Human Geo Exam 2

Culture, cultural regions, cultural landscapes etc. ( Dorrell et al, Chapter 4)

 Pop culture vs. folk culture

• Folk culture: local materials, local knowledge, local environments, long experiences, more change across space, less change across time, handmade

• Pop culture: materials sourced from many places, expert knowledge, across many environments, continuously reinvented, rapid change, more change across time, less change across space, store bought

Globalization of pop culture

• Stretch across different identities/regions. Pop culture from different regions influence one another, leading to a blend of styles, genres, and practices. (Ex. rise of Kpop, Bollywood, anime, etc.) Movies, television shows, music, and internet content are easily accessible globally.

Material vs. non-material culture

• Visual vs. invisible culture

• Material: phone, car, house, physical/tangible objects made/used by members of a group.

• Non-Material: language, religion, values, ideology, all beliefs/ideologies/activities representative of a group.

Commodification of culture

• Turning cultural elements and folk culture into goods/services to be bought, sold, or traded in a market-driven economy. This often leads to the dilution, misrepresentation, or exploitation of the original meanings/values that these cultural elements hold. 

Reflections of locality and climate on material landscape such as housing and on food

• Housing structures often reflect the need to adapt to local weather conditions. (ex. Tropical regions have stilt houses) 

  • Cave and Cliff Dwellings

  • Houses on Stilts or Piles

    • Protection against flooding/vermin

• The availability of materials often dictates construction techniques. (ex. Log cabins in the Alps, igloos in the Arctic)

Connections between globalization, popular culture and placelessness

• Globalization of pop culture can lead to the erosion of local cultures and traditions. Not all cultures receive equal representation. Places/locations can lose their distinctiveness//uniqueness.

• Sometimes popular culture can form subcultures, not contributing to placelessness

Language ( Dorrell et al, Chapter 5)

 Different language families and where they are found. Know the branches of the Indo-European language family.

• European

• Indo-Iranian

Effects of colonialism, imperialism and trade on language diffusion

• Colonialism: colonial powers often imposed their languages on the regions they controlled, leading to the widespread adoption of Indo-European languages like English, Spanish, French, and Portuguese. This often came at the expense of indigenous languages.

• Imperialism: imperialism extended the influence of dominant languages through cultural, political, and economic control. 

  • Imperial powers often used language as a means of control, promoting their own as symbols of modernity/progress

• Trade: acts as a bridge for linguistic exchange

  • Ex. English became global language of commerce, due to economic dominance of English-speaking nations

How languages such as English diffused around the world

• Follows trade/migration routes

• Languages use and blend words from other languages as they diffuse

Lingua franca

• Language used to make communication possible between people who do not share a native language

• English is the global lingua franca currently

  • Dominant on the internet, research papers, global news broadcasts, etc.

• French was language of diplomacy and is still the lingua franca in the sporting world

Dialect

• Different versions of the same basic language

• “You all” vs. “ya’ll” vs. “you guys”

Effects of linguistic diversity on countries

• Positive effects:

  • Cultural enrichment: preserves traditions, stories, and knowledge systems unique to different groups

  • Economic opportunities: multilingual populations can enhance trade/international relations

  • acknowledging/celebrating diverse languages strengthens unity by respecting different identities

• Challenges:

  • Communication barriers: difficulty in communication

  • Political fragmentation: regionalism/separatist movements

  • Strain on resources: implementing multilingual policies can be costly/complex

  • Language endangerment: dominant languages may overshadow minority ones

Isogloss

• A boundary that separates regions where different languages uses predominate

• Ex.

Language and ethnic nationalism – examples of language playing a divisive or cohesive role

• It can serve as a tool for fostering unity and shared identity, while also being a source of division and conflict

• Ex. Hebrew in Israel: helped bridge linguistic divides among Jewish immigrants from diverse countries

• Ex. Belgium: Dutch-speaking Flanders and French-speaking Wallonia. Linguistic divisions have fueled political/cultural conflicts

Religion ( Dorrell et al, Chapter 6)

Major world religions:  Which are Universalizing, which are Ethnic

• Universalizing religion: seeks converts as it tries to be ‘universal’

  • Christianity

  • Islam

  • Buddhism

• Ethnic religion: associated with a single group

  • Hinduism

  • Judaism

  • Shintoism, etc. 

