Key Geographic Concepts and Models associated with Notable Geographers
Unit 1 – Basic Concepts
THEORIST THEORY
Carl Sauer
Vidal De La
Blache
Cultural
Landscape
Possibilism
EXPLANATION
Human activities superimposes itself on the physical landscape
– each cultural group leaves imprints
Human Environment Interaction - Humans have a wide
range of potential actions within an environment, they respond
based on their value systems, attitudes and cultural attributes.
Culture determines the people’s response to the environment
Köppen system contains up to three
levels of sorting based primarily on
temperature and precipitation
information.
The first level recognizes six major
climatic types with each group being
designated by a capital letter. These
major climate categories have the
following broad characteristics:Tropical
Koppen
Geigen
Climate
System
Elsworth
Huntington
Environmental
Determinism
Climate and terrain were a major determinant of civilization
Types of
Diffusion
Relocation – spread of idea through physical movement of
people
Expansion – spread of a feature from one place to another in
an additive process (hierarchical, contagious, stimulus)
5 Themes of
Geography
Human activities superimposes itself on the
physical landscape – each cultural group
leaves imprints
MR. HELP
Moist Climates
A. Dry Climates
B. Moist mid-latitude climates with
mild winters
C. Moist mid-latitude climates with
cold winters
D. Polar climates
E. Highland climates
Temperate climate of Europe lead to greater
human efficiency and better standards of
living
Hierarchical – spread from persons or nodes
of authority or power
Contagious – rapid, widespread
Stimulus – spread of an underlying principle
even though the characteristic itself does not
entirely diffuse
Movement
Region
Human-Environment Interaction
Location
Place
Unit 2 – Population/Migration
THEORIST
Warren
Thompson
E.G.
Ravenstein
THEORY
EXPLANATION
Demographic
Transition
Model
Stage 1-very high CDR and
CBR; no long-term
NIR
Stage 2-rapid decline CDR; very
high CBR; very high
NIR
Stage 3-rapid declining CDR
hour; declining CBR;
declining NIR
Stage 4-very low CDR/CBR;
ZPG-NIR (TFR≤2.1)
Laws of
Migration
Reasons why migrants move:
economic, cultural,
environmental push and pull
factors
Distance they typically move: internal (interregional & intraregional),
international (voluntary/forced) – typically a short distance, when it is a
long distance, they seek economic opportunities in cities
Most migrants move for economic reasons although there are a variety of
push and pull factors
Migrant characteristics: most likely-single, males
Key Geographic Concepts and Models associated with Notable Geographers
Thomas
Malthus
Population
Growth as it
relates to Food
supply
Abdel Omran
----------------
S. Jay
Olshansky /
Brian Ault
Epidemiologic
Transition
Gravity Model
Population growth relating to
Food Supply
1) food grows arithmetically (1,
2, 3, 4, 5…)
2) population grows
geometrically (1, 2, 4, 8, 16…)
epidemiology – medical science
concerned with the incidence,
distribution, and control of
diseases that affect large
numbers of people
there is an inverse relationship
between the volume of migration
and the distance between the
source and destination
3) population checks: “moral restraint” = lower CBR, or higher CDR
caused by disease, war or famine
An Essay on the Principle of Population, 1798
Neo-Malthusians – food isn’t the only resource to be concerned with
Stage 1 – Pestilence and disease: mostly infectious and parasitic diseases
(Bubonic/Black plague); accidents; attacks human/animal
Stage 2 – Receding Pandemics: improved sanitation, nutrition, and
medicine during the Industrial Revolution reduced spread of disease
Stage 3 – Degenerative and human-created disease: chronic disorders
associated with aging (cardiovascular diseases (heart attacks, etc) and
cancers
------------------------
Stage 4 – Delayed degenerative disease: medical advances extend life
expectancy for many though disease
Stage 5 – Reemergence of of infectious & parasitic diseases: evolution
of infectious microbes
the model states the spatial interaction is directly related to the size of the
populations and inversely related to the distance between them
Unit 3 – Culture/Language
THEORIST
THEORY
EXPLANATION
Diffusion of ProtoIndo European
Colin
Renfrew
Marija
Gimbutas
The Anatolian
Hypothesis (1987)
states the P-I-E
language spread
through the
innovation of
agriculture rather
peacefully with
Anatolia (modern
day Turkey) as the
hearth.
Sedentary
Farmer/Renfrew
Hypothesis
Introduced the
Kurgan
Hypothesis
(1950s), which
states the ProtoIndo-European
language diffused
from modern day
Ukraine through
conquest.
