AP Human Geography Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards for AP Human Geography Lecture Notes.

Human Geography

The study of human activities from a spatial context.

Location

Position on the Earth's surface.

Absolute Location

The exact position of a place, often described using latitude and longitude.

Relative Location

The position of a place in relation to another place, conveying interconnection and interdependence.

Site

Describes the physical and cultural characteristics of a location.

Situation

Describes where a location is in reference to surrounding features in the larger region.

Scale

Relationship between the size of a feature on a map and its actual size.

Spatial Tradition

Emphasis on movement and location.

Area Studies Tradition

Emphasis on a specific region's political, economic, physical, and population characteristics, as well as its history.

Man-Land Tradition

Emphasis on the relationship between people and their environment; human actions and their impact.

Earth Science Tradition

Emphasis on geology and how physical systems affect humans.

Map

A two-dimensional representation of variables on the Earth's surface.

Thematic Map

Represents a single variable over an area (dot, choropleth, isoline, symbol).

Mental Map

An image in one's mind about an area, location, or environment.

Region

An area defined by one or more distinctive characteristics.

Formal Region (Uniform Region)

An area that can be identified by its homogeneous physical characteristics.

Functional Region (Nodal Region)

An area in which there is a center from which social or economic activities spread.

Perceptual Region (Vernacular Region)

An area not defined by physical data but by human concepts of the region.

Environmental Determinism

Belief that the physical environment is solely responsible for shaping human actions and behaviors.

Possibilism

Belief that people, and not the environment, are responsible for shaping culture.

Rostow Model

A gauge of economic development based on a Western point of view, containing 6 stages of development.

World Systems Model

Looks at economic development based on the relationships between countries - core, semi-periphery, and periphery.

Primary Sector

Agricultural and extractive activities, relied upon by many developing nations.

Secondary Sector

Processing activities - manufacturing, construction, and power production.

Tertiary Sector

Service activities; common in many developed countries.