Hearths of different major religions and their spatial spread

• Buddhism

  • Hearth: India and Nepal

  • Spatial spread: mainly in Asia

Difference between Branch and Denomination in a religion

• Branch: a large fundamental division within a religion

  • Ex. Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant

• Denomination: division of a branch that unites congregations into a single administrative body

  • Ex. methodist, lutheran, presbyterian

Syncretic religions and examples

• Emerge from blending of different religious traditions, beliefs, and practices. Often arise in regions where cultures/religions intersect due to trade, migration, conquest, or colonization.

• Ex. Sikhism in India: blends aspects of Hinduism and Islam

Religion as a source of conflict

• Has been a catalyst for conflict throughout history. This happens when religious identities become intertwined with political, cultural, or territorial disputes.

• Ex. Partition of India into Pakistan and India, Northern Ireland, Thirty Years’ War, etc. 

How religion affects the cultural landscape

• Religion influences how people think about natural features and what people build

• Sacred spaces where deities dwell

  • Followers of Shinto view certain mountains/rocks as homes of spirits

• Places important for what occurred at them

  • Mt. Sinai by Jews, Christians, Muslims because it is where God handed 10 Commandments to Moses

• Some entire cities are sacred

  • Jerusalem (Israel), Mecca (Saudi Arabia), and Lhasa (Tibet)

• Pilgrimage

  • Religious journey to a sacred place

  • Hindus: Ganges River

  • Muslims: Mecca

  • Catholics: Rome

• Death rituals and final resting places

Secular state vs. theocracy

• Secular state: government operates separately from religious institutions, often promoting separation of church and state.

• Theocracy: a government where religious leaders/institutions wield political power, and laws are typically derived from religious doctrines.

Ethnicity and Race ( Dorrell et al, Chapter 7)

Definitions of race, ethnicity

• Ethnicity: group of people sharing a common cultural/national heritage, often sharing a common language, religion, or other cultural characteristics

• Race: categorization of humans into groups based on physical characteristics or ancestry

Segregation in cities and suburbs: Ghetto, ethnic neighborhood/ethnic enclave, ethnoburb,

• Ethnic neighborhood: areas within cities that have a concentration of a particular ethnic group

• Ethnic islands: areas of ethnic concentration in rural or other non-urban areas

• Ethnic substrate: ethnic group is assimilated, but there are cultural residues

• Ethnoburb: a suburban area with a strong ethnic concentration

• Ghetto: any urban place where a group is forced to live due to discriminatory housing practices

  • Originally Italian term for areas where Jews were forced to live

Spatial variations in ethnic and racial group distribution in the USA and why.

• Spatial distribution of ethnic/racial groups reflects a combination of historical, economic, social, and political factors

  • Historical events: slavery, colonization, forced relocations

  • Economic opportunities: industrialization and urbanization attracted diverse populations to cities for jobs, agricultural opportunities influenced rural settlement patterns

  • Immigration: waves of immigration from Europe, Asia, and Latin America

  • Government policies: redlining, segregation, establishment of reservations

  • cultural/social networks: ethnic enclaves, groups, etc. 

Impacts of slavery, Great Migration, segregation, immigration, on patterns of race and ethnicity in the US

• The Great Migration

  • Over 6 million blacks moved to northern, mid-western and western cities

• Forced displacement of Native Americans (Trail of Tears)

  • Cherokee removal to reservations west of the Mississippi River

    • Mainly in New Mexico

Multi-nation/multi-ethnic countries

• Coexistence of diverse ethnic, cultural, and linguistic groups within a single geopolitical boundary

• Often face unique challenges and opportunities related to governance, social cohesion, and cultural representation

• Ex. Belgium, South Africa, Switzerland, Canada, India, etc. 

Political geography ( Dorrell et al, Chapter 8)

Definitions and examples of states, nations, nation-state, multi-national states, stateless nations

• State: a political unit with:

  • A permanent population

  • Sovereign territory

  • Legitimacy by other states

  • An effective government and working economy

• Nation: group of people with:

  • A shared cultural heritage or belief

  • Loyalty to one another and to the nation as a whole

  • A distinct homeland, even if not all of them are living there

  • The ability or desire to form their own sovereign state (self-determination)

• Nation-state: state in which the cultural borders of a nation correspond with the state borders of a country

  • Territory matches culture

  • Ex. Japan, Iceland, Denmark

• Stateless nations

• Multinational states

Shatterbelts

• Regions with greater inclination towards internal division, which gives rise to a high number of conflicts, and at the same time are strategically important for the great powers

• Multiple countries caught up in a conflict over the territory

• Regions of:

  • Cultural diversity

  • Political instability

  • Local rivalries

  • Vital natural resources

  • Geostrategic importance

  • International interference

• Ex. Balkans, Central Asia, Horn of Africa

• Saul B. Cohen’s theory predicted that armed conflicts after 1950 would likely occur in areas within the Inner Crescent or Middle East

Different kinds of boundaries and their implications for countries and regions: Superimposed, subsequent, consequent, antecedent,

• Superimposed:

  • Imposed by an outside force, usually via a treaty

  • Often drawn with complete disregard for the cultural, religious, and ethnic divisions within the people living there.

