Unit 3 Geography Vocab

culture

Shared practices, beliefs, technology, attitudes, and behaviors passed from one generation to the next. Example: language, food, and traditions.

cultural landscape

The combination of physical features created or changed by humans that reflect cultural practices, values, and identity. Example: buildings, farms, and churches.

built environment

Human-made surroundings where people live and work. Example: roads, bridges, and buildings.

ethnicity

A group identity based on shared cultural traits. Example: Hispanic, German, Italian, and Hmong.

race

A historical classification used to categorize people by perceived physical traits; these categories are social, not reliable biological divisions. Example: racial categories such as Black or Asian.

material culture trait

Physical objects created or used by a culture. Example: clothing, food, literature, art, houses, and public buildings.

nonmaterial culture trait

An idea or belief shared by a culture. Example: language, religion, education systems, government, laws, music, and holidays.

ethnocentrism

Judging another culture based on the values of your own culture. Example: believing your culture is superior.

cultural relativism

The idea that a culture's beliefs, values, and practices should be understood within that culture rather than judged by another culture's standards. Example: understanding another culture's customs.

sequent occupancy

The combined imprint on an area left by different groups that have inhabited it over time. Example: buildings, transportation systems, farms, and irrigation systems.

Indigenous communities

The original inhabitants of an area who have retained aspects of their culture apart from colonizers. Example: Native Americans, First Nations, and Aboriginal peoples.

ethnic enclave

An area where an ethnic group lives and maintains its culture. Example: Chinatown or Little Italy.

gender role

Learned behaviors considered appropriate for a gender, as determined by cultural norms. Example: traditional expectations for men and women.

gendered spaces

Areas where gender expression is either welcome or unwelcome. Example: public restrooms divided by gender.

sense of place

The feeling of attachment, comfort, or identity a person has toward a place. Example: a hometown that feels familiar.

place making

How a culture makes a place feel distinct by shaping the landscape to show what people believe and value. Example: creating parks and public spaces.

centripetal forces

Forces that unite a country. Example: national symbols and a shared language.

centrifugal forces

Forces that divide a country. Example: religious conflict and ethnic divisions.

cultural diffusion

The spread of an idea, innovation, cultural trend, or trait from its source area to other areas. Example: the spread of Christianity.

relocation diffusion

A type of cultural diffusion in which people move to a new place and bring an idea or cultural trait with them. Example: Spanish spreading to the New World through migration.

expansion diffusion

A type of diffusion in which an idea spreads outward from its source while remaining strong there. Example: the spread of Islam.

contagious diffusion

A type of expansion diffusion in which nearly everyone in an area is affected as an idea spreads person to person. Example: the spread of Islam.

hierarchical diffusion

Diffusion that spreads through important people or places, often skipping over other areas. Example: fax machines or AIDS spreading through networks.

reverse hierarchical diffusion

When an idea spreads from smaller groups or places to larger ones. Example: a local trend becoming popular nationwide.

stimulus diffusion

Expansion diffusion in which a small part of a population adopts or adapts an idea or media. Example: vegetable burgers in India.

lingua franca

A language mutually understood by people who speak different languages, often used for trade. Example: English in international business or Swahili in East African trade.

creole language

A stable language that develops when languages blend, often through contact between groups. Example: Haitian Creole in the Caribbean.

pidgin language

A simplified language created for communication between people who speak different languages. Example: English-based pidgin.

slang

Informal words or phrases used by a group of people. Example: LOL.

colonialism

The practice of one country taking control of another territory, occupying it, and exploiting its resources. Example: English pilgrims settling in America.

cultural imperialism

The dominance of one culture over another, often historically through colonization. Example: Spanish and English cultures imposed on Native peoples in the Americas.

social constructs

Ideas or categories that people create and treat as natural, even though they are shaped by society. Example: ideas about race and gender.

globalization

The process of increasing connections and interdependence among countries, especially in trade, communication, and culture. Example: McDonald's locations around the world.

urbanization

The growth of cities as more people move from rural areas to urban areas. Example: people moving to cities.

time-space convergence

The increasing ability to connect across distance more quickly because of improvements in transportation and communication. Example: the internet.

cultural convergence

Cultures becoming more alike as their interactions increase. Example: increasing use of English.

cultural divergence

The tendency for cultural groups to become more distinct or protect their culture from outside influence or change. Example: Amish or Hutterite communities.

local (folk) culture

Culture traits of usually small, traditional, homogeneous rural communities. Example: Amish communities.

