AP Human Geography Unit 1 Vocab

Maps used to show landforms and/or places.

Reference map that shows identifiable natural landmarks such as mountains, rivers, oceans, and elevation.

Reference map that shows political boundaries. For example countries, cities, capitals, etc.

Maps used to display specific types of information (theme) pertaining to an area.

Thematic map that shows statistical data by transforming space like population.

Thematic map that uses shading or coloring to show statistical data like population.

Thematic map that uses dots to indicate a feature or occurrence like population.

Thematic map that indicates relative magnitude of some value for a geographic region in which the symbol varies in proportion to data like population.

Measurement using a standard unit of length like miles and kilometers.

Measurement of the social, cultural, and/or economic connectivity between places (how connected or disconnected) For example the U.S. and Iran VS U.S. and China.

Finding a location using compass direction like North, South, East, and West.

Finding a location not using compass direction like left, right, forward, backward, up, and down.

The way things are laid out and organized on the surface of the Earth.

Objects that form a group like a coastal population.

Objects that are scattered like a rural population.

Height above sea level.

Hierarchy of spaces like the location of French speakers. Globally-in the world, regionally-in North America, nationally-in Canada, and locally-in Quebec.

All maps are distorted as a result of projecting a 3D surface onto a 2D surface in area, distance, shape, and/or direction.

A way to transfer the 3D earth onto a 2D map to reduce distortion in area, distance, shape, and/or direction.

Information that identifies the geographic location of features and boundaries on earth (natural and constructed).

Technology that provides geographic data that is used for personal (navigation), business (marketing), and government (environmental planning) purposes.

Map created by a computer that can combine layers of spatial data. Data is displayed and analyzed to gain insights into geographical patterns/relationships like the vulnerability of the Florida Aquifer, school boundaries, and crime rates.

System of satellites that provide geo-spatial positioning like GPS.

A network of satellites and receiving devices used to determine the location of something on Earth.

Collecting data with instruments that are distant from the area of study.

Satellites, planes, aircraft, spacecraft, ships, and buoys.

Tracking storm systems, searching for natural resources, military surveillance, monitor volcanoes, and monitoring deforestation/glacier melting.

Compilation and publication of web sites that provide graphical and text information in the form of maps/visuals like homicide statistics.

Can come in the forms of field observations, media reports, travel narratives, policy documents, personal interviews, landscape analysis, and photographic evidence.

Systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population.

Images of earth collected by satellites operated by governments and businesses around the world.

Describes the precise location of a place using the Earth’s latitude and longitude.

Describes the location of a place relative to other human or physical features.

Relational concept that acquires meaning and sense when related to other concepts.

Describes an area on the surface of the earth with distinguishing human and physical characteristics (Place is space with meaning) like Agra, India.

An arrangement of objects on earth, including the space in between those objects.

Describes the ways humans modify or adapt to the natural world like building bridges, dams, houses, and roads.

The idea that the likelihood of interaction diminishes with increasing distance.

Term that refers to the increasing sense of connectivity that seems to be bringing people closer together even though their distances are the same.

Term that refers to the greatly accelerated movement of goods, information, and ideas during the 20th century made possible by technological innovations like the TV, internet, and satellite communication.

Describes the ways in which people, goods, and ideas move from place to place.

The process of increased interconnectedness among countries most notably in the areas of economics, politics, and culture.

A system of interconnected people or things like transportation, communication, financial, and governmental.

Meeting an increased demand for resources (energy, food, fuel) in a way that protects the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Something found in nature and is necessary or useful to humans like forests, mineral deposits, and water.

The function of land agriculturally, commercially, residentially, transportation, and recreationally.

Theory that a society is formed and determined by the physical environment, especially the climate; the physical environment predisposes societies towards particular development; human society development is controlled by the environment.

Theory that the environment sets certain constraints or limitations but people use their creativity to decide how to respond to the conditions of a particular natural environment.

Analyzing data at a variety of scales whether it’s globally, regionally, nationally, and locally. It reveals variations/different interpretations of data.

Describes an area on earth marked by similarity in some way (way to organize space).

Refers to a group’s perceived identification with a particular region like the South.

Region marked by a shared trait (cultural physical, etc) like the Keys or the Caribbean.

Region marked by a particular set of activities that occur like Southwest Airlines or a specialized newspaper like the New York Times.

Region that exists as an idea like the South or Kurdistan.

Transitional and often contested and overlapping like Kurdistan in Turkey and Iraq.

Analyzing regions at a variety of scales like globally, nationally, and locally. For example the Muslim population globally is in the world, nationally may be in Turkey, and locally may be in Kurdistan.

Movement is a steady stream like migration.

Study of people AND places; how we make places, how we organize space and society, how we interact with each other in places and across spaces, and how we make sense of others and ourselves in our localities, regions, and the world.