AP Human Geography Vocab 21-24

These flashcards cover key concepts and terminology related to AP Human Geography, specifically vocabulary terms from chapters 21 to 24.

Orthodox religion

A religion that emphasizes purity of faith and is generally not open to blending with elements of other belief systems.

Syncretic religion

A religion that combines elements of two or more different belief systems.

Syncretism

The blending of beliefs, ideas, practices, and traits, especially in a religious context.

Transculturation

The notion that people adopt elements of other cultures as well as contribute elements of their own culture, thereby transforming both cultures.

Assimilation in cultural context

Occurs when an ethnic or immigrant group blends in with the host culture and loses many culturally distinctive traits.

Acculturation

Occurs when an ethnic or immigrant group adopts enough of the ways of the host society to be able to function economically and socially.

Animistic religion

A faith that subscribes to the idea that souls or spirits exist not only in humans but also in animals, plants, rocks, and other entities.

Polytheistic belief

The belief in many gods.

Generic toponyms

The generic part of a place-name, often a suffix or prefix.

Toponym

The names given to places.

Proselytic

Describing a religion that spreads its message to others through missionary work.

Ethnic religion

A religion identified with a particular ethnic or tribal group that does not seek converts.

Universalizing religion

A religion that actively seeks new members and believes its message has universal importance and application.

Monotheistic

Relating to the belief in only one god.

Accent

A way of pronouncing words.

Dialect

A regional variation of a language that is understood by people who speak other variations of that language.

Language family

A group of related languages that share a common ancestry.

Cultural hearth

A focused geographic area where important innovations are born and from which they spread.

Glocalization

Adapting global practices to fit local cultural practices and preferences.

Convergence hypothesis

The idea that cultures are converging or becoming more alike.

Extinct language

A language that has only a few elderly speakers still living or no living speakers.

Endangered language

A language that is not taught to children by their parents and is not used actively in everyday matters.

Time-space convergence

The phenomenon whereby the introduction of new transportation technologies progressively reduces the time it takes to travel between places.

Genocide

The systematic killing of members of a racial, ethnic, or linguistic group.

Colonialism

The act of forcefully controlling a foreign territory, which becomes known as a colony.

Imperialism

The motivating impulse to control greater amounts of territory.

Empire

A sovereign political entity that seeks to expand beyond its origin territory to control more territory politically and/or economically.

Bilingualism

The ability to speak two languages fluently.

Lingua franca

A language of communication and commerce spoken across a wide area where it is not a mother tongue.

Creolization

The linguistic process where languages converge and create new languages and forms of communication.

Creole

A combined language that has a fuller vocabulary than a pidgin language and becomes a native language.

Pidgin

A trade language, characterized by a very small vocabulary derived from the languages of at least two or more groups in contact.

Permeable barriers

Barriers that slow diffusion but still allow some partial or weakened diffusion.

Absorbing barriers

Barriers that completely halt diffusion.