AP Human Geography - Unit 2 & 3

Acculturation

The adoption of cultural traits, such as language, by one group under the influence of another.

Agricultural Density

The ratio of the number of farmers to the total amount of land suitable for agriculture

Assimilation

the social process of absorbing one cultural group into harmony with another

asylum seeker

Someone who has migrated to another country in the hope of being recognized as a refugee

Autonomous religion

A religion that does not have a central authority but shares ideas and cooperates informally.

bilingual

Able to speak two languages

Brain Drain

Large-scale emigration by talented people.

carrying capacity

Largest number of individuals of a population that a environment can support

Chain Migration

migration of people to a specific location because relatives or members of the same nationality previously migrated there

Crude Birth Rate (CBR)

The total number of live births in a year for every 1,000 people alive in the society.

crude death rate

The number of deaths per year per 1,000 people.

Cultural Ecology

Geographic approach that emphasizes human-environment relationships.

cultural convergence

contact and interaction of one culture and another

cultural artifacts

The visible symbols and objects that are unique to an organization and that suggest the kinds of shared beliefs and expectations of members.

Cultural landscapes

Geographic areas that have been shaped by people

cultural relativism

the practice of judging a culture by its own standards

Democratization

the process of creating a government elected by the people

Demographic Balancing Equation

Total Population Change \= Births - Deaths + Immigrants - Emigrants

Demographic Transition Model

A sequence of demographic changes in which a country moves from high birth and death rates to low birth and death rates through time.

dependency ratio

The number of people under age 15 and over age 64 compared to the number of people active in the labor force

Diaspora

A dispersion of people from their homeland

doubling time

The number of years needed to double a population, assuming a constant rate of natural increase.

emigrant

A person who leaves a country or region to live elsewhere.

Epidemiological Transition Model

The theory that says that there is a distinct cause of death in each stage of the demographic transition model. It can help explain how a country's population changes so dramatically.

ethnic enclave

A place with a high concentration of an ethnic group that is distinct from those in the surrounding area

Ethnic Neighborhood

an area within a city containing members of the same ethnic background

ethnic religion

A religion with a relatively concentrated spatial distribution whose principles are likely to be based on the physical characteristics of the particular location in which its adherents are concentrated.

Ethnocentrism

Belief in the superiority of one's nation or ethnic group.

Expansion contagious

Spreads from the next available person (ex. Islam)

Expansion Diffusion

The spread of a feature or trend among people from one area to another in a snowballing process.

Expansion hierarchical

Spreads to most linked people or places first (ex. Rap Music)

Gendered spaces/gendered landscapes

Concept that specifically addresses cultural values regarding gender, such as behaviors that are acceptable only for one gender, and often only in certain spaces

Globalization of Culture

Globalization due to interchanging beliefs and customs

Guest Workers

Workers who migrate to the more developed countries of Northern and Western Europe, usually from Southern of Eastern Europe or from North Africa, in search of higher-paying jobs.

Hierarchical religion

A religion in which a central authority exercises a high degree of control.

immigrant

a person who comes to a country where they were not born in order to settle there

Immigration Policies

a law that decides who can enter a country

infant mortality rate

The percentage of children who die before their first birthday within a particular area or country.

internally displaced person

Someone who has been forced to migrate for similar political reasons as a refugee but has not migrated across an international border

Language Branch

a collection of languages within a family related through a common ancestral language that existed several thousand years ago

Language distribution

The distribution of languages across the globe.

language family

A collection of languages related to each other through a common ancestor long before recorded history.

Language Group

A collection of languages within a branch that share a common origin in the relatively recent past and display relatively few differences in grammar and vocabulary.

Language Tree

a representation of the relationships of languages to each other

Laws of Migration (Ravenstein)

Developed by British demographer Ravenstein, five laws that predict flow of migrants

life expectancy

A figure indicating how long, on average, a person may be expected to live

lingua franca

A language mutually understood and commonly used in trade by people who have different native languages

Major Agglomerations of Human Population

Centers of Human Population: East Asia, South-East Asia, Latin America, West Africa, Europe

Major World Religions

Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism

Malthusian Theory

The theory that population grows faster than food supply

Mentifacts

The ideas and beliefs of a society (religious beliefs, attitudes)

Migration

Form of relocation diffusion involving permanent move to a new location.

migration stream

A constant flow of migrants from the same origin to the same destination

Multiculturalism

A perspective recognizing the cultural diversity of the United States and promoting equal standing for all cultural traditions

multilingual

speaking several languages

official language

The language adopted for use by the government for the conduct of business and publication of documents.

Physiological Density

The number of people per unit of area of arable land, which is land suitable for agriculture.

pidgin language

A form of speech that adopts a simplified grammar and limited vocabulary of a lingua franca, used for communications among speakers of two different languages.

Pilgrimage

A journey to a place considered sacred for religious purposes.

population density

Number of individuals per unit area

Population Pyramid

A bar graph representing the distribution of population by age and sex.

Pull Factors of Immigration

jobs, greater freedom, land

Push Factors of Immigration

economic troubles, overcrowding, poverty

refugee

A person who escapes war and seeks safety in another country.

Religious branches, denominations, sects

divisions of universalizing religions, branches: large and basic divisions within a religion, denominations: divisions of branches that unite local groups in a single administrative body, sects: relatively small groups that do not affiliate with the more mainstream denominations

relocation diffusion

The spread of a feature or trend through bodily movement of people from one place to another.

Remittances

Money migrants send back to family and friends in their home countries, often in cash, forming an important part of the economy in many poorer countries

replacement fertility

the total fertility rate (TFR) that maintains a stable population size

sense of place

The feeling that an area has a distinct and meaningful character

sequent occupance

the notion that successive societies leave their cultural imprints on a place, each contributing to the cumulative cultural landscape

sex ratio

The number of males per 100 females in the population.

Sociofacts of culture

Cultural practices and habits

step migration

Migration to a distant destination that occurs in stages, for example, from farm to nearby village and later to a town and city

syncretic religion

separate religions that combine into a new religion; often borrow from the past and the present.

Syncretism

a blending of beliefs and practices from different religions into one faith, language or culture

Toponyms

The name given to a place

total fertility rate

The average number of children born to a woman during her childbearing years.

Universalizing Religion

A religion that attempts to appeal to all people, not just those living in a particular location.

zero population growth

A decline of the total fertility rate to the point where the natural increase rate equals zero.