absolute location
The actual space a place occupies on Earth's surface
acculturation
The change that occurs within a culture when it adopts a practice from another culture
agglomeration effects
The cost advantages (external economies) for an individual company gained by locating near similar industries or companies
agribusiness
Commercial agriculture in which large corporations own and operate various steps in the production process with an emphasis on profit
agricultural density
The number of people living in rural areas per unit of agricultural land
alliance
An association among countries for the purpose of mutual defense or trade
animism
The belief that spirits (including ancestral) live within objects such as animals, rivers, rocks, trees, and mountains
antecedent boundary
A boundary placed before the cultural landscape was developed
artifact
Tangible pieces of material culture
assimilation
The process in which immigrants become totally integrated into the host culture
backwash effect
The negative impact to the peripheral region sometimes caused by increased flows of labor and capital into a nearby high-growth region
basic sector
Goods and services produced for individuals outside the urban work area
bid rent curve
The concept that the concentric circles in Burgess's concentric zone model are based on the amount people are willing to pay for land in each zone
biotechnology
The application of scientific techniques to modify and improve plants, animals, and microorganisms to enhance their value
built environment
The material culture of an environment
carrying capacity
The number of people an area can support on a sustained basis
central business district (CBD)
The business area found at the center of every older central city and urban area
central place theory
A theory developed by Walter Christaller that states that cities exist for economic reasons and that people gather in cities to share goods and ideas
centrifugal force
A strong, divisive force, such as religious differences or a weak communication systems, at work in a country
centripetal force
A strong, unifying force, such as a charismatic leader or nationalism, at work in a country
chain migration
The part of a migrant flow (usually relatives and friends) that follows former migrants to an area
channelized migration
Repetitive pattern of migration not linked to family or ethnicity (senior citizens moving to the Sun Belt)
charter group
The first group of settlers to establish a new and lasting culture and society is an area
compact state
A state that is basically round in shape, such as Poland or Bhutan)
colonialism
A system in which a country declares control over a territory or people outside its own boundaries, usually for economic purposes
commodity chain
A chain of activities from the manufacturing to the distribution of a product
concentric zone model
The model of urban land use developed by Burgess which demonstrates the invasion and succession processes that occur as the city grows and expands outward
confederation
A loose association of states organized for the purpose of retaining cohesion, such as the former republic of the USSR
congregation
An ethnic group's grouping together in a specific part of the city to support each other and minimize conflicts with those in the non-ethnic group
consequent boundary
A type of subsequent boundary that is drawn to accommodate existing linguistic, cultural, or religious boundaries
conservation agriculture
A modern method of farming that balances maximum crop yield with sustainable farming methods and protection of the environment
creative destruction
The reinvestment of funds in new, profitable ventures and regions that were once used to fund ventures and regions that are now not as profitable
creole
A simplified mixture of two or more languages that is adopted in areas of cultural diversity
crude birth rate (CBR)
The number of babies born per 1000 people per year
crude death rate (CDR)
The number of deaths per 1000 people per year
crude density
The number of people per unit of land (also called arithmetic density)
cultural barrier
hindrances to cultural diffusion that occur in a society and keep cultural traits from spreading
cultural diffusion
The process in which culture is spread from one region to another
cultural landscape
The unique landscape made up of all parts of a culture-both material and nonmaterial
culture
The cluster of traits that make a group of people special and unique
culture region
A portion of the Earth's surface occupied by populations sharing recognizable and distinctive cultural characteristics
culture hearth
A place where innovations and new ideas originate and spread outward (diffuse) to other regions
culture trait
A single feature of a culture, such as religion or language
decolonization
The process by which former colonies gain their independence from the mother country
deindustrialization
The reduction in industrial activity that occurs when decreased profits and declining business cause a reduction in industrial employment
demographic transition model
A model that shows the link between population growth and economic development using four or five stages of economic development
demography
The study of the characteristics of a human population
density
The number of an item within a unit of area
dependency ratio
The ratio of people under age 15 and those 65 and older to those age 15 to 65
dependency theory
A theory of economic development proposed by Andre Gunder Frank based on the periphery's dependence on the core
desertification
The transformation of agricultural lands into deserts because of overgrazing and soil erosion
MDCs
Countries such as the United States, Germany, and Australia who have the highest levels of economic development
developmentalism
The idea that every country and region will eventually make economic progress toward a high level of mass consumption if they only compete to the best of their ability within the world economy
devolution
