Unit 3 Key Terms and Concepts AP Human Geography

Culture

The sum total of knowledge, attitudes, traditions, and beliefs shared and transmitted by the members of a society. The dynamics of this are always changing and include learned behaviors passed from generation to generation. Diffused through all three types of expansion diffusion.

Folk Culture

Small, homogeneous, rural groups living in relative isolation from other groups. Heavily influenced by the physical environment. Diffused through relocation diffusion.

Popular Culture

Large, heterogeneous societies that shares certain habits despite differences in other personal characteristics. Encourages common cultural traits across cultures and diffuses quickly to a wide variety of places.

Environmental determinism

The physical environment causes social and cultural development

Salt Box

Yurt

Sod House

Uros Reed Dwelling

Explain the climatic reasons for the adaptation to the salt box folk housing.

The steep slanted roof is a response to extreme winter conditions in the northern states.

Foreign Media Imperialism

Seen as a significant threat to folk culture values due to the diffusion of popular culture values. China has limited access to TV out of fear of political changes from this.

Assimilation

The process through which people lose originally differentiating traits when they come into contact with another society or culture. The minority cultural traits become indistinguishable from the dominant culture.

Acculturation

When one group of people adopt some of the culture traits of another culture. This is mutually beneficial and each group retains unique cultural aspects.
- the process of adapting to a new culture while still keeping some of one's original culture. Usually, _____________ is a two-way street, with both the original and the incoming culture group swapping cultural traits.

Dialect

A regional variety of a language distinguished by vocabulary, spelling, and pronunciation; Different forms of the same language used by groups that have some different vocabulary and pronunciations
Example: Southern, Bostonian, British

Isolated Language

A language that is unrelated to any other languages and therefore not attached to any language family. Groups may develop new grammar rules, pronunciation of words, and unique vocabulary.

Indo-European language family

Family of languages with the greatest number of speakers. Diffused from its hearth in the Caucasus Mountains through relocation diffusion in Europe and European colonialism in the Americas, Africa, Australia, and southwestern and southern Asia
Languages in this family include: English, Spanish, Hindi, and Russian

Lingua franca

A common language not native to either speaker but used for the purpose of trade and commerce.

World's Primary Lingua Franca

English

Diffusion of English

Developed from a Germanic Branch of the Indo European Language Family and diffused through British colonization and relocation. An important Lingua Franca language now.

Largest Language Families

Indo-European and Sino-Tibetan

Mosque (Islam)

Church (Christianity)

Stupa (Buddhism)

Temple (Hinduism)

Synagogue (Judaism)

Universalizing Religion Definition

A religion that attempts to appeal to all people, not just those living in a particular location.

Universalizing Religion Examples

Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, and Sikhism

Ethnic Religion Examples

Hinduism and Judaism

Ethnic Religion Definition

A folk religion with a relatively concentrated spatial distribution whose principles are likely to be based on the physical characteristics of the particular location in which its adherents are concentrated. Spread through Relocation Diffusion.

Revived Language

A language that is newly re-spoken, such as Hebrew

Sikhism

the newest universalizing religion; founded by Guru Nanak, who lived from 1469 to 1539 of the Punjab region of northwestern India. It incorporate principles from both Islam and Hinduism. Like Buddhists, Sikhs reject the concept of a caste-based social hierarchy.
Hearth in Indian subcontinent.
Monotheistic Religion with 21 million followers
Founder: Guru Nanak
A syncretic religion that combines elements of Islam and Hinduism

Islam

a universalizing religion based on the teachings of Muhammad that originated in the hearth of Mecca on the Arabian Peninsula in the 7th century.
Hearth in Southwest Asia around Mecca and Medina.
Founder: Muhammad
Monotheistic Religion.
Location: North Africa, Southwest Asia, Indonesia, and Bangladesh

Christianity

a universalizing religion based on the teachings of Jesus Christ that began in what is now West Bank and Israel around the beginning of the common era and has spread to all continents.
Hearth in Southwest Asia.
Monotheistic Religion.
Founder: Jesus Christ
Major branches include Roman Catholicism, Protestantism, and Eastern Orthodox.
This is the worlds most widespread religion.

