(Redirected from Geographical)
Map of the Earth
'Geography' (from the
Greek words '
Geo' (''γη'') or 'Gaea' (''γαια''), both meaning '"Earth"', and 'graphein' (''γραφειν'') meaning '"to describe"' or "to write"''or "to map")'' is the study of the
earth and its features, inhabitants, and phenomena.
[1] A literal translation would be "to describe the Earth". The first person to use the word "geography" was
Eratosthenes (275-195 B.C.). Four historical traditions in geographical research are the
spatial analysis of natural and human phenomena (geography as a study of distribution), area studies (places and regions), study of man-land relationship, and research in
earth sciences.
[2] Nonetheless, modern geography is an all-encompassing discipline that foremost seeks to understand the world and all of its human and natural complexities-- not merely where objects are, but how they have changed and come to be. As "the bridge between the human and physical sciences," geography is divided into two main branches - human geography and physical geography.
[3]
Introduction
Traditionally, geography as well as
geographers has been viewed as the same as
cartography and people who study place names. Although many geographers are trained in
toponymy and cartography, this is not their main preoccupation. Geographers study the
spatial and
temporal distribution of phenomena, processes and feature as well as the interaction of
humans and their
environment.
[4] As space and place affect a variety of topics such as economics, health, climate, plants and animals, geography is highly interdisciplinary.
Geography as a discipline can be split broadly into two main sub fields:
human geography and
physical geography. The former focuses largely on the built environment and how space is created, viewed and managed by humans as well as the influence humans have on the space they occupy. The latter examines the natural environment and how the
climate,
vegetation & life,
soil,
water and
landforms are produced and interact.
[5] As a result of the two subfields using different approaches a third field has emerged, which is
environmental geography. Environmental geography combines physical and human geography and looks at the interactions between the environment and humans.
History of geography
:''See main article:
History of geography
The ideas of Anaximander of Miletus (c. 610 B.C.-c. 545 B.C.), considered by later Greek writers to be the true founder of geography, come to us through fragments quoted by his successors. Anaximander is credited with the invention of the gnomon,the simple yet efficient Greek instrument that allowed the early measurement of latitude. Thales, Anximander is also credited with the prediction of eclipses. The foundations of geography can be traced to the ancient cultures, such as the ancient, medieval, and early modern
Chinese. The
Greeks, who were the first to explore geography as both
art and
science, achieved this through
Cartography,
Philosophy, and
Literature, or through
Mathematics. There is some debate about who was the first person to assert that the Earth is spherical in shape, with the credit going either to
Parmenides or
Pythagoras.
Anaxagoras was able to demonstrate that the profile of the Earth was circular by explaining
eclipses. However, he still believed that the Earth was a flat disk, as did many of his contemporaries. One of the first estimates of the radius of the Earth was made by
Eratosthenes.
[6]
The first rigorous system of latitude and longitude lines is credited to
Hipparchus. He employed a
sexagesimal system that was derived from
Babylonian mathematics. The parallels and meridians were sub-divided into 360°, with each degree further subdivided 60′ (
minutes). To measure the longitude at different location on Earth, he suggested using eclipses to determine the relative difference in time.
[7] The extensive mapping by the
Romans as they explored new lands would later provide a high level of information for
Ptolemy to construct detailed
atlases. He extended the work of
Hipparchus, using a grid system on his maps and adopting a length of 56.5
miles for a degree.
[8]
During the
Middle Ages, the fall of the
Roman empire led to a shift in the evolution of geography from
Europe to the
Islamic world.
[9] Scholars such as
Idrisi (produced detailed maps),
Ibn Batutta, and
Ibn Khaldun provided detailed accounts of their
Hajj. Further, Islamic scholars translated and
interpreted the earlier works of the
Romans and
Greeks and established the
House of Wisdom in
Baghdad for this purpose.
[10] From the 3rd century onwards,
Chinese methods of geographical study and writing of geographical literature became much more complex than what was found in Europe at the time (until the 13th century).
Chinese geographers such as
Liu An,
Shen Kuo,
Fan Chengda,
Zhou Daguan, and
Xu Xiake wrote important treatises, yet by the 17th century, advanced ideas and methods of Western-style geography were adopted in China.
Self portrait of Alexander Von Humbolt, one of the early pioneers of geography
The
Age of discovery during the
16th and
17th centuries where many new lands were discovered and accounts by explorers such as
Christopher Columbus,
Marco Polo and
James Cook, revived a desire for both accurate geographic detail, and more solid theoretical foundations.
The
18th and
19th centuries were the times when geography became recognized as a discrete academic discipline and became part of a typical
university curriculum in
Europe (especially
Paris and
Berlin). The development of many geographic societies also occurred during the 19th century with the foundations of the
Société de Géographie in
1821,
[11] the
Royal Geographical Society in
1830,
[12] Russian Geographical Society in
1845,
[13] American Geographical Society in
1851,
[14] and the
National Geographic Society in
1888.