• Subsequent

  • One that has been put in place after a border had already been established

  • Ex. Berlin Wall divided East/West Germany

• Consequent

  • Boundary line that coincides with some cultural divide, such as religion or language

  • Ex. boundary between India and Pakistan

• Antecedent:

  • Created before the present day cultural landscape developed

  • Ex. boundary between USA and Canada drawn in 1783, before these lands were completely occupied by colonizers

• Geometric:

  • Boundary created by using lines of latitude and longitude and their associated arcs

  • Ex. 38th parallel between North and South Korea

Devolution – examples

• Process of transferring power from a central government to regional/local governments

• Ex. USSR (confederation of 15 republics), 

Centrifugal vs. centripetal forces in states

• Centrifugal

  • Divide a state

  • Ex. ethnic conflict, poverty, dictatorship, nationalism, loss of rights, other divisive forces, etc. 

• Centripetal

  • Hold a state together

  • Ex. Ethnic Unity/Tolerance, Social/Economic Equity, Nationalism, Common Heritage/Language, etc.

Gerrymandering

• The process of redrawing legislative boundaries for the purpose of benefiting the party in power

• Named for Elbridge Gerry (gov. Of Massachusetts), one of the districts he drew looked like a salamander

  • Critic called it a gerry mander

Law of the Sea

• 1983

• Signed by 117 countries

• Recognizes borders at 12 nautical miles - with an exclusive fishing rights (or exclusive economic zones) to 200 nautical miles

Different state shapes (compact, elongated, prorupted, fragmented) and why they are important: 

• Compact: distance from center to any boundary doesn’t vary significantly

  • Allows for good communications from all regions

  • Ex. Kenya, Uganda, Poland

• Prorupted: an otherwise compact state with a large projecting extension

  • Created to provide state with access to a resource such as water or to separate two states that would otherwise share a border

  • Ex. US, Russia (Kaliningrad by Baltic Sea), Bangladesh

• Elongated: long narrow shape

  • May suffer from poor internal communication and some regions may be isolated from capital, which is usually near the center

  • Ex. Chile, Italy, Gambia

• Fragmented states: several discontinuous pieces of territory

  • Technically any state with offshore islands is considered fragmented

  • 2 types: areas separated by water OR areas separated by an intervening state

  • Ex. Indonesia

• Perforated: state that completely surrounds another one

  • Ex. South Africa surrounds Lesotho and Eswatini

Gender (Review ppt slides and go over Assignment 2)

 Impacts especially on population composition and life chances in the LDCs.

• LDCs often have high fertility rates, women bearing more children on average compared to developed countries

• Cultural preference for male children in some can lead to gender imbalances

• Men more likely to migrate for work, leaving women to manage households/communities

• Girls often face barriers to education such as early marriage, household responsibilities, and lack of access to schools

• Higher maternal mortality rates

• Women often concentrated in low-paying, informal sectors

• Discriminatory laws and cultural practices restrict women’s agency

Gender norms, gender stereotypes and their impacts on the lives of women

• Gender stereotypes: a pre-judgement, bias or limitation based on gender

  • males/females differently valued (masculinity considered the norm)

  • Reinforced by family, religion, media/social media

Disparities in well-being due to gender in the realms of the economy, culture, political participation, education, and health.

• Economy: wage gap, unpaid labor, labor market segregation (underrepresented in STEM fields), access to resources (barriers to owning property, accessing credit, benefiting from inheritance)

• Culture: gender roles, representation (underrepresented in media/cultural narratives), violence and discrimination

• Political participation: underrepresentation, legal barriers

• Education: lower education rates (not allowed in some secondary schools, marriage, household responsibilities, etc.)

• Health: limited access to reproductive healthcare, gender-based violence

How can some of these disparities be reduced or even removed?

• Equal pay

• Access to schools

• Challenging gender norms

• Education campaigns: promote awareness of gender equality through media/education