that moves from the atmosphere to
the Earth’s surface (rain, snow, hail, etc. . .)
Glacier— Large sheets of slow moving ice
Biosphere— All life forms on Earth
Physiographic region*— An area that shares common
physical features
Vegetation—Type of plants an area supports
Biomes— Different regions which support various kinds of life
(i.e. forest, grassland, desert, and tundra)
Erosion—Processes by which rock, sand, and soil are broken
down and carried away (i.e. weathering, glaciation)
Weathering—Wearing away of Earth’s surface caused by
wind, water, ice, or chemicals
Soil-building—Process where the breakdown of rocks and
organic materials creates arable (farmable) land
Human Patterns/ Processes
Elevation—Measurement above or below sea level
Human Environmental Interaction (HEI) — How humans
adapt, change, and modify their environment
Wind Systems—Global wind patterns; such as the trade
winds and doldrums
Carrying Capacity*— The amount of life a piece of land can
support
Monsoons*—seasonal prevailing wind in the region of the
Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia (summer wet/winter
dry)
Demographics—Profile of human population at a given time,
with data broken out into categories
Per capita— Per person, average for each person
Ocean Currents—Global patterns created from the
movement of the oceans; such as the Gulf Stream
El Niño—Unusual warming of ocean temperatures in the
Equatorial Pacific Ocean which shifts normal weather
patterns
La Niña*—Unusual cooling of ocean temperatures in the
Equatorial Pacific
Continentality—Position from the influence of the sea,
especially regarding climate
Weather—Conditions in the atmosphere closest to Earth
Hydrosphere—Earth’s water
Gross domestic product (GDP) —Measure of a nation’s
income; value of all the goods and services a nation produces
within their country
Life expectancy—Average age a population lives to; mortality
rate
Literacy—% of population that can read and write
competently
Infant mortality rate—Number of infants who die for every
thousand births
REPORTING CATEGORY 2: (Continued)
GEOGRAPHY
Human Development Index (HDI) —Formula used to
categorize the development level of nations (less developed,
newly industrialized, and more developed)
Standard of living— Quality of life based on some measure
such as number of cars, accessibility of medical care,
education, etc. .
Population Pyramids—Graph showing % of males and
females by age group for a population
Globalization— Spreading of a phenomenon or culture traits
worldwide
Trade networks—Major patterns of exchange in specific
regions
Connectivity— Interrelationships, frequency of contact with
others such as isolationism (low connectivity) or international
involvement (high connectivity)
Chokepoint*—A narrow, strategically significant area where
trade could be easily blocked or controlled
Pandemic—World wide spread of disease over time
Sustainable development—Using resources to meet present
needs while protecting the resources and environment for
the future
Renewable resources—Resources which are replenished over
time
Non-renewable resources—Resources which can only be
used once or are not easily replenished
Settlement—Where people live
Urban— City
Rural—Country
Urbanization—Mass movement of people from farms to
cities; growth of city into surrounding countryside
Megalopolis*—Continuous urban region including several
cities
Agriculture—Farming
Deforestation— The clearing of forest covering
Desertification— The process of changing into desert, lack of
rainfall causes desert conditions to expand/grow
Industrialization—Development of a system which supports
machine production of goods
Irrigation—Man-made system to provide water to less arid
areas
REPORTING CATEGORY 3:
CULTURE
REPORTING CATEGORY 3: (Continued)
CULTURE
Culture—Way of life common to a group of people
Ethnicity*—a social group that shares a common national or
cultural heritage
Multiculturalism—blending of several different cultures
Culture elements/ traits—Language, religion/belief,
institutions (education), customs, technologies, land use
Institutions—Complex social organizations such as
governments, economies, and education systems
Customs—Common practices followed by people of a
particular group or region
Land use— Various ways humans use the land such as
agricultural, industrial, residential, or recreational
Social— Anything to do with people, culture, society
Culture Hearth*—Central location where ideas, inventions
and /or culture traits originate
Animism—Polytheistic faith based on the belief that many
things in nature have their own spirit
Hinduism—Faith originating in India based on the belief that
a person’s karma (behavior in life) impacts their reincarnation
(rebirth) in their next life; holy text: Upanishads and the
