FINAL AP HUMAN GEO UNIT 3

What is culture?

The shared practices, technologies, attitudes, and behaviors passed down by a society.

What does the cultural iceberg model illustrate?

It shows observable traits above water (language, clothing) and hidden traits below water (thought patterns, values).

What are cultural traits?

Observable characteristics of a culture.

What is cultural relativism?

Evaluating a culture by its own standards; promotes understanding.

What is ethnocentrism?

Judging other cultures by one's own standards; often paired with xenophobia.

What is a cultural landscape?

The way people modify the physical environment to reflect their culture.

Give an example of a cultural landscape influenced by agriculture.

Cornfields in the Midwest US vs. terraced rice paddies in Southeast Asia.

What is placemaking?

The physical alteration of a space to create a sense of place.

What are centripetal forces in culture?

Factors that unite people, such as shared language or religion.

What are centrifugal forces in culture?

Factors that divide people, such as ethnic conflict or language-based political movements.

What is cultural diffusion?

The spread of a cultural trait from one place to another.

What is relocation diffusion?

Movement of people carrying cultural traits to new locations.

What is contagious diffusion?

Rapid spread of a trait from neighbor to neighbor regardless of status.

What is hierarchical diffusion?

Top-down spread of cultural traits from influential nodes.

What is stimulus diffusion?

Original trait inspires a new, related trait.

What historical drivers contributed to cultural diffusion?

Colonialism, imperialism, and trade routes.

What is the significance of the Silk Roads in cultural diffusion?

They exchanged goods and ideas, spreading religions like Buddhism and Christianity.

What role does globalization play in cultural diffusion?

It intensifies economic, political, and cultural interdependence, accelerated by digital technology.

How does urbanization affect cultural diffusion?

It leads to dense cultural mixing as over 50% of the world's population now lives in urban areas.

What is a lingua franca?

A single language adopted for cross-cultural communication, such as English in global media.

What is creolization?

The formation of a new language from mixing existing languages, such as Afrikaans in South Africa.

What are some examples of cultural diffusion through media?

Hollywood films like Avatar and Avengers: Endgame disseminate cultural ideas globally.

What is diffusion in cultural studies?

The process by which cultural traits move from one place or group to another.

What is technological diffusion?

The spread of technology, such as smartphones and social media, delivering the same content to diverse audiences.

What does political diffusion refer to?

The spread of political norms and ideas, exemplified by the UN's condemnation of Russia's 2022 invasion.

How does economic diffusion manifest?

Through global e-retailers like Amazon and Alibaba allowing remote consumers to purchase products globally.

What is cultural convergence?

When two or more cultures interact and adopt each other's traits, becoming more similar.

What is time-space convergence?

Advances in transportation that reduce the effective distance between places.

What is a key concern resulting from cultural convergence?

The potential loss of indigenous languages due to the rise of shared lingua francas like English.

What is cultural divergence?

The process where cultures reinforce distinct identities despite interaction.

How do the Amish exemplify cultural divergence?

They adopt some modern technologies but reject others to preserve their traditions.

What is the largest level of language hierarchy?

Language family, which includes all languages that share a now-extinct ancestor.

What is a language branch?

A sub-group within a family that shares grammar and syntax, with partial mutual intelligibility.

What is mutual intelligibility?

The ability of speakers of different but related languages to understand each other.

What defines universalizing religions?

Religions that seek adherents across cultural boundaries, such as Christianity and Islam.

What are the two types of diffusion mechanisms for universalizing religions?

Relocation diffusion (missionaries) and expansion diffusion (contagious spread).

What characterizes ethnic religions?

Religions closely tied to a specific ethnic group or region, spreading less readily.

What is an example of a toponym reflecting religious diffusion?

The change from Constantinople to Istanbul after the Ottoman conquest, indicating the spread of Islam.

What is acculturation?

The adoption of some traits from another culture while retaining core identity.

What is assimilation?

The near-complete adoption of the dominant culture's traits, which can be forced or voluntary.

What is syncretism?

The blending of two or more cultural traits into a new, hybrid form.

What does multiculturalism refer to?

The coexistence of multiple cultural groups maintaining distinct identities within the same society.

How does the cultural iceberg model relate to cultural diffusion?

It explains why convergence often occurs in visible traits while divergence may manifest in hidden layers.

What are the primary arenas where diffusion processes play out?

Cultural landscape categories such as agriculture, religion, language, and architecture.