agricultural density
the total number of farmers per unit of arable land
antinatalist
describing attitudes or policies that discourage childbearing as a means of limiting population growth
arithmetic density
the total number of people per unit area of land; also called crude density
asylum
the right to protection in a country
brain drain
the loss of trained or educated people to the lure of work in another—often richer—country
carrying capacity
the maximum population size an environment can sustain
chain migration
type of migration in which people move to a location because others from their community have previously migrated there
circular migration
migration pattern in which migrant workers move back and forth between their country of origin and the destination country where they work temporary jobs
crude birth rate (CBR)
the number of births in a given year per 1,000 people in a given population
crude death rate (CDR)
the number of deaths in a given year per 1,000 people in a given population
demographic transition model (DTM)
a model that represents shifts in the growth of the world’s populations, based on population trends related to birth rate and death rate
dependency ratio
the number of people in a dependent age group (under age 15 or age 65 and older) divided by the number of people in the working-age group (ages 15 to 64), multiplied by 100
distance decay
a principle stating that the farther away one thing is from another, the less interaction the two things will have
doubling time
the number of years in which a population growing at a certain rate would double
emigration
movement away from a location
epidemiological transition model (ETM)
a model that describes changes in fertility, mortality, life expectancy, and population age distribution, largely as the result of changes in causes of death
forced migration
type of migration in which people are compelled to move by economic, political, environmental, or cultural factors
friction of distance
a concept that states that the longer a journey is, the more time, effort, and cost it will involve
gravity model
a model that predicts the interaction between two or more places; geographers derived the model from Newton’s law of universal gravitation
guest worker
a migrant who travels to a new country as temporary labor
human migration
the permanent movement of people from one place to another
human trafficking
defined by the United Nations as “the recruitment, transportation, harboring, or receipt of persons by improper means (such as force, abduction, fraud, or coercion)”
immigration
movement to a location
infant mortality rate (IMR)
the number of deaths of children under the age of 1 per 1,000 live births
internal migration
movement within a country’s borders
internally displaced person
person who has been forced to flee his or her home but remains within the country’s borders
interregional migration
movement from one region of the country to another
intervening obstacle
an occurrence that holds migrants back
intervening opportunity
an occurrence that causes migrants to pause their journey by choice
intraregional migration
movement within one region of the country
life expectancy
the average number of years a person is expected to live
Neo-Malthusian
describing the theory related to the idea that population growth is unsustainable and that the future population cannot be supported by Earth’s resources
net migration
the difference between the number of emigrants and immigrants in a location, such as a city or a country
physiological density
the total number of people per unit of arable land
population density
the number of people occupying a unit of land
population distribution
where people live in a geographic area
population pyramid
a graph that shows the age-sex distribution of a given population
pronatalist
describing attitudes or policies that encourage childbearing as a means of spurring population growth
pull factor
a positive cause that attracts someone to a new location
push factor
a negative cause that compels someone to leave a location
quota
limit on the number of immigrants allowed into the country each year
rate of natural increase (RNI)
rate at which a population grows as the result of the difference between the crude birth rate and the crude death rate
refugee
a person who is forced to leave his or her country for fear of persecution or death
relocation diffusion
the spread of culture traits through the movement of people
remittance
money earned by an emigrant abroad and sent back to his or her home country
sex ratio
the proportion of males to females in a population
step migration
series of smaller moves to get to the ultimate destination
total fertility rate (TFR)
the average number of children one woman in a given country or region will have during her childbearing years
transnational migration
international migration in which people retain strong cultural, emotional, and financial ties with their countries of origin
voluntary migration
type of migration in which people make the choice to move to a new place