AP Human Geography Final Review Sheet

Formal Region - An area defined by one predominant or universal characteristic throughout its entire area.

Environmental Determinism - the environment causes the social development  of humans            

Scales of Inquiry - the level of geographic area being studied or investigated

Distortion - all projections have some sort of distortion

Choropleth Map - a map that uses shading of colors display information

Sustainability - the use of earth’s resources to ensure their availability in the future

Demographic/Epidemiologic Transition - measures population growth over time.  The longer people live the more degenerative diseases they face.

Chain Migration - when a migrant communicates home it can cause a “chain” of migrants to follow.

Worldwide Intraregional Migration - it has been from rural to urban

Ethnocentrism - viewing one’s culture/ethnicity as superior to others

Cultural Landscape - the built part of the environment.  The imprint humans leave behind on the environment

Syncretism - The blending traits from two different cultures to form a new trait

Diffusion of English Worldwide - mostly through relocation diffusion

Ethnic Religions - Judaism, Hinduism, etc

Stateless Nations - nations of people without their own state. (Basque & Kurdish Peoples)

Balkanization - the process by which a country may break up into smaller parts due to ethnic conflict/strife (Yugoslavia)

Relict Boundary - a boundary that is no longer functional but can still be seen on the landscape. (Berlin Wall & The Great Wall of China)

Gerrymandering - the process of redrawing voter districts in order to gain political power

Nation-State - a country that has a homogenous nation of people.  (Iceland, Japan, etc)

Shatterbelt - a geographic area of conflict caught between two opposing forces (Eastern Europe, Korea and Vietnam during the Cold War.)

Subsistence Agriculture - crops are produced to feed the farmer and his or her family

Total fertility rate - the average number of children born to a woman during her childbearing years

Eat-local - the movement to eat locally sourced food in order to conserve fossil fuels.

Von Thunen’s Model - remember the rings. 

1. Labor intensive crops (market gardening/diary cows)   2.  Controlled Forest 

3.  Extensive Labor Crops (Cereal Grains)                       4.  Grazing Animals

All about transportation and land costs 

Central Place Theory - attempts to explain the location of services. “Range” - distance people are willing to travel for a service. “Threshold” - minimum number of people necessary to support a business.

Primate City - the largest settlement in the country.  More than double the size of the next largest city.

Edge City - usually on the fringes of a city. Usually is home to retail, business and/or commercial activities.

Gentrification - revitalization of  depressed areas in a city.  Boosts land value, but can displace lower income individuals.

Gravity Model - the interaction between two places depends on size of each place and the distance between them

Core-Periphery Model - the core relies on the periphery for natural resources.  The core regions are more developed and use the relationship to their advantag

Complementarities - when two countries import and export needs match.

Quaternary - the part of the tertiary sector that deals with the collection and processing of information.

Bulk Reducing Industry - when the final product is lighter than its inputs.  The industry will be located near the inputs (any kind of metal smelting).  

Agglomeration - when companies in the same or a similar industry locate near one another to lower costs.