AP Human Geography Vocabulary and Concepts
Unit 1: Geography’s Nature and Perspectives
Absolute Location: The exact location of a place using latitude and longitude.
Relative Location: The location of a place in relation to other places.
Place: A specific point on Earth distinguished by human and physical characteristics.
Region: An area defined by one or more distinctive characteristics.
Formal Region: Defined by a common characteristic (e.g., the Corn Belt).
Functional Region: Defined by a node or focal point (e.g., a newspaper delivery area).
Perceptual (Vernacular) Region: Based on people’s perceptions (e.g., "The South").
Scale: The relationship between a portion of Earth being studied and Earth as a whole.
Spatial Distribution: The arrangement of phenomena across space.
Density: The frequency with which something exists within a given unit of area.
Diffusion: The process of a characteristic spreading across space.
Relocation Diffusion: Spread through the movement of people.
Expansion Diffusion: Spread in an additive process.
Hierarchical Diffusion:
Contagious Diffusion:
Stimulus Diffusion:
Geographic Information System (GIS): A system that stores and analyzes geographic data.
Global Positioning System (GPS): A system that determines precise location using satellites.
Unit 2: Development, Population, and Migration
Demography: The study of population characteristics.
Crude Birth Rate (CBR): Number of live births per 1,000 people in a year.
Crude Death Rate (CDR): Number of deaths per 1,000 people in a year.
Natural Increase Rate (NIR): Population growth measured as birth rate minus death rate.
Total Fertility Rate (TFR): Thez average number of children a woman will have.
Infant Mortality Rate (IMR): The number of infant deaths per 1,000 live births.
Demographic Transition Model (DTM): A model showing population change over time.
Malthusian Theory: The idea that population growth will outpace food supply.
Carrying Capacity: The maximum population an area can support sustainably.
Push Factors: Negative factors that drive people away from a location.
Pull Factors: Positive factors that attract people to a new location.
Intervening Obstacles: Barriers that hinder migration.
Forced Migration: Migration due to conflict, disaster, or coercion (e.g., refugees).
Voluntary Migration: Migration based on personal choice.
Unit 3: Agriculture and Rural Land Use
Agriculture: The cultivation of crops and raising of livestock.
Subsistence Agriculture: Farming primarily for local consumption.
Commercial Agriculture: Farming for sale and profit.
Green Revolution: The introduction of high-yield crops and farming technologies.
Pastoral Nomadism: Herding domesticated animals in arid regions.
Plantation Agriculture: Large-scale farming of cash crops (e.g., coffee, sugar, tobacco).
Intensive Agriculture: High labor and capital investment on small plots of land.
Extensive Agriculture: Low labor input over large areas.
Von Thünen Model: A model explaining agricultural land use in concentric rings.
Food Desert: An area with limited access to fresh, healthy food.
Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs): Crops that have been altered for specific traits.
Unit 4: Cultural Patterns and Processes
Culture: The shared practices, technologies, attitudes, and behaviors of a society.
Folk Culture: Traditions practiced by small, isolated groups (e.g., Amish communities).
Popular Culture: Culture found in large, heterogeneous societies (e.g., global fashion trends).
Cultural Landscape: The visible imprint of human activity on the environment.
Cultural Diffusion: The spread of cultural elements across space.
Relocation Diffusion: Spread through migration (e.g., Italian food in the U.S.).
Expansion Diffusion: Spread of culture while remaining strong in the hearth.
Hierarchical Diffusion: Spread from authority figures or major cities.
Contagious Diffusion: Rapid, widespread diffusion (e.g., viral trends).
Stimulus Diffusion: An idea spreads but is modified (e.g., McDonald's in India with vegetarian options).
Language Family: A group of related languages with a common ancestor (e.g., Indo-European).
Lingua Franca: A common language used for communication between speakers of different languages (e.g., English).
Creole Language: A stable, developed mix of languages.
Ethnicity: A group’s identity based on shared cultural traits and ancestry.
Religion: A set of spiritual beliefs and practices.
Universalizing Religion: Seeks to appeal to all people (e.g., Christianity, Islam, Buddhism).
Ethnic Religion: Tied to a specific culture and location (e.g., Hinduism, Judaism).
Cultural Appropriation: Occurs when individuals or groups from a dominant culture borrow or take elements from a marginalized culture, often without understanding, respect, or acknowledgment of their significance.
Cultural Assimilation: Refers to the process by which individuals or groups from one culture adopt the practices, values, and behaviors of a dominant culture, often as a way of fitting in or gaining acceptance.
Unit 5: Political Patterns and Processes
State: A politically organized area with a government, population, territory, and sovereignty.
Nation: A group of people with a shared culture and identity.
Nation-State: A country where the population shares a common ethnicity (e.g., Japan).
Stateless Nation: A cultural group that lacks its own sovereign state (e.g., Kurds, Palestinians).
Sovereignty: The authority of a state to govern itself.
