AP Human Geography Unit 1 Vocab

Reference Maps

Maps used to show landforms and/or places.

Physical Map

Reference map that shows identifiable natural landmarks such as mountains, rivers, oceans, and elevation.

Political Map

Reference map that shows political boundaries. For example countries, cities, capitals, etc.

Thematic Maps

Maps used to display specific types of information (theme) pertaining to an area.

Cartogram Map

Thematic map that shows statistical data by transforming space like population.

Choropleth Map

Thematic map that uses shading or coloring to show statistical data like population.

Dot Density Map

Thematic map that uses dots to indicate a feature or occurrence like population.

Graduated Symbols Map (Proportional Symbols Map)

Thematic map that indicates relative magnitude of some value for a geographic region in which the symbol varies in proportion to data like population.

Absolute Distance

Measurement using a standard unit of length like miles and kilometers.

Relative Distance

Measurement of the social, cultural, and/or economic connectivity between places (how connected or disconnected) For example the U.S. and Iran VS U.S. and China.

Absolute Direction

Finding a location using compass direction like North, South, East, and West.

Relative Direction

Finding a location not using compass direction like left, right, forward, backward, up, and down.

Spatial Pattern

The way things are laid out and organized on the surface of the Earth.

Clustering

Objects that form a group like a coastal population.

Dispersal

Objects that are scattered like a rural population.

Elevation

Height above sea level.

Spatial Scale

Hierarchy of spaces like the location of French speakers. Globally-in the world, regionally-in North America, nationally-in Canada, and locally-in Quebec.

Map Distortion

All maps are distorted as a result of projecting a 3D surface onto a 2D surface in area, distance, shape, and/or direction.

Map Projection

A way to transfer the 3D earth onto a 2D map to reduce distortion in area, distance, shape, and/or direction.

Geographic Data

Information that identifies the geographic location of features and boundaries on earth (natural and constructed).

Geospatial Technologies

Technology that provides geographic data that is used for personal (navigation), business (marketing), and government (environmental planning) purposes.

GIS (Geographic Information System)

Map created by a computer that can combine layers of spatial data. Data is displayed and analyzed to gain insights into geographical patterns/relationships like the vulnerability of the Florida Aquifer, school boundaries, and crime rates.

Satellite Navigation Systems

System of satellites that provide geo-spatial positioning like GPS.

GPS (Global Positioning System)

A network of satellites and receiving devices used to determine the location of something on Earth.

Remote Sensing

Collecting data with instruments that are distant from the area of study.

Types of Remote Sensors

Satellites, planes, aircraft, spacecraft, ships, and buoys.

Uses of Remote Sensing

Tracking storm systems, searching for natural resources, military surveillance, monitor volcanoes, and monitoring deforestation/glacier melting.

Online Mapping/Visualization

Compilation and publication of web sites that provide graphical and text information in the form of maps/visuals like homicide statistics.

Spatial Information in Written Accounts

Can come in the forms of field observations, media reports, travel narratives, policy documents, personal interviews, landscape analysis, and photographic evidence.

Census Data

Systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population.

Satellite Imagery

Images of earth collected by satellites operated by governments and businesses around the world.

Absolute Location

Describes the precise location of a place using the Earth’s latitude and longitude.

Relative Location

Describes the location of a place relative to other human or physical features.

Space (Geographical Term)

Relational concept that acquires meaning and sense when related to other concepts.

Place

Describes an area on the surface of the earth with distinguishing human and physical characteristics (Place is space with meaning) like Agra, India.

Pattern

An arrangement of objects on earth, including the space in between those objects.

Human-Environment Interaction

Describes the ways humans modify or adapt to the natural world like building bridges, dams, houses, and roads.

Distance Decay

The idea that the likelihood of interaction diminishes with increasing distance.

Time-Space Compression

Term that refers to the increasing sense of connectivity that seems to be bringing people closer together even though their distances are the same.

Time-Space Convergence

Term that refers to the greatly accelerated movement of goods, information, and ideas during the 20th century made possible by technological innovations like the TV, internet, and satellite communication.

Movement (Geographical Term)

Describes the ways in which people, goods, and ideas move from place to place.

Globalization

The process of increased interconnectedness among countries most notably in the areas of economics, politics, and culture.

Network

A system of interconnected people or things like transportation, communication, financial, and governmental.

Sustainability

Meeting an increased demand for resources (energy, food, fuel) in a way that protects the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Natural Resources

Something found in nature and is necessary or useful to humans like forests, mineral deposits, and water.

Land Use

The function of land agriculturally, commercially, residentially, transportation, and recreationally.

Environmental Determinism

Theory that a society is formed and determined by the physical environment, especially the climate; the physical environment predisposes societies towards particular development; human society development is controlled by the environment.

Possibilism

Theory that the environment sets certain constraints or limitations but people use their creativity to decide how to respond to the conditions of a particular natural environment.

Spatial Scale

Analyzing data at a variety of scales whether it’s globally, regionally, nationally, and locally. It reveals variations/different interpretations of data.

Region

Describes an area on earth marked by similarity in some way (way to organize space).

Regionalism

Refers to a group’s perceived identification with a particular region like the South.

Formal Region

Region marked by a shared trait (cultural physical, etc) like the Keys or the Caribbean.

Functional Region

Region marked by a particular set of activities that occur like Southwest Airlines or a specialized newspaper like the New York Times.

Perceptual/Vernacular Region

Region that exists as an idea like the South or Kurdistan.

Regional Boundaries

Transitional and often contested and overlapping like Kurdistan in Turkey and Iraq.

Regional Analysis

Analyzing regions at a variety of scales like globally, nationally, and locally. For example the Muslim population globally is in the world, nationally may be in Turkey, and locally may be in Kurdistan.

Flows (Geographical Term)

Movement is a steady stream like migration.

Human Geography

Study of people AND places; how we make places, how we organize space and society, how we interact with each other in places and across spaces, and how we make sense of others and ourselves in our localities, regions, and the world.