Social Studies and Geography Vocabulary

Sustainability

Meeting your needs without harming the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Urban

Describes an area that is densely populated.

Urbanization

When a city grows larger and spreads into nearby areas.

Birth Rate

The number of babies born compared to the total number of people in a population at a given time.

Cultural region

A geographic area in which people have certain traits in common.

Culture

The set of beliefs, behaviors, and traits shared by a group of people.

Death rate

The number of deaths compared to the total number of people in a population at a given time.

Democracy

A type of government run by the people.

Dictatorship

A form of government in which one person has absolute power to rule and control the government, the people, and the economy.

Doubling time

The number of years it takes a population to double in size based on its current growth rate.

Emigrate

To leave one's home to live in another place.

Ethnic group

A group of people with a common racial, national, tribal, religious, or cultural background.

Export

To send a product produced in one country to another country.

Globalization

The process by which nations, cultures, and economies become mixed.

Gross Domestic product

The total dollar value of all final goods and services produced in a country during a single year.

Human Rights

The rights belonging to all individuals, such as freedom of speech, that all people should enjoy.

Immigrate

To enter and live in a new country.

Import

When a country brings in a product from another country.

Megalopolis

A huge city or cluster of cities with an extremely large population.

Monarchy

System of government in which a country is ruled by a king and queen.

Nonrenewable Resource

The resources that cannot be totally replaced.

Population Density

The average number of people living in a square mile or a square kilometer.

Refugee

A person who flees a country because of violence, war, persecution, or disaster.

Renewable resource

A resource that can be totally replaced or is always available naturally.

Representative Democracy

A form of democracy in which citizens elect government leaders