Judaism

the world's first monotheistic religion, which developed among the Hebrew people of Southwest Asia about 4000 years ago.
Hearth in Southwest Asia.
Monotheistic Religion.
No Clear Founder.
Ethnic Religion.

Hindusim

an ethnic religion that arose a few thousand years ago in South Asia and is closely tied to India.
Hearth in Northern India.
Polytheistic religion that uses animals and human images in its sacred places.
No Clear Founder.
Ethnic Religion.
Follows a rigid Caste System, which is a social hierarchy which a person is born into a caste and cannot change caste during their lifetime. The Ganges is the most sacred river and many make a pilgrimage or are cremated there.

Buddhism

the oldest universalizing religion, which arose from a hearth in northeastern India sometime between mid-sixth and mid-fourth centuries B.C.E. and is based on the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama, called the Buddha.
Hearth in Northern India (present day Nepal). Monotheistic Religion.
Founder: Siddhartha Gautama
Rejects the Caste System

Jerusalem

The cultural hearth of Christianity and Judaism and is also a sacred city for Islam. This is a holy place.

Five Pillars of Islam (Know all five)

1. Profession of Faith: There is no god worthy of worship except one God, and Muhammad is his messenger.
2. Prayer: Pray five times daily, facing the city of Mecca.
3. Almsgiving: Give charity
4. Fasting: During the month of Ramadan as an act of self-purification.
5. Hajj- if physically and financially able, Muslims make a pilgrimage to Mecca and specifically the Al-Kaaba Mosque

Kaaba (Islam)

Islamic cultural landscape and destination of the Hajj; found in the Great Mosque of Mecca.

Material Culture

The tangible, physical items produced and used by members of a specific culture group and reflective of their traditions, lifestyles and technologies.

Non Material Culture

The type of culture that includes values, beliefs, and norms.

Isogloss

Boundary lines where different linguistic features meet.

Creole Language

A language that results from the mixing of a colonizer's language with the indigenous languages of the people being dominated. Example French Creole in Haiti and New Orleans; a language that began as a combination of two other languages and is spoken as the primary language of a group of people.

Pidgin Language

When two or more languages converge, a form of speech develops that adopts a simplified grammar and limited vocabulary of a lingua franca; used for communication among speakers of two different languages. Over time a this may become a creole language.

Syncretism

A merging, or blending, or different religious beliefs and traditions; Traits from two or more cultures blend together to form a new custom, idea, value, or practice
Examples: Buddhist Christian or the Day of the Dead

Cultural Landscape

Modern geographer Carl Sauer believed this is the visible imprint on a landscape by humans. This shows the interactions between humans and their environment by what is built.

Orthodoxy Religious Structure

Ethnocentrism

(Centrifugal force) The belief that one's cultural group is more important and superior than other cultural groups. They may see others by means of stereotypes and generalizations. people who practice ethnocentrism don't attempt to know others and judge them by their own customs and cultural norms. The practice of judging another culture by the standards of one's own culture.

Lingua Franca by World Regions (besides English)

North Africa: Arabic
East Africa: Swahili
Central and Southwest Asia: Arabic
East Asia: Mandarin Chinese
Former Soviet States: Russian
Latin America: Spanish

Six Official Languages of the United Nations (UN)

English, French, Arabic, Chinese, Russian and Spanish

Taboos

Restrictions on behaviors imposed by social customs.

Transculturation

There is an equal exchange, or two-way flow, of traits between two cultural groups

Linguistic Fragmentation

An area that contains many languages spoken by a small group of people.
Best example: Caucasus Region

Hinduism

This cultural landscape includes statues of many deities and gods

Toponym

A place name. Religion and cultural beliefs can be shown as part of the cultural landscape with this- example: St. Petersburg.

Arabic

A language that is the official language of several countries of North Africa and the Middle East, as well as the religion of Islam.

Hebrew

Original language of the Jewish people and that of their sacred books.

