Transcript Chapter 3-Population and Culture

The Study of Human Geography
Main Idea:
The Study of human geography focuses on
a number of population topics, as well as
many cultural topics
Culture
The beliefs and actions that define a
group of people’s way of life.
 Population
density: the average number
of people in a square mile or square
kilometer
 What
factors lead people to live where
they do?
 The
majority of people live on relative
small share of the earth’s surface.
 Areas
where the soil is fertile enough,
water is plentiful enough and the climate
is mild enough to grow crops.
 People
possess the ability of adaptation
to the surrounding areas.
 Example: In cold area they wear heavier clothing.

These adaptations allow people to
survive in areas that might appear hostile
to human life.
Population Density is equal to the total
population of a region divided by the
region’s land area.
 The
results maybe misleading in cases.
For example: Egypt has more than 90% of
the land is desert, and nearly all Egyptians
live along a narrow strip beside the Nile
River.

Many geographers prefer the use of a country’s
arable land-land that can be farmed- rather that it
total land area.
Why is the arable land prefer than total land area.
Egypt ‘s overall population density in 2000 was
about 177 people per square mile. The measure in
arable land, the density was about 8,839 people per
square mile.
Contributing factors to the growth of
the world’s population.
• Technology
• Medical care
Contributions
Increased food
production.
Enable people
to live longer
What will the effects of rapid population
growth be?
Predictions
Negative
famine
disease
depletion of natural resources
Positive
Increases in the level of technology and
creativity
 The
world population growth is uneven.
 Different
countries have imbalances
between their birth rate (number of live
births each year per 1,000 people) and
death rate (number of deaths each year per
1, 000 people)
 Affected
by number of immigrant (people
who move into the country) and emigrants
(people who leave the country to live in
other places)
 The
densest concentrations of people are in
the four regions:
• East Asia
• South Asia
• Europe
• Eastern North America
 Urbanization-the
growth of city population.
 Rural-country side
1) A particular focus of human geography
is _________________ -the study of
population .
2) What is a metropolitan area?
3)Give the four regions with the densest
concentration of people.
 Culture
Hearths
 Language
 Religion
 Cultural
 Social
Landscape
Organization
 Women
and Minorities
 Culture
Hearth refers to a place where
important ideas begin and from which they
spread to surrounding cultures.
 Usually
used for areas where major traits of
human culture first developed.
Example: In Southeast Asia, people first learned to
tame and herd animals and grow crops from wild
grasses.

Language is the cornerstone of culture.
Without language
• people not be able to communicate.
• They could not pass on what they know or believe to a new
generation.

All cultures have languages, although not all have
written languages.
 Religion
help answer basic question
about the meaning and purpose of life.
 Supports
the values that a group of
people consider important,
 Religions vary around the world.
• monotheism-worship one god.
• Polytheism-worship more than one god.
 The
use of natural resources or alteration
of the surface of the earth produce
unique cultural landscapes that reflect
specific cultures.
Example: The Great Plains of the United
States have farmhouses and big sheds
storing large farm machines.
 Every
cultural creates a social structure
by organizing its members into smaller
units.
 Helps the people of a culture work together to meet
basic needs.
 Most culture have social classes.
 Social classes may be based on money, occupation,
education, and ancestry.
 Many
cultures have restriction in social
mobility.
 They are often imposed on women, ethnics minorities
and religious.
 Cultures
are changed by both internal and
external influences.
 Cultural
convergence occurs when the
skills, arts, ideas, habits and institutions of
one culture come in contact with those of
another culture.
Example: Popularity of Mexican food in the
US.
 Diffusion
is the process by which a cultural
element is transmitted across some distance
from one group or individual to another.
Example: The introduction of new religions to the
American when Europeans and African arrived in
this hemisphere.

The process of adapting some traits from
other cultures is called acculturation.
 Cultural
Divergence-the restriction of a
culture from outside cultural influences.
1) Name three types of material culture(the
reflections of culture illustrated by objects
and idea) ?
2) Give an example of a specific religion in a
region of the world.
3) Give an example of a specific language in a
region of the world.
4) Give an example of a country who
practices cultural divergence.