The breakdown of central authority in a country
distance decay
The principle that says migrants try to minimize the friction of distance by moving to locations closer to them rather than father away
distribution
The array of items on the Earth's surface. All spatial distributions have density, dispersion, and some type of pattern
domino theory
The theory prevalent during the Cold War Era that once a country became communist, its neighbors were likely to soon become communist also
doubling time
The length of time it takes for a country's population to double in size if the growth rate stays the same
dialect
A speech variants of a language, which reflects the local region in which it is spoken
ecumene
The part of the Earth that is fit for humans to live
edge city
A new urban complex that consists of a large node of office buildings and commercial operations with more workers than residents
elongated state
A state that is long and narrow, such as Vietnam or Chile
enclave
A piece of territory completely surrounded by another territory of which it is not a part
environmental determinism
The theory that human behavior is controlled by the physical environment
ethnic enclave
A residential community where the residents either voluntarily live, or are forced to live, in a segregated (separated) fashion due to race, religion, or ethnicity
ethnic island
A small ethnic settlement centered in the middle of a larger group of the population
ethnic religion
A religion that is part of a particular ethnic or political group (Judaism, for example)
ethnocentrism
The belief that one's own ethnic group is superior to all others
exclave
An outlier, or piece of a territory, that is completely enclosed within the borders of another country
exclusive economic zone (EEZ)
An expanse of water up to 200 natural nautical miles off a country's coast that is designated for that country's natural resource exploration and exploitation
export-processing zones (EPZs)
Small areas of a country with exceptional investment and trading conditions that are created by its government to stimulate and attract foreign investors and business
federal state
A type of government that gives local political units such as states or provinces within a country a measure of power
First Agricultural Revolution
The domestication of plants and animals and the resulting start of a sedentary society (also called the Neolithic Agricultural Revolution)
first effective settlement
The first group (charter group) of settlers who establish a new and lasting culture and society in an area
fixed cost
The cost of land, plant, and machinery that is not variable
folk culture
A homogenous group of people with a strong family structure who follow a simple, traditional lifestyle of self-sufficiency and independence from the society's cultural mainstream
footloose firms
Firms that produce something that requires minimal transport costs
Fordism
The process (named after Henry Ford, its founder) of using assembly-line techniques and scientific management in manufacturing
formal region
A region with a high level of consistency in a certain culture of physical attribute
forward capital
A capital city that is located away from the core region for economic or political reasons in a symbolic gesture
fragmented state
A state that has two or more areas of territory separated by another country
functional region
A region with a node, or center hub surrounded by interconnecting linkages. Usually connections relate to trade, communication, transportation, etc.
gateway city
A city that served as the control center for a former colonial power
gentrification
The process of renovating an older, run-down neighborhood near the center city by middle-class and high-income families
GIS
The marriage of mapping software with a database for the purpose of overlaying various data layers on a basic, locational map grid
gerrymandering
The process of redrawing territorial district boundaries to favor a certain political party
ghetto
An ethnic enclave where the residents live segregated (separated) by race, religion, or ethnicity in a voluntary or sometimes, forced, manner
ghetto
The concentration of a certain group of residents in a certain residential area against their will through legal means or social discrimination
globalization
The increasing interconnection of all regions in the world through politics, communication, transportation, marketing, manufacturing, and social and cultural processes
GMO (genetically modified organisms)
An organism that is created when scientists take one or more specific genes from one organism and introduce them into another organism thus creating a new version
gravity model
A law of spatial interaction that states that larger places attract people, ideas, and goods more strongly that smaller places
Green Revolution
The development and transfer from the developed world to the developing world, of higher-yield and fast-growing crops through new and improved technology, pesticides, and fertilizers, for the purpose of alleviating world hunger
GDP
The approximate value of all final goods and services produced in a country per year
gross national product (GNP)
The gross domestic product (GDP) plus the value of income from abroad such as earnings from a US company based abroad
growth pole
An urban center deliberately placed by a country's government to stimulate economic growth in the hinterland
heartland-rimland theory
Halford Mackinder's theory that the country that dominated the landmass of Eurasia (heartland) would eventually rule the world (rimland)
hierarchial diffusion
The adoption of an official language by the ruler or administration, a language diffused downward into the society
hinterlands
The surrounding trade area of an urban area
host society
The dominant culture group in an area receiving a minority group
human capital theory of migration
The migration theory that states that educated workers often migrate from poor countries to wealthy countries seeking better-paying jobs