Latin American Cultural Landscape

Spanish colonialism influenced architecture and religious practices in Latin America

Centripetal Force

An attitude that tends to unify people and enhance support for a state (Catholicism in Latin America and Arabic in North Africa)

Centrifugal Force

A force that divides people and countries (multicultural states)

Hierarchical Diffusion

The spread of a feature or trend from one key person or node of authority or power to other persons or places

Contagious Diffusion

The rapid, widespread diffusion of a feature or trend throughout a population.

Stimulus Diffusion

The spread of an underlying principle, even though a specific characteristic is rejected.

Relocation Diffusion

The spread of a feature or trend through bodily movement of people from one place to another (Migrant Diffusion)

Expansion Diffusion

The spread of an innovation or an idea through a population in an area in such a way that the number of those influenced grows continuously larger, resulting in an expanding area of dissemination.

Cultural Diffusion

The spread of an idea or innovation from its source.

Cultural Relativism

(Centripetal force). Counters ethnocentric views. It holds that a group's beliefs, values, norms, and practices should be understood from the group's perspective. The practice of judging a culture by its own standards

Artifact

visible objects and technologies that a culture creates. Think ART.

Sociofact

structures and organizations that influence social behavior (families and governments). Think SOCIAL.

Mentifact

elements that reflect its shared ideas, values, knowledge, and beliefs. Think MENTAL.

Pilgrimage

a journey to a holy place for spiritual reasons

Centripetal force

a force that unites a group of people

Centrifugal force

a force that divides groups of people

Acculturation

When cultures come together, either through migration or some form of expansion diffusion, one effect is _____________, where people within one culture adopt some of the traits of another while still retaining their own distinct culture. Often occurs as the result of prolonged contact between two or more cultures and can happen at a group or individual level. Can occur with almost any cultural trait. Often discussed in terms of a minority culture that adopts elements of a major culture.

Assimilation

a category of acculturation in which the interaction of two cultures results in one culture adopting almost all of the cultural traits of the other. An individual or group that has fully assimilated into a culture will be indistinguishable socially and culturally from others in the culture. Voluntarily or forced by a dominant culture. Since it involves replacing deeply held practices, complete assimilation is rare. The downside of assimilation is the loss of cultural identity - the traditions, languages, and practices that make a culture unique.

cultural appropriation

the act of adopting elements of another culture. Usually used to describe the adoption by a dominant culture of one or more elements of a minority culture. CONTROVERSIAL. Most often used to determine instances when such adoption is inappropriate or out of context.
The action of adopting traits, icons, or other elements of another culture. Adopting cultural elements without respecting the history behind it can lead to oppression and discrimination. Ex: naming a sport team after a group

Collectivist cultures

Where people are expected to conform to collective responsibility within the family and o be obedient to and respectful of elder family members. Causes disparities and issues when trying to assimilate. Ex: The Cultures of Africa and Asia

Placemaking

community-driven process in which people collaborate to create a place where they can live, work, learn and play.

Taboo

behaviors heavily discouraged by a culture. CHANGE OVER TIME Ex: Protestants marrying Catholics

Christianity Architecture

Churches often feature a tall steeple topped by a cross. They also reflect original architecture style based on environment and available materials.

Hinduism Architecture

Temples often have elaborately carved exteriors and thousands of shrines and temples dot the landscape of India. The Ganges River provides pilgrims a place to bathe for the purpose of purification.

Buddhism Architecture

Differs widely from space to place. Most Buddhists emphasize meditating and living in harmony with nature. Represented in stupas, structures built to symbolize 5 aspects of nature, earth, water, fire, air, and space - where people can meditate.

Judaism Architecture

Worship in synagogues or temples. Once concentrated in the Middle East, Jews spread throughout the world because of fear of persecution or through voluntary migration. The scattering is called diaspora.

Islam Architecture

In places where Islam is widely practiced, the mosque is the most prominent structure on the landscape and is usually located at the center of a town.
Mosques have domes surrounded by a few minarets from which daily prayer is called.

Shinto Architecture

Cultural hearth in Japan. Emphasizes honoring one's ancestors and the relationship between people and nature. Common landscape: impressive torii, or gateway, to mark the transition from the outside world to a sacred space.