Bhagavad-Gita
Buddhism—Faith originating in Nepal, based on the teachings
of Siddhartha Gautama, including belief that following the
Eight-Fold Path and the Four Noble Truths will lead to Nirvana
(absolute peace)
Judaism—Monotheistic faith originating in Israel, based on
the teaching of Abraham and Moses, including the Ten
Commandments; holy text: Torah (First 5 books of the Old
Testament in the Bible)
Christianity—Monotheistic faith originating in Israel, based
on the teaching of Abraham, Moses, and Jesus Christ,
including a belief that Jesus is the son of God and died for
human salvation; holy text: the Bible (Old and New
Testament)
Islam—Monotheistic faith originating in Saudi Arabia, based
on the teaching of Mohammad, including the Five Pillars; holy
text: Qu’ran
Sikhism— Monotheistic faith originating in the Punjab region
of India, based on the teachings of Guru Nanak Dev Ji and
Guru Gobind Singh Ji, includes valuing equality
Caste*—hereditary social group ranked by degree of spiritual
purity along with occupation and/or economic position
Under- represented populations—People groups with limited
political and economic power
Convergence—Occurs when a group accepts or adopts
elements of culture from a different group or region
Divergence—Occurs when a group isolates elements of
culture due to physical or human characteristics
Genocide— The systematic killing of an entire race or ethnic
group of people (i.e. Hutus in Africa, Jews during Holocaust)
Terrorism—Acts of violence designed to promote a specific
ideology or agenda by creating panic among an enemy
population
Economic— Anything to do with money, jobs, commerce
Communist—Command system, government owns the
means of production, economic decisions are made by
central government, and government provides extensive
social programs for population
Scarcity—Limited quantities of resources to meet unlimited
wants
Nation-State*— An independent nation of people having a
common culture and identity
Traditional Economies—Farming, hunting, bartering
Regulations—Government rules and restrictions affecting
business and development
REPORTING CATEGORY 4:
ECONOMIC, SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Primary economic activities—Direct use of natural/raw
resources such as mining or agriculture
Secondary economic activities—Use of natural/raw
resources to make consumer products, such as
manufacturing
Tertiary economic activities—People-based activities, such as
service jobs like waitresses or retail sales
Quaternary economic activities— Highly skilled professions
which deal with movement and processing information such
as specialized researchers
Economic spectrum—Scale describing the amount of
government and/or private influences on the distribution and
use of factors of production
Subsistence agriculture—Farming to feed immediate family
only
Commercial agriculture—Large scale farming done for profit
Commerce*— The buying and selling of goods or services
Manufacturing—Mass production of goods using machines
Free trade zones— A region where a group of countries has
agreed to reduce or eliminate trade barriers
Infrastructure—Public systems that assist commerce; such as
port or power grid
Transportation—Methods used to move people and goods
and their supporting systems (i.e. railroads, airlines, highway
system)
Break of Bulk*—Place where trade goods move from one
form of transportation to another
Technology—Application of tools or science to make life
easier
Innovation—New way of doing something; inventions
Air conditioning—Technology which modifies environment
by cooling air in a specific space
Desalinization—Technology to remove salt from ocean water
Outsourcing— When one company hires another to perform
a specific function, often using international sources to
reduce labor costs
Goods—Agricultural and manufactured products
Services—Actions or activities one person performs for
another
Cottage industry—Home or village-based production
Commercial industry—Factory-based production
Free enterprise—Market system, capitalism, individuals own
means of production, economic decisions are made based on
market forces (supply, demand, profit margin), individuals
support limited social programs through taxes or charity
donations
Socialist— Mixed, combination of government and private
ownership of the means of production, government provides
a number of social programs funded by higher taxes,
government and individuals make economic decisions
Global Positioning System (GPS) —Technology utilizing
satellites in earth orbit to calculate and display accurate
location, speed, and time information to the user
Geographic Information Systems (GIS) —Spatial information
systems which map database information; such as NAFTA or
EU