[15] The influence of
Immanuel Kant,
Alexander von Humbolt,
Carl Ritter and
Paul Vidal de la Blache can be seen as a major turning point in geography from a philosophy to an academic subject.
Over the past two centuries the advancements in technology such as computers, have led to the development of
geomatics and new practices such as participant observation and geostatistics being incorporated into geography's portfolio of tools. In the West during the
20th century, the discipline of geography went through four major phases:
environmental determinism,
regional geography, the
quantitative revolution, and
critical geography. The strong interdisciplinary links between geography and the sciences of
geology and
botany, as well as
economics,
sociology and
demographics have also grown greatly especially as a result of Earth System Science that seeks to understand the world in a holistic view.
Branches of geography
Physical geography
Physical geography (or physiogeography) focuses on geography as an
Earth science. It aims to understand the physical features of the Earth, its
lithosphere,
hydrosphere,
atmosphere,
pedosphere and global
flora and
fauna patterns (
biosphere). Physical Geography can be divided into the following broad categories:
:
Human geography
Human geography is a branch of geography that focuses on the study of patterns and processes that shape human interaction with various environments. It encompasses
human,
political,
cultural,
social, and
economic aspects. While the major focus of human geography is not the physical landscape of the Earth (see
physical geography), it is hardly possible to discuss human geography without referring to the physical landscape on which human activities are being played out, and
environmental geography is emerging as a link between the two. Human geography can be divided into many broad categories (for a comprehensive list see
human geography), such as:
:
Various approahes to the study of human geography have also arisen through time and include:
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Behavioral geography
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Geosophy
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Feminist geography
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Cultural theory
Environmental geography
Environmental geography is the branch of geography that describes the spatial aspects of interactions between humans and the natural world. It requires an understanding of the traditional aspects of physical and human geography, as well as the ways in which human societies conceptualize the environment.
Environmental geography has emerged as a bridge between human and physical geography as a result of the increasing specialisation of the two sub-fields. Furthermore, as human relationship with the environment has changed as a result of
globalisation and
technological change a new approach was needed to understand the changing and dynamic relationship. Examples of areas of research in environmental geography include
disaster management,
environmental management,
sustainability and
political ecology.
Geomatics
Digital Elevation Model (DEM)
is a branch of geography that has emerged since the quantitative revolution in geography in the mid 1950s. Geomatics involves the use of traditional spatial techniques used in cartography and topography and their application to computers. Geomatics has become a widespread field with many other disciplines using techniques such as GIS and remote sensing. Geomatics has also lead to a revitalisation of some geography departments especially in Northern America where the subject had a declining status during the 1950s.
Geomatics encompasses a large area of fields involved with
spatial analysis, such as
Cartography,
Geographic information systems (GIS),
Remote sensing and
GPS.
Regional geography
Main articles: Regional geography
Regional geography is a branch of geography that studies the regions of all sizes across the
Earth. It has a prevailing descriptive character. The main aim is to understand or define the uniqueness or character of a particular region which consists of natural as well as human elements. Attention is paid also to
regionalization which covers the proper techniques of space delimitation into regions.
Regional geography is also considered as a certain approach to study in geographical sciences (similar to
quantitative or
critical geographies, for more information see
History of geography).
Related fields
★
Urban planning,
regional planning and
spatial planning: use the science of geography to assist in determining how to develop (or not develop) the land to meet particular criteria, such as safety, beauty, economic opportunities, the preservation of the built or natural heritage, and so on. The planning of towns, cities and rural areas may be seen as applied geography.
★
Regional science: In the
1950s the regional science movement led by Walter Isard arose, to provide a more quantitative and analytical base to geographical questions, in contrast to the descriptive tendencies of traditional geography programs. Regional science comprises the body of knowledge in which the spatial dimension plays a fundamental role, such as
regional economics,
resource management,
location theory,
urban and
regional planning,
transport and
communication,
human geography, population distribution,
landscape ecology, and environmental quality.
★
Interplanetary Sciences: While the discipline of geography is normally concerned with the
Earth, the term can also be informally used to describe the study of other worlds, such as the
planets of the
solar system, and even beyond. The study of systems larger than the earth itself usually forms part of
Astronomy or
Cosmology. The study of other planets is usually called
planetology. Alternative terms such as
areology (the study of Mars) have been proposed but are not widely used.
Geographical techniques
As spatial interrelationships are key to this
synoptic science,
maps are a key tool. Classical
cartography has been joined by a more modern approach to geographical analysis, computer-based
geographic information systems (GIS).
In their study, geographers use four interrelated approaches:
★ Systematic - Groups geographical knowledge into categories that can be explored globally.
★ Regional - Examines systematic relationships between categories for a specific region or location on the planet.
★ Descriptive - Simply specifies the locations of features and populations.
★ Analytical - Asks ''why'' we find features and populations in a specific geographic area.
