Human geo unit 2 vocab

Age-sex ratio

The proportion of males and females in each age group, usually shown in a population pyramid.

Agricultural density

Farmers per unit of arable land. Indicates pressure on productive land.

Anti-natalist policies

Government actions aimed at reducing births. Example: birth limits, contraception promotion.

Arithmetic density

Total population divided by total land area. Basic population density.

Asylum seeker

Person who has fled home country and is requesting refugee status in another.

Baby boomer

Person born during the high birth-rate years after WWII, roughly 1946–1964.

Brain drain

Emigration of highly skilled or educated people from one country to another.

Carrying capacity

The maximum population an environment can sustain without degradation.

Chain migration

Migration where people follow relatives or community members to a new place.

Contraception

Methods to prevent pregnancy. Key tool in family planning and lowering fertility.

Crude Birth Rate (CBR)

Live births per 1,000 people per year.

Crude Death Rate (CDR)

Deaths per 1,000 people per year.

Demographic Balancing Equation

Population change = births − deaths + net migration.

Demographic Transition Model (DTM)

Stages describing how birth and death rates change as countries develop.

Dependency ratio

Non-working dependents (young and old) compared to working-age population.

Doubling time

Years needed for a population to double in size, given a constant growth rate.

Emigration

Leaving a country to live elsewhere.

Epidemiological Transition Model (ETM)

Shifts in primary causes of death as societies develop, paralleling the DTM.

Family planning

Decisions and services that help control number and spacing of children.

Forced migration

Movement compelled by conflict, disasters, or coercion. Not a free choice.

Guest worker

Migrant allowed to work temporarily in a country, often in specific sectors.

Immigration

Entering a country to live there.

Infant mortality rate (IMR)

Deaths of infants under age 1 per 1,000 live births.

Internal migration

Movement within the same country. Example: rural to urban.

Internally displaced persons (IDPs)

People forced to flee home but remaining within their country’s borders.

Intervening obstacles

Barriers that hinder migration. Example: laws, costs, physical barriers.

Intervening opportunities

Attractive alternatives along a migration route that cause people to settle earlier.

Life expectancy

Average number of years a newborn is expected to live.

Malthusian Theory

Idea that population grows faster than food supply, risking catastrophe without checks.

Migration Transition Model (Zelinsky)

Links migration patterns to DTM stages. Example: early stages see emigration, later stages immigration.

Natural Increase Rate (NIR)

CBR − CDR, expressed as a percentage. Excludes migration.

Neo-Malthusian.

Modern supporters of population control due to resource and environmental limits.

Overpopulation

When population exceeds the carrying capacity of the environment.

Persecution

Harsh treatment due to race, religion, politics, etc. Common push factor.

Physiological density

People per unit of arable land. Shows pressure on food-producing land.

Population composition

Structure of a population by age, sex, ethnicity, etc.

Population pyramid

Bar graph showing age-sex structure of a population.

Pronatalist policies

Government actions that encourage higher birth rates.

Pull factor

Positive conditions that attract people to a new place. Example: jobs, safety.

Push factors

Negative conditions that drive people to leave. Example: conflict, lack of jobs.

Quota

Limit on number or type of immigrants allowed into a country.

Ravenstein’s Laws of Migration

General patterns: most moves are short distance, stepwise, toward economic centers, etc.

Refugee

Person forced to flee country due to persecution, conflict, or disaster, with cross-border protection needs.

Remittance

Money sent by migrants to people in their origin country.

Replacement rate

TFR needed to keep population stable long-term. About 2.1 in developed countries.

Rural to urban migration

Movement from countryside to cities, often for jobs and services.

Step migration

Movement in stages to a final destination. Example: village → town → city.

Total Fertility Rate (TFR)

Average number of children a woman is expected to have in her lifetime.

Transhumance

Seasonal movement of herders and livestock between pastures.

Voluntary migration

Movement based on free choice, usually for better opportunities.

Xenophobia

Fear or hatred of foreigners or outsiders.