AP Human Geography Unit 3 Vocabulary

Acculturation

The adoption of cultural traits, such as language, by one group under the influence of another.

Adherents

believers, followers

Animism

Belief that objects, such as plants and stones, or natural events, like thunderstorms and earthquakes, have a discrete spirit and conscious life.

Artifacts

object made by human beings, either hand-made or mass-produced

Assimilation

When an ethnic group can no longer be distinguished from the receiving group

Blue laws

Laws that restrict certain activities, such as the sale of alcohol on Sunday

Buddhism

the teaching of Buddha that life is permeated with suffering caused by desire, that suffering ceases when desire ceases, and that enlightenment obtained through right conduct and wisdom and meditation releases one from desire and suffering and rebirth

Built enviroment

the physical artifacts that humans have created and that form part of the landscape, (ex. roads fences, signs)

Caste system

a Hindu class structure,

Centrifugal Forces

those that divide a group of people or a region

Centripetal forces

those that unify a group of people or a region

Charter group

The first group to establish cultural and religious customs in a space

Christianity

A monotheistic system of beliefs and practices based on the Old Testament and the teachings of Jesus as embodied in the New Testament and emphasizing the role of Jesus as savior.

Colonialism

a type of imperialism in which people move into and settle on the land of another country

Contemporary Architecture

extension of postmodern, uses advances that create buildings that rotate, curve, and stretch the limits of size and height

Creole

Two or more languages mix and develop a more formal structure.

Creolization

The blending of African, European, and some Amerindian cultural elements into the unique sociocultural systems found in the Caribbean.

Culture

Beliefs, customs, and traditions of a specific group of people.

Cultural appropriation

the action of adopting traits, icons, or other elements of another culture

Culture complex

a series of interrelated traits

Cultural convergence

cultures are becoming similar to each other and sharing more cultural traits, ideas, and beliefs

Cultural divergence

the idea that a culture may change over time as the elements of distance, time, physical separation, and modern technology create divisions and changes

Cultural hearths

Where a religion or ethnicity began

Cultural landscapes

the visible reflection of a culture

Cultural patterns

shared beliefs, values, norms, and social practices that are stable over time and that lead to roughly similar behaviors across similar situations

Cultural realms

A large area of the world that shares a similar cultural traits and characteristics, that has many cultural regions

Cultural relativism

which is the concept that a persons or groups beliefs, values, norms, and practices should be understood from the perspective of the other groups cultures.

Culture region

a portion of the earth's surface occupied by populations sharing recognizable and distinctive cultural characteristics

Culture trait

A single element of normal practice in a culture, such as the wearing of a turban.

Dialect

Variations in accent, grammar, usage, and spelling

Diasporas

Enclaves of ethnic groups settled outside of their homelands.

Expansion Diffusion

The spread of cultural traits outward through exchange without migration.

Contagious diffusion

occurs when a cultural trait spreads continuously outward from its hearth through contact among people(Expansion diffusion type)

Stimulus diffusion

when and underlying idea from a culture hearth is adopted by another culture but the adopting group modifies or rejects one trait

Hierarchical Diffusion

the spread of culture outward from the most interconnected places or from centers of wealth and influence(Celebrity's)(Expansion diffusion type)

Reverse hierarchical diffusion

traits diffuses from a group of lower status to a group of higher status(Expansion diffusion type)

Ethnic enclaves

clusters of people of the same culture, but surrounded by people of a culture that is dominant in the region

Ethnic islands

small, usually rural and ethnically homogeneous enclaves situated within a larger and more diverse cultural context.

Ethnic Religion

A 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.

Ethnicity

membership within a group of people who have common experiences and share similar characteristics

Ethnocentrism

Belief in the superiority of one's nation or ethnic group.