culture hearth

The source area where a civilization begins and from which ideas and practices spread. Example: Mesopotamia.

civilization

A society with an advanced state of social development, including specialized workers and complex institutions. Example: Ancient Egypt.

language

A method of communication. Example: English.

language family

A group of languages with a shared but distant origin. Example: Indo-European.

dialect

A variation of a language associated with a region or ethnic group, including differences in vocabulary, pronunciation, and grammar. Example: differences in accent and speech.

world religions

Belief systems that originated in a hearth and spread widely. Example: Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism.

ethnic cultures

Groups whose members share cultural heritage, ancestry, origin myths, history, homeland, language, customs, or rituals. Example: Hindus.

Indo-European language family

A large language family whose languages spread from a common ancestral language. Example: English and Spanish.

Conquest Theory

The theory that Indo-European languages spread as conquering groups expanded into new areas. Example: Indo-European expansion.

Agriculture Theory

The theory that Indo-European languages spread with farming migration from an origin area. Example: farming migration.

toponym

A place-name that can reveal historical information about a place, its origins, settlement, or population. Example: Osceola County, Florida.

universalizing religion

A religion that actively seeks converts and views its beliefs as applicable to everyone. Example: Christianity.

Buddhism

A religion based on the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama. Example: Thailand.

Christianity

A universalizing religion based on the teachings of Jesus. Example: the United States.

Roman Catholicism

A major branch of Christianity prominent in parts of Europe and the Americas. Example: Italy.

Protestantism

A branch of Christianity prominent in parts of Europe and North America. Example: the United States.

Eastern Orthodoxy

A branch of Christianity prominent in Eastern Europe and Russia. Example: Russia.

Islam

A religion based on the belief in one God, Allah, and that Muhammad was Allah's prophet. Example: Saudi Arabia.

Sunni

The largest branch of Islam, prominent throughout Southwest Asia and North Africa. Example: Egypt.

Shia (Shiite)

The second-largest branch of Islam, found mainly in Iran and parts of Iraq. Example: Iran.

Sikhism

A religion with roots in Islam and Hinduism. Example: India.

ethnic religion

A religion that does not actively seek converts and is generally tied to a particular ethnic group or place. Example: Judaism.

Hinduism

A religion with many beliefs and practices, often connected to dharma, karma, and reincarnation. Example: India.

caste system

A social system that divides people into inherited social groups. Example: India.

Judaism

A religion whose followers believe in one God and follow Jewish teachings and traditions. Example: Indigenous Jewish communities around the world.

animism

The belief that animals, objects, natural features, and places may possess spirits or souls. Example: Indigenous cultures in Australia.

assimilation

The process in which a person or group adopts another group's cultural traits and may lose some of their original identity. Example: immigrants learning English.

acculturation

The process in which a group adopts some traits of another culture while retaining parts of its original culture. Example: immigrants learning English while speaking their home language at home.

multiculturalism

Maintaining a diversity of ethnic cultures within a community, with those cultures valued and respected for their uniqueness. Example: New York City.

cultural appropriation

Using another culture's traditions or symbols without understanding or respecting their meaning. Example: using sacred symbols as fashion.

syncretism

The development of a new cultural trait through the blending of two distinct cultures. Example: Americanized Mexican food.

homogenization

The process of cultures becoming more alike. Example: global fast-food chains.

placelessness

The loss of distinct local features in favor of standardized landscapes. Example: strip malls.

pop culture

Cultural traits associated with large, diverse, often urban populations. Example: social media trends.

interfaith boundaries

Conflict or boundaries between the world's major faiths. Example: Christians and Muslims in Sudan.

sacred sites (spaces)

Areas or places with religious or spiritual significance. Example: cathedrals, mosques, temples, and cemeteries.

cultural region

An area where people share similar cultural traits. Example: Latin America.

neolocalism

The revival or appreciation of local culture and traditions in response to globalization. Example: buying local products.

diaspora

The movement or scattering of a group of people from their homeland to other places. Example: Jews spreading from their homeland.

glocalization

Adapting global products or ideas to fit local cultures. Example: McDonald's in India.

fundamentalism

Strict adherence to basic religious beliefs and practices. Example: strict religious practices.

isogloss

A boundary separating areas that use different language features. Example: dialect boundaries in the southern United States.

polytheistic

Believing in many gods. Example: ancient Greek religion.

monotheistic

Believing in one god. Example: Islam.