Charter group

The first to establish cultural and religious customs in a space. Native Americans were the charter group in the Americas. Their influence stretches from Alaska to Florida. The cultural landscapes of charter groups show their heritage. Ex: Jamestown; Plymouth; New York

Ethnicity

membership in a group of people who share similar characteristics including ancestry, language, customs, history, and common experiences.
- a complex mix of genetic heritage and political allegiance. Defines a nation's identity.

Nationality

based on people's connection to a country.

Adherents

followers

Denomination

a separate church organization that unite a number of local congregations. Ex: Baptists, Methodist, for the protestant branch

Modern architecture

means architecture developed during the 20th century that expresses geometric, ordered forms or the rectangular steel and glass skyscrapers built in the 1970s and 1980s.

The contemporary architecture

architecture of the present is more organic, with the use of curvature. Postmodern architecture is a category within temporary that means that the design abandons the use of blocky rectilinear shapes in favor of wavy, crystalline, or bending shapes in the form of the home or building. Contemporary architecture can also incorporate green energy technologies, recycled materials, or nontraditional materials like metal sheeting on the exterior. Ex: Walt Disney Theater

New England

Small one-story pitched-roof Cape Cod style or the irregular roof Saltbox with one long pitched roof in front and a sort of low-angle roof in the back.

Federalist( or Georgian)

Refers to the housing styles of the late 1700s and early 1800s in Anglo-America. These are often two- or three-story urban townhomes connected to one another. Architectural elements around windows and rooflines feature classical Greek and Roman designs and stone carvings. As stand-alone buildings, these are symmetrical homes with central doorways and equal numbers of windows on each side of the house.

The I-house

A loose form of Federalist and Georgian influence on the average family home in the United States and Canada. Simple rectangular I-houses have a central door with one window on each side of the home's front and three symmetrical windows on the second floor. However, as the I-house style diffused westward, the rectangle shape and symmetry were lost. Later I-houses have the door moved to the side and have additions onto the back or side of the house. The I-house giveaways are the fireplaces on each end of the house and an even-pitched roof. The loss of form as the I-house moved across the Appalachian Mountains to the Midwest and across the Great Lakes to the Prairie Provinces is an example of relocation diffusion.

Christian Religious Buildings

Traditional houses of worship tend to have a central steeple or two high bell towers in the front of the building. The steeple is typical of smaller churches, and bell towers are found in larger churches and cathedrals. Basilicas, like St. Peters in the Vatican or St. Paul's Cathedral in London, have central domes similar to the U.S Capitol building. Symbolically, older churches, cathedrals, and basilicas feature a cross-shaped floor plan.

Hindu Religious Buildings

Temples and shrines tend to have a rectangular-shaped main body and feature one or more short towers of carved stone. The towers often feature stepped sides and display carvings of the heads and faces of deities. The most famous example of this design is the temple complex of Angkor Wat in Cambodia.

Buddhist religious Buildings

Temples and shrines vary depending on which Buddhist tradition is followed in the region. In Nepal and Tibet, a temple can be a stupa, with a dome or tower featuring a pair of eyes. In East Asia, the tower-style pagoda has several labels, each of which features winged roofs extending outward. Temples are often guarded by large lion statues, such as those at the Temple of the Sun and Moon in the Forbidden City of Beijing. Temples in Southeast Asia tend to have several towers with thin pointed spires that point outward at an angle.

Islamic Religious Buildings

Mosques can take a variety of forms, though many have central domes. The giveaway feature of a mosque is one or more minarets, narrow towers that are pointed on top. Famous mosques include the Al-Kaaba Mosque in Mecca, the holiest place in Islam, an open-air mosque with a large black cube at its center. Almost all mosques are built on an angle that places the main prayer area toward Mecca.

Judaic Religious Buildings

There is not a common architectural design style for synagogues. The holiest place in Judaism is the Western Wall of the former Temple of Solomon, next to the Dome of the Rock. Known as the Wailing Wall, the old foundation walls feature large rectangular stone blocks where Jews pray and place written prayers in the cracks between the blocks.

Pidgin languages

languages that are simplified forms of the language that use key vocabulary words and limited grammar.
Pidgin, Creole, and patois can all be thought of as syncretic language forms that integrate both colonial and indigenous language forms.