Extinct and revived languages

Once in use and not used anymore

Many Native american languages

Folk Culture

Culture traditionally practiced by a small, homogeneous, rural group living in relative isolation from other groups. Slow to change

Local Culture

A group of people in a particular place who see themselves as a collective or a community, who share experiences, customs, and traits, and who work to preserve those traits and customs in order to claim uniqueness and to distinguish themselves from others.

Indigenous culture

a culture group that constitutes the original inhabitants of a territory, distinct from the dominant national culture, which is often derived from colonial occupation.

Fundamentalism

an attempt to follow a literal interpretation of a religious faith

Globalization

increased integration of the world economy

Hinduism

A religion and philosophy developed in ancient India, characterized by a belief in reincarnation and a supreme being who takes many forms

Homogenous

made up largely of the same ethnic group

Imperialism

a concept that includes a variety of ways of influencing another country or group of people by direct conquest, economic Control or cultural dominance.

Indo-European language family

Language family including the Germanic and Romance languages that is spoken by 50% of the world's people

Islam

A religion based on the teachings of the prophet Mohammed which stresses belief in one god (Allah), Paradise and Hell, and a body of law written in the Quran. Followers are called Muslims.

Isogloss

boundaries between variations in pronunciations or word usage

Judiasm

The first monotheistic religion - guided by the Hebrew Bible called the Torah.

Karma

the idea that behaviors have consequences in the present life or a future life(Hinduism and Buddhism)

Language Tree

a representation of the relationships of languages to each other

Lingua franca

a common language used by people who do not share the same native language(Most common once are French and English)

Linguist

scientists who study languages

Material Culture

the art, housing, clothing, sports, dances, foods, and other similar items constructed or created by a group of people

Mentifacts

Comprise of a group's nonmaterial culture and consist of intangible concepts, (beliefs and ideas)

Monotheistic

Belief in one God

Multiculturalism

the coexistence of several cultures in one society with the ideal of all cultures being valued and worthy of study

Nationality

peoples connections to a particular country

Native speakers

those who use the language learned from birth

Nativist

a person who favors those born in his country and is opposed to immigrants

Neolocalism

the process of re-embracing the uniqueness and authenticity of a place

Non-material culture

The beliefs, practices, aesthetics, and values of a group of people.

Norms

rules and expectations by which a society guides the behavior of its members

offical language

a language designated by law to be the language of goverment

Pidgin Language

A simplified form of speech developed from two or more languages

Pilgramage

a religious journey taken by a person to a sacred place of his or her religion.

Placelessness

the loss of uniqueness of place in the cultural landscape so that one place looks like the next

Polytheisitic

belief in more than one god

Popular/Global Culture

Culture found in a large, heterogeneous society that shares certain habits despite differences in other personal characteristics.

Post Modern Architecture

an architectural style that emphasized breaking the rules of the rigid style of modern architecture

Romance Languages

Any of the languages derived from Latin including Italian, Spanish, French, and Romanian.

Sacred Space/Place

A space or place where a communication with the sacred power is made possible between heaven and earth, between a believer and the believed (God[s] or Deities).

Sequent Occupancy

Ethnic groups move in and out of neighborhoods and create new cultural imprints on the landscape i

Sharia

Body of Islamic law that includes interpretation of the Quran and applies Islamic principles to everyday life

Slang

words used informally by a segment of the population

Social Constructs

Ideas, concepts, or perceptions that have been created and accepted by people in a society or social group and are not created by nature

Sociofacts

ways people organize their society and relate to one another.

Syncretism

the Fusion or blending of two distinctive cultural traits into a unique new hybrid trait

Taboos

behaviors heavily discouraged by a culture

Theocracies

countries whose governments are run by religious leaders through the use of religious laws

Time-space convergance

the greater interconnection between places that results from improvements in Transportaion.

Traditional culture

the long-established behaviors, beliefs, and practices passed down from generation to generation

Traditional architecture

buildings use building materials available and reflect social/environmental customs of the people EX) log cabins

Transculturation

The expansion of cultural traits through diffusion, adoption, and other related processes.

Universalizing religion

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