Nomadic
Warrior/Kurgan
Hypothesis
Division of
Language Tree
Language family – collection of languages related through a common
ancestral language that existed before recorded history (ex. Indo-European)
Language branch – collection of languages within a family (ex. Germanic)
Language group – collection of languages within a branch (ex. West
Germanic)
Key Geographic Concepts and Models associated with Notable Geographers
Locations of
Language
Families
Indo-European – Europe, S. Asia, N and S America
Sino-Tibetan – China, SE Asia
Austronesian – Indonesia, Madagascar
Austro-Asiatic – SE Asia
Afro-Asiatic – SW Asia, N Africa
Niger-Congo – sub-Saharan Africa
Unit 4 – Religion Ethnicity
THEORIST
THEORY
EXPLANATION
World Religions
Divisions of
Universalizing
Religions
Types of
Religions
Branch – a large and fundamental division within a religion
Denomination – a division of a branch that unites a number of local congregations in a
single legal and administrative body
Sect – Relatively small group that has broken away from an established denomination
Universalizing – global, appeal to all people wherever they may live, actively seek
converts (Christianity, Islam, Buddhism)
Ethnic – appeal primarily to one group of people living in one place (Judaism,
Hinduism)
Unit 5 – Political Geography
THEORIST
THEORY
Immanuel
Wallerstein
Core-Periphery
(World Systems
Theory)
Richard
Hartshorne
Centripetal/Centrifugal
Forces
Richard
Hartshorne
Evolution of
Boundaries
EXPLANATION
Core – MDCs-use the resources
of the periphery (N. America,
Europe, Japan and Australia)
Centripetal – forces that unify
Centrifugal – forces that divide
1) Antecedent- boundary that
evolves where defined
before the present day
human (political) landscape
developed.
2) Superimposed- boundary
that ignores the existing
cultural organization on the
landscape (i.e. conquering or
colonizing power)
Periphery- LDCs-(Africa, Latin America, most of Asia)
(recent add) semi-periphery- places where core and periphery
processes are both occurring (China, India and the 4 Asian Tigers:
Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, Singapore)
Events can be both…such as war which can unite as well as divide
people
3) Subsequent- boundary created as a result of long-term
development of the cultural landscape
4) Relic- boundary that does not exist any longer but still has an
impact on the community and is seen on the landscape
Key Geographic Concepts and Models associated with Notable Geographers
Halford
Mackiner
Heartland Theory
Nicholas
Spykman
Rimland Theory
Friedrich
Ratzel
Organic Theory
Shapes of States
(Territorial
Morphology)
Geopolitical thought- explains
why NATO and the WARSAW
pact existed – control of Eastern
Europe
1) Who rules Eastern Europe commands the Heartland
2) Who rules the Heartland commands the world island
3) Who rules the world island commands the world
Eurasian rim not the Heartland is/was the key to global power.
Who controls the Rimland rules Eurasia; who rules Eurasia
controls the destinies of the world
Nations act like living
organisms, to survive, a state
requires nourishment – in the
global context, this means
territory – to gain political
power.
Used to justify lebensraum/Nazi annexation of land
Compact – distance from center
to any boundary does not vary
significantly (Poland)
Elongated – long and narrow
shape (Chile)
Prorupted – other compact
with a large projecting extension
(Afghanistan)
Perforated – completely surrounds another state (South Africa)
Fragmented – several discontinuous pieces (Philippines)
Landlocked – no direct outlet to a sea
Enclave – completed surrounded by another state (Lesotho)
Exclave – detached piece of territory from rest of state (Alaska)
Unit 6 – Development
THEORIST
W.W. Rostow
THEORY
Modernization
Model (5
stages of
development)
Dependency
Theory
Structuralist
Theory
EXPLANATION
1. Traditional society-no
modern industrial
development, agrarian, >% of
wealth in “nonproductive”
activities (i.e. military and
religion)
2. Preconditions for takeoffelite group initiates the
economic activities,
investment in technology and
infrastructure stimulating an
increase in productivity
Falls in school of structuralist
thought
Development of core nations
depends on underdevelopment
of peripheral nations
Neo-colonialism – former
colonies still dependent on
colonizers, not much has
changed since independence of
colonies
3. Takeoff- rapid growth in limited economic activities (i.e. textiles),
majority of the economy dominated by traditional practices
4. Drive to maturity- modern technologies diffuse to a wide variety of
industries resulting in rapid growth, labor more skilled and specialized
5. Age of mass consumption- consumer goods become focus of
economy
•
•
Such dependency helps sustain the prosperity of dominant
regions and the poverty of other regions
Little hope for economic prosperity in regions and countries that
have traditionally been dominated by external powers
Major world powers control economies poorer countries even though
poorer countries have independence
Economic differences built into system – system built in a way that
cannot easily be changed
Key Geographic Concepts and Models associated with Notable Geographers
Unit 7 – Industry/Services
THEORIST
Alfred Weber
THEORY
Least Cost
Theory
Location of manufacturing based
on transportation costs, labor
costs and agglomeration – where
will minimize cost and
maximize profit
Location of an industry cannot
be understood without reference
to the location of other industries
of like kind
All about maximizing profits
and not minimizing costs
Hotelling
Losch
EXPLANATION
Zone of
Profitablity
Sectors of
economy
WEIGHT-GAINING: finished goods weigh MORE than raw materials;
factory closer to market
WEIGHT-REDUCING: finished goods weigh LESS than raw materials;
factory farther from market
Find the location that
provides the best profit
and where other
industries are located
Choose locations/zones where
they can maximize profit
Firms try to situate in a zone
where they will make a profit
Other businesses can come
along and change configuration
of the zone
Primary – extracting materials
from the earth (farming, mining)
Secondary - manufacturing
Tertiary - services
Quaternary – Exchange of money and information (Finance, Insurance,
Real Estate)
Quinary – Top executive, highly specialized
Unit 8 – Agriculture
THEORIST
THEORY
Johann
Heinrich von
Thünen
Agricultural
Theory of
Concentric
Circles
Carl Sauer
Ester Boserup
Agricultural
Hearths
Rural Land
Use (5 stages)
EXPLANATION
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
City center / market
Market gardening
Forest
Grains
Ranching
1) Upper Southeast Asia
Mainland 2) Lower Southeast
Asian Mainland And Malaysia
3) Eastern India and Western
Myanmar 4) Southwestern Asia
(Northwest India-Caucasus)
Formalized that the transition
from extensive subsistence
forms of agriculture and two
more intensive cultivationincreased productivity counters
loss of fertility
Distribution of agricultural activities around the city depends on bulk and
perishability of products.
