Unit 5 - Key vocabulary - Human Geography

Human Geography - Irondale High School

Culture

the shared set of beliefs values and customs of a group of people

Beliefs

a person’s religious, academic and philosophical thought processes (how you think about things)

Values

core understanding that influence how people act. (how you act towards others)

Customs

the shared activities, celebrations and traditions of a group of people.

Cultural Relativism

the idea that cultures should be examined by themselves rather than by comparing them to another culture.

Cultural traits

distinctive and patterned ways of thinking and acting that can help define cultures (language, religion, music, food, etc)

Cultural Landscape

the human and physical characteristics of a place

Popular Culture

culture that has spread to many areas of the world through diffusion (common in many places at the same time).

Folk Culture

culture practiced by a small group of people that are relatively isolated from other groups. (specific to a particular group of people).

Isogloss

the border between language families

Cultural Hearth

the place where a cultural trait begins

Contagious Diffusion

cultural traits that are spread by means of personal interaction (person to person)

Hierarchical Diffusion

cultural traits that are spread from places or by people of power and influence

Stimulus diffusion

as a cultural trait spreads it changes to adapt to local conditions

Relocation Diffusion

cultural traits are spread by the migration of people

Globalization

the increasing cultural, economic and political connectedness of the planet

Ethnocentrism

the belief that one’s own culture and ethnicity is superior to another

Racism

power combined with prejudice, designed to maintain a system of social and economic advantage for the group that holds power

Xenophobia

the fear or dislike of foreigners

Culture Shock

the experience of encountering something that is so different that it is difficult to understand

Political Geography

the study of the interactions between states and division of space on the planet

State/country

has recognized sovereignty, an established set of borders and a permanent population tied together by a common government.

Unitary State

A country in which one central government has most of the power over smaller local governments.

Federal State/Confederation

A country in which Power is shared between the national government and smaller regional governments.

Sovereignty

the power a government has to control its own affairs without interference from anyone else

Nation

a group of people with a shared identity, culture, and history

Antecedent Border

put into place before large numbers of people lived in an area

Superimposed Borders

boundaries that are established by more powerful countries in areas that already have human landscapes

Subsequent Borders

created once people are settled in order to keep ethnic and cultural groups together

Relict Border

borders that once existed but do not any longer

Patriotism

the combined love of feelings of pride one feels for their country

Nationalism

loyalty and devotion to one’s nation (group of people/ethnicity)

Multinational States

states composed of more than one nation (group of people/ethnicity)

Stateless Nations

a national group that does not have a country of their own or place to call home

Ethnic Cleansing

the act of removing (either by deportation or killing) all the people from a particular cultural group from existence in an area

Genocide

an attempt to destroy a national, ethnic, racial or religious group, in whole or in part

Failed State

a country where the central government no longer has control of the country

Supranational organizations

Different groups that work with three or more countries to promote economic, political or cultural unity

Economic union

Promote increased economic cooperation between member states by limiting trade barriers like tariffs (taxes), quotas, and laws that limit the movement of people and goods or the operation of businesses across national borders.

Collective security unions

member countries join together for collective defense