AP Human Geography Unit 3 Cultural Patterns and Processes Vocab

contagious diffusion

idea being spread rapidly among the population via exposure

ex. agricultural innovations, video games

hierachical diffusion

ideas moving from someone with high status to low status

ex. fashion trends, hashtags

stimulus diffusion

a brought in concept whose original idea is altered to fit a culture

ex. santa, ketchup

relocation diffusion

bringing culture from one place to another

ex. christianity to the americas, mexican food in texas

architecture

the design structure of a building

custom

a traditional and widely accepted behavior or way of doing something among a society or place - a single aspect of a given culture or society

culture

shared lifestyles, beliefs, values, and behaviors

popular culture

heterogeneous culture, typically influenced by urban areas, quick to adapt new technologies

folk culture

rural, ethnically homogeneous culture that is deeply connected to the local land (aka local or ethnic culture)

acculturation

occurs when an ethnic/immigrant group adopt the ways of its host society to function economically and socially

assimilation

occurs when an ethnic/immigrant group blends in with host culture, losing many culturally distinctive traits

multiculturalism

the presence of or support of several distinct cultural/ethnic groups within society - embracing difference within society

cultural landscape

built environment - evidence of human activity across the natural, physical environment

cultural hearth

focused geographic area where important innovations/ideas are born an spread from

gender

male or female, usually when considered with social and cultural differences (includes additional identities outside of the binary)

ethnic group

people of common ancestry and cultural tradition; characterized by a strong feeling of group identity/culture of people in a given geographic region (language, heritage, customs)

race

historically defined by the physical characteristics of a group, especially skin color

placelessness

feeling resulting from standardization of built environment; local distinctiveness is erased and many places end up with similar cultural landscapes

ethnocentrism

evaluation of other cultures based on standards of their own culture

cultural relativism

an approach to understanding other cultures with wider perspective of cultural logic

caste system

a division of society based on difference of wealth, inherited rank or privilege, profession, occupation, or race

indigenous people

the people who originate from a certain place

ex. navajo tribe, andes in south america

sequent occupance

many places have been controlled/affected by a variety of groups over a period of time - groups have reshaped functions/meaning of places, leaving behind layers of meaning

diaspora

thee dispersion of people from their homeland

creole

combined language with fuller vocabulary that pidgin and becomes a native language - linguistic process where languages converge and create new languages or forms of communication

pidgin language

trade language - small vocabulary derived from 2+ languages or groups in contact

lingua franca

language of communication and commerce spoken across a wide area where it is not a mother tongue

ex. swahili (east africa), english (worldwide)

cultural convergence

idea that cultures are converging and/or becoming more alike

cultural divergence

adapting global practices to fit local cultural practices or preferences (aka glocalization)

indigenous language

language native to a group or region

dialect

regional variation of a language that is understood by people who speak other variations of language

slavic language

indo-european subfamily of languages in eastern Europe

ex. russian, ukranian, macedonian

romance language

indo-european subfamily of languages in southern Europe

ex. spanish, french, italian

germanic language

indo-european subfamily of languages in northern/western europe ex. german, dutch, english

language family

group of related languages that share a common ancestry

ex. indo-european, sino-tibetan, afro-asiatic

official language

main/major language spoken in a country - legally recognized language for government use

standard language

language used by a group of people for government, media, communication, etc.

toponym

the name given to places

ethnic religion

religion identified with a particular ethnic/tribal group (does not seek converts)

ex. judaism, hinduism, catholicism

universalizing religion

religion that actively seeks new members - believes its message has universal importance

ex. christianity, islam, buddhism, baha'i

syncretism

blending of beliefs, ideas, practices, and traits especially in a religious context

secularism

principle of separation of religion and state

sacred sites

natural or human-made sites that possess religious meaning

taboo

social or religious custom prohibiting/forbidding of a particular practice/association with a person, place or thing - prohibition imposed by social custom or protective measure

pilgrimage

journey of a religious follower to a shrine or sacred place