HG VOCAB

Agricultural density

Number of farmers per unit of arable land.

Arithmetic density

Total population divided by total land area.

Physiological density

Population per unit of arable land (shows food pressure).

Population density

Number of people per unit of area.

Population distribution

How people are spread across Earth's surface.

Ecumene

Areas of Earth that are permanently inhabited.

CBR (Crude Birth Rate)

Births per 1,000 people per year.

CDR (Crude Death Rate)

Deaths per 1,000 people per year.

IMR (Infant Mortality Rate)

Infant deaths per 1,000 births.

TFR (Total Fertility Rate)

Average number of children per woman.

NIR/RNI (Natural Increase Rate)

Birth rate minus death rate (population growth without migration).

Cohort

A group of people sharing a common characteristic (like age).

Dependency ratio

Ratio of dependents (young + old) to working-age population.

Carrying capacity

Maximum population an area can sustain.

Malthusian Theory

Population grows faster than food supply, leading to shortages.

Neo-Malthusians

Modern thinkers who believe resource depletion will still cause crises.

Voluntary migration

Moving by choice (better jobs, lifestyle).

Internal migration

Movement within a country.

Transnational migration

Movement across country borders.

Circular migration

Temporary, repeated movement (seasonal work).

Step migration

Moving in a series of smaller steps.

Chain migration

Following others (family/friends) to a new place.

Transhumance

Seasonal movement of livestock between pastures.

Refugees

People forced to leave due to war, persecution, or disaster.

Asylum seekers

People seeking refugee status in another country.

Internally displaced person (IDP)

Forced to move but stays within their country.

Guest worker

Foreign worker allowed temporarily for a job.

Intervening obstacles

Barriers that prevent migration (cost, laws, distance).

Intervening opportunities

Unexpected opportunities that alter migration plans.

Brain drain

Loss of skilled workers leaving a country.

Remittance

Money migrants send back home.

Hollow core

Declining population in a city center as people move outward.

Census

An official count of a population that collects data like age, race, and income.

Clustering

When people or things group closely together in a specific area.

Dispersal

The pattern of how something is spread out across space.

Distance decay

The idea that interaction between places decreases as distance increases.

Friction of distance

The effort, cost, or time needed to travel between places.

Geographic system (GIS)

Technology used to collect, analyze, and map geographic data.

Large-scale maps

Show a small area with a lot of detail (like a city map).

Small-scale maps

Show a large area with less detail (like a world map).

Reference maps

Show general locations (like political or physical maps).

Thematic maps

Show a specific topic (like population or climate).

Meridian of longitude

Vertical lines measuring distance east/west of the Prime Meridian.

Parallel of latitude

Horizontal lines measuring distance north/south of the Equator.

Place

A location with meaning or significance to people.

Site

Physical characteristics of a place (climate, land, water).

Situation

A place's location relative to other places (near rivers, cities, trade routes).

Scale of analysis

The level at which data is examined (local, regional, global).

Spatial association

The relationship between two or more things in space.

Toponyms

Place names that reflect cultural or historical influences.

Sustainability

Using resources in a way that does not harm future generations.

Time-space compression

When advances in technology make distances feel shorter (faster travel/communication).

Acculturation

When a culture adopts traits of another culture but still keeps its original identity.

Assimilation

When a minority culture fully absorbs into the dominant culture.

Indigenous culture

Culture that is native to a specific place.

Ethnocentrism

Believing your own culture is superior to others.

Multiculturalism

The presence and acceptance of multiple cultures in one society.

Global/modern culture

Shared cultural traits spread worldwide (often through globalization).

Built environment

Human-made surroundings (buildings, roads, cities).

Cultural landscape

The visible human imprint on the land.

Sense of place

Emotional or cultural meaning attached to a place.

Sequent occupancy

Layers of different cultures leaving their mark on a place over time.

Postmodern architecture

Modern buildings that mix styles and reject uniform design.

Centripetal force

Forces that unify a country or culture.

Centrifugal force

Forces that divide a country or culture.

Cultural convergence

Cultures becoming more similar due to globalization.

Cultural divergence

Cultures becoming more different or separating.

Time-space convergence

Reduction in travel/communication time due to technology.

Types of diffusion

Ways culture spreads: relocation, expansion, hierarchical, contagious, stimulus.

Relocation diffusion

Spread of culture through migration.

Expansion diffusion

Spread from a central point outward.

Hierarchical diffusion

Spread from major hubs or influential people.

Contagious diffusion

Rapid, widespread diffusion like a virus.

Stimulus diffusion

Idea spreads but is changed or adapted.

Barriers to diffusion

Physical or cultural obstacles that slow spread.

Colonialism/imperialism

Control of one country over another, spreading culture and power.

Hearth

Place where a cultural trait or innovation originates.

Dialect

Regional variation of a language.

Isogloss

Boundary that separates different language features.

Language families

Groups of languages with a shared origin.

Lingua franca

Common language used between people who speak different languages.

Ethnic religions

Religions tied to a specific culture or place.

Universalizing religions

Religions that try to spread globally to all people.

Creolization

Mixing of cultures to create a new hybrid culture.

Syncretism

Blending of different beliefs or religions into one system.

Land-use patterns

How humans use land (farming, cities, industry, etc.).

Cultural relativism

Understanding a culture based on its own values, not yours.

Nation

A group of people who share common culture, language, or identity.

State

A political unit with defined borders, population, and sovereignty.

Nation-state

A state whose population shares a strong national identity.

Multinational state

A state containing multiple nations (ethnic/cultural groups).

Multistate nation

A nation that exists across multiple countries.

Stateless nation

A nation that does not have its own sovereign state.

Sovereignty

Full political control over a territory and independence from outside rule.

Federal state

Power is shared between national and regional governments.

Unitary state

Power is concentrated in a strong central government.

Subnational political units

Smaller divisions within a state (states, provinces, regions).

Supranational organization

Group of countries that cooperate and give up some sovereignty.

Supranationalism

Process of states working together above the national level.

Commonwealth

Association of mostly former British colonies cooperating politically/economically.