Economic model, transportation costs significant
5) Abyssinian and East African Highlands 6) Mesoamerican Region
(Southern Mexico to Northern Venezuela) 7) North Central China
(including the Central Asian Corridor) 8) Mediterranean BasinClassical Near Eastern Fringe 9) Western Sudan Hill Lands and their
Margins 10) Andean and Highlands and their Margins 11) Eastern
South America (centered on eastern Brazil)
1) forest fallow – forest cleared, planted two years, fallow for 20, forest
grows back
2) bush fallow - Busch cleared, planted for ≈8 years, fallow for 10, bush
grows back
3) short fallow - field cleared, planted for ≈2 years, fallow for 2, grasses
grow back
4) annual cropping - planted every year, fallow for few months
w/legumes/roots seeded
5) multicropping – planted all year every year, never fallow
Key Geographic Concepts and Models associated with Notable Geographers
Unit 9 – Urban Patterns
THEORIST THEORY
Walter
Christaller
Ernest
Burgess
Chauncey
Harris/E.L.
Ullman
Central Place
Theory
Concentric
Zone
Multiple
Nuclei
EXPLANATION
Hexagon shape (compromise of square/circle)
– trade areas
Urban hierarchy, range, threshold, low order
good, high order good
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
CBD
Transition-industry/poor housing
Stable working class
Middle class
Commuter zone - suburbs
A city consists of a collection of individual
nodes, or centers, around which different
types of people and activities cluster
1- Central Business District (CBD)
wholesale, light manufacturing
2-
Homer Hoyt
Primate
cities/ranksize rule
Sector
Helps to determine use and value of land
surrounding cities; transportation has impacted
model
3- low-class residential 4medium-class residential 5- highclass residential 6- heavy
manufacturing 7- outlying
business district
8- residential suburb 9- industrial
suburb
Land closer to the CBD is more expensive, land use varies as
distance from CBD increases
Bid-rent
Mark
Jefferson
Spatial distributions of hamlets,
villages, towns and cities
PRIMATE CITY - A country's leading city
is always disproportionately large and
exceptionally expressive of national capacity
and feeling (culture). The primate city is
commonly at least twice as large as the next
largest city and more than twice as
significant. -1939 (New York, London, Paris)
Sectors, not rings, certain areas more
attractive, as city grows expands outward best housing corridor from CBD out,
industry and retail develop in sectors along
transportation routes
RANK SIZE RULE - n th largest settlement is 1/n the
population of the largest settlement. In other words, 2nd largest
is 1/2 the size of largest. Works best in MDCs that have full
distribution of services.
1- Central Business District 2- transportation
and industry 3- low-class residential 4middle-class residential 5- high-class
residential
Key Geographic Concepts and Models associated with Notable Geographers
African city
GriffinFord
T.G. McGee
Latin
American
city
Southeast
Asian City
The Latin American City Model combines elements of
Latin American Culture and globalization by combining
radial sectors and concentric zones.
Old colonial port zone surrounded by a commercial
business district
Western commercial zone
Alien Commercial Zone(dominated by Chinese
merchants)
No formal central business district (CBD)
Hybrid sectors & zones growing rapidly
New Industrial parks on the outskirts of the city
- As the model shows, no CBD is visible. However,
several components of the CBD are present in separate
areas in the city.
Key Geographic Concepts and Models associated with Notable Geographers
Urban
Realms
Chauncey
Harris
Peripheral
Model
Term used to describe the spatial components
of the modern metropolis where each realm is
a separate economic, social and political
entity that is linked together to form the large
metropolitan framework
Today’s outer cities (edge cities) are not
satellites of the central city; they are shaping
the metropolis
CBD is losing dominance
Ties loosened to central city but other
suburbs as well
Urban area consists of an inner city
surrounded by large suburban residential and
business areas tied together by a beltway