hgap 2

Field Observation

Watching and recording information about places firsthand.

Flows (migration)

Movement of people, goods, or ideas from one place to another.

Formal Region

Area with official borders and shared traits (like a country).

Functional Region

Area organized around a center point (like a city and its suburbs).

Land Use

How people use land (farming, building, recreation).

Map Projection & Distortion

Ways maps show Earth; shapes or sizes get changed (distorted).

Toponym

A place name.

Friction of Distance

The longer or harder the distance, the more effort it takes to move.

Place

A specific location with meaning and characteristics.

Space

The physical gap or distance between two places.

Arithmetic Population Density

Number of people per unit of land.

Interregional Migration

Moving from one region to another (like Midwest to South).

Intraregional Migration

Moving within the same region (like city to suburb).

Less Developed Country (LDC)

A poorer country with less industry and lower living standards.

Natural Increase Rate

Birth rate minus death rate (population growth).

Remittances

Money sent home by people working in another country.

Step Migration

Migration in small stages toward a final destination.

Transhumance

Seasonal movement of animals between pastures.

Transnational Migration

People moving across national borders.

Cyclic Movement

Repeated movement (like daily commuting).

Ecumene

Land where people have permanently settled.

Ehrlich Theory

Idea that population growth will outpace food supply (Paul Ehrlich).

Emigration

Leaving a country to live elsewhere.

Eugenic Population Policies

Policies favoring one race or group over others.

Periodic Movement

Longer, temporary movement (like college or military service).

Cultural Landscape

How people shape the physical land (buildings, farms, etc.).

Creolization/Creolized Languages

Blending of languages into a new one.

Lingua Franca

A common language used between people who speak different native languages.

Pidgin

Simplified language used for communication between groups.

Toponyms

Names given to places.

Antecedent Boundaries

Boundaries made before people lived there.

Defined Boundaries

Official written agreement about a boundary.

Delimited Boundaries

Drawing boundaries on a map.

Demarcated Boundaries

Marking boundaries with signs, fences, or walls.

Failed State

A country where the government has lost control.

Heartland Theory

Idea that controlling central Eurasia would control the world.

Cadastral System

System for recording land ownership and property lines.

Mixed Crop/Livestock Systems

Farms growing crops and raising animals together.

Terracing

Farming on steps cut into hillsides.

Third Agricultural Revolution (Green Revolution)

New farming technology and better crops starting in the 1940s.

Township and Range

Grid system for land division in the U.S.

Holistic Land Management

Farming that works with nature to restore land.

Horticulture

Growing fruits, vegetables, and flowers.

Mediterranean Climate & Agriculture

Farming suited to hot, dry summers and mild, wet winters (like olives and grapes).

African City Model (Sub-Saharan)

Cities with colonial influence, market zones, and informal settlements.

Blockbusting

Scaring homeowners to sell cheaply by saying minorities are moving in.

Boomburbs

Fast-growing suburbs that feel like cities.

Burgess Concentric-Zone Model

City grows outward in rings from the center.

Christaller’s Central Place Theory

Explains why cities and towns are spaced the way they are.

Disamenity Zones

Poor parts of a city with few services.

Edge Cities

New business centers on the outskirts of older cities.

Exurbs

Wealthy areas beyond the suburbs.

Metropolitan Area/Metropolis

A big city and its surrounding towns.

Redlining

Refusing loans to people in certain neighborhoods, often minorities.

Slow-Growth Cities

Cities limiting growth to protect their quality of life.

Smart-Growth Policies

Planning cities to reduce sprawl and protect the environment.

Southeast Asian City Model

City layout based on port trade and colonialism.

Griffin-Ford Latin America City Model

Cities with a rich center and poor outer rings.

Harris and Ullman Multiple-Nuclei Model

Cities have several centers, not just one downtown.

Hoyt Sector Model

Cities grow in wedges or sectors from the center.

Infilling

Building on empty land within a city rather than expanding outward.

World Cities/Global Cities

Major cities important for the global economy (like New York, London).

Alfred Weber’s Least Cost Theory

Businesses locate where costs (transport, labor) are lowest.

Commodity Theory

People value things more when they seem scarce.

Command Economy

Government controls the economy.

Complementary Advantage

Two regions each provide something the other needs.

Comparative Advantage

One place produces something better or cheaper than another.

Competitive Advantage

A business or country’s edge over others.

Debt Crisis

A country unable to pay its debts.

Export-Processing Zones (Special Economic Zones)

Areas where businesses get special tax breaks to boost exports.

Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

Total value of goods and services made in a country.

Gross National Income (GNI) per Capita

Total income of a country divided by its people.

Gross National Product (GNP)

GDP plus money made by citizens overseas.

Imperialism (in regards to economics)

Powerful countries controlling others for resources and markets.

Inflation

Rise in prices over time.

International Monetary Fund (IMF)

Organization that lends money to countries in need.

MERCOSUR

South American trade group.

Microloans

Small loans given to start small businesses.

Multiplier Effects

One job creates even more jobs.

Neoliberal Policies

Free-market, low-government-involvement economic policies.

OPEC

Group of oil-producing countries that control oil prices.

Opportunity Cost

What you give up to do something else.

Outsourcing

Moving jobs to other countries to save money.

Rostow’s Stages of Economic Growth

Model showing how countries develop over time.

Wallerstein’s World System Theory

World economy split into core (rich), semi-periphery (middle), and periphery (poor) countries.

Welfare

Government support for people in need.

World Trade Organization (WTO)

Group that makes rules for international trade.

Socialism

Economic system where the government owns major industries.