Colonialism: Control of one territory by a foreign power.
Imperialism: Extending a country’s power through diplomacy or military force.
Gerrymandering: Manipulating voting district boundaries for political advantage.
Supranational Organization: A group of states working together for mutual benefits (e.g., United Nations, European Union).
Devolution: The transfer of power from a central government to regional governments.
Unit 6: Industrialization
Industrial Revolution: A period of rapid industrial growth with technological innovations that began in England during the late 18th century.
Agglomeration: A process where businesses cluster together in a certain area to take advantage of shared services, resources, and markets.
Weber’s Least Cost Theory: A theory that describes the optimal location of a manufacturing firm based on minimizing costs of transportation, labor, and agglomeration.
Bulk-Reducing Industry: An industry where the final product weighs less or has a smaller volume than the inputs, often located near the resource source.
Bulk-Gaining Industry: An industry where the final product weighs more or has a greater volume than the inputs, often located near the market.
Break-of-Bulk Point: A location where goods are transferred from one mode of transportation to another, such as a port or airport.
Deindustrialization: The decline of industrial activity in a region or economy, often leading to economic restructuring.
Footloose Industry: Industries that can be located anywhere without being affected by factors like transportation costs (e.g., software companies).
Just-in-Time Delivery: A strategy where goods are delivered just as they are needed in the production process, minimizing inventory costs.
Outsourcing: Moving part of a company's operations to another country to take advantage of lower costs.
Offshoring: Relocating entire production operations to another country for cheaper labor or resources.
Fordism: A system of mass production that was pioneered in the early 20th century by the Ford Motor Company, emphasizing standardized products and assembly line work.
Post-Fordism: A modern industrial production system characterized by more flexible work rules, small batch production, and customization.
Technopole: A center of high-tech manufacturing and information-based industry.
Multiplier Effect: The economic effect where an increase in spending produces an increase in national income and consumption greater than the initial amount spent.
Growth Pole: An area where economic development is concentrated, spurring growth in the surrounding region.
Global Division of Labor: The phenomenon whereby different parts of the production process are located in different countries around the world.
Quaternary Sector: The part of the economy focused on knowledge-based activities like information technology, research, and education.
Quinary Sector: The highest levels of decision-making in an economy, typically involving government officials or top business executives.
Industrial Park: An area zoned and planned for the purpose of industrial development.
Unit 7: Urbanization
Urbanization: The growth and expansion of cities, often due to migration from rural areas.
Suburbanization: The process of population movement from within cities to the residential areas on the outskirts (suburbs).
Edge City: A large urban area situated on the outskirts of a city, typically with its own economic centers and business districts.
Central Business District (CBD): The commercial and business center of a city, often marked by high land values, tall buildings, and dense traffic.
Megacity: A city with a population over 10 million people.
Megalopolis: A chain of closely linked metropolitan areas, often forming a large, continuous urban area.
Gentrification: The process where old, deteriorated urban areas are renovated and revitalized by middle- and upper-income people, often displacing lower-income residents.
Urban Sprawl: The uncontrolled expansion of urban areas into the surrounding countryside.
Squatter Settlement: Residential developments that occur without legal claims to the land, often found in less developed countries (e.g., slums).
Zoning: Laws that define how property in specific geographic zones can be used (e.g., residential, commercial, industrial).
Filtering: The process of houses being passed down from wealthier to poorer residents over time.
Redlining: A discriminatory practice where banks refuse to lend money to people in certain neighborhoods, often based on race or income level.
Blockbusting: A practice where real estate agents persuade white property owners to sell their houses at low prices due to fears of racial integration, then resell them at higher prices to minority buyers.
Hoyt Sector Model: An urban land use model that suggests cities grow in sectors or wedges outward from the CBD along transportation routes.
Burgess Concentric Zone Model: A model that describes urban environments as a series of rings surrounding the CBD.
Harris-Ullman Multiple Nuclei Model: A model proposing that a city contains multiple centers (nuclei) for different activities rather than a single CBD.
Galactic City Model (Peripheral Model): A model that represents North American cities as sprawling with suburban business areas (edge cities) connected by highways.
New Urbanism: A movement that promotes environmentally friendly habits by creating walkable neighborhoods with a range of housing and job types.
Smart Growth: Urban planning that focuses on sustainable development, preserving open space, and reducing urban sprawl.
Urban Renewal: The process of redeveloping deteriorated urban areas by clearing slums and building new infrastructure.
Disamenity Zones: Very poor parts of cities that may lack services, often controlled by gangs or informal governments, especially in Latin America.
Bid-Rent Theory: A theory that states land closer to the CBD is more expensive, and different land users are willing to pay different amounts based on proximity to the CBD.
Primate City: A city that is disproportionately larger and more dominant than any other city in a country.
Rank-Size Rule: A pattern of settlements where the nth largest city is 1/n the size of the largest city.
World City (Global City): A city that is an important node in the global economic system (e.g., New York, London, Tokyo).