Cartography
Main articles: Cartography
Cartography studies the representation of the Earth's surface with abstract symbols (map making). Although other subdisciplines of geography rely on maps for presenting their analyses, the actual making of maps is abstract enough to be regarded separately. Cartography has grown from a collection of drafting techniques into an actual science.
Cartographers must learn
cognitive psychology and ergonomics to understand which symbols convey information about the Earth most effectively, and
behavioral psychology to induce the readers of their maps to act on the information. They must learn
geodesy and fairly advanced
mathematics to understand how the shape of the Earth affects the distortion of map symbols projected onto a flat surface for viewing. It can be said, without much controversy, that cartography is the seed from which the larger field of geography grew. Most geographers will cite a childhood fascination with maps as an early sign they would end up in the field.
Geographic information systems
Main articles: Geographic information system
Example of
GIS software (Idrisi, Clark Labs).
Geographic information systems (GIS) deal with the storage of information about the Earth for automatic retrieval by a computer, in an accurate manner appropriate to the information's purpose. In addition to all of the other subdisciplines of geography, GIS specialists must understand
computer science and
database systems. GIS has revolutionized the field of cartography; nearly all mapmaking is now done with the assistance of some form of GIS software. GIS also refers to the science of using GIS software and GIS techniques to represent, analyze and predict spatial relationships. In this context, GIS stands for Geographic Information Science.
Remote sensing
Main articles: Remote sensing
Remote sensing can be defined as the art and science of obtaining information about Earth features from measurements made at a distance. Remotely sensed data comes in many forms such as
satellite imagery,
aerial photography and data obtained from hand-held sensors. Geographers increasingly use remotely sensed data to obtain information about the Earth's land surface, ocean and atmosphere because it: a) supplies objective information at a variety of spatial scales (local to global), b) provides a synoptic view of the area of interest, c) allows access to distant and/or inaccessible sites, d) provides spectral information outside the visible portion of the electromagnetic spectrum, and e) facilitates studies of how features/areas change over time. Remotely sensed data may be analyzed either independently of, or in conjunction with, other digital data layers (e.g., in a Geographic Information System).
Geographic quantitative methods
Main articles: Geostatistics
Geostatistics deal with quantitative data analysis, specifically the application of statistical methodology to the exploration of geographic phenomena. Geostatistics is used extensively in a variety of fields including:
hydrology,
geology,
petroleum exploration, weather analysis,
urban planning,
logistics, and
epidemiology. The mathematical basis for geostatistics derives from
cluster analysis,
discriminant analysis, and
non-parametric statistical tests, and a variety of other subjects. Applications of geostatistics rely heavily on
Geographic Information Systems, particularly for the
interpolation (estimate) of unmeasured points. Geographers are making notable contributions to the method of quantitative techniques.
Geographic qualitative methods
Main articles: Ethnography
Geographic qualitative methods, or ethnographical; research techniques, are used by human geographers. In
cultural geography there is a tradition of employing
qualitative research techniques also used in
anthropology and
sociology.
Participant observation and in-depth interviews provide human geographers with qualitative data.
Selective list of notable geographers
Main articles: List of geographers
★
Eratosthenes (276BC - 194BC) - calculated the size of the Earth.
★
Ptolemy (c.90–c.168) - compiled Greek and Roman knowledge into the book
Geographia.
★
Gerardus Mercator (1512-1594) - innovative
cartographer produced the
mercator projection
★
Alexander Von Humboldt (1769–1859) - Considered Father of modern geography, published the Kosmos and founder of the sub-field biogeography.
★
Carl Ritter (1779-1859) - Considered Father of modern geography. Occupied the first chair of geography at Berlin University.
★
Arnold Henry Guyot (1807-1884) - noted the structure of glaciers and advanced understanding in glacier motion, especially in fast ice flow.
★
William Morris Davis (1850-1934) - father of American geography and developer of the cycle of erosion.
★
Paul Vidal de la Blache (1845-1918) - founder of the French school of geopolitics and wrote the principles of human geography.
★ Sir
Halford John Mackinder (1861-1947) - Co-founder of the
LSE,
Geographical Association of which he later became president,
Reading University and author of
The Geographical Pivot of History and
Heartland Theory.
★
Walter Christaller (1893-1969) - human geographer and inventor of Central Place Theory.
★
Yi-Fu Tuan (1930-) - Chinese-American scholar credited with starting
Humanistic Geography as a discipline.
★
David Harvey (1935-) - Marxist geographer and author of theories on spatial and urban geography.
★
Michael Frank Goodchild (1944-) - prominent GIS scholar and winner of the RGS founder's medal in 2003.
★
Nigel Thrift (1949-) - originator of non-representational theory.
References
1. Geography
2. Reprint of a 1964 article.
3. web.clas.ufl.edu/users/morgans/lecture_2.prn.pdf.
4. What is Environmental Geography, Anyway?
5. What is geography?
6. A Concise History of Solar and Stellar Physics, Jean-Louis and Monique Tassoul, , , Princeton University Press, 1920,
7. Hipparcos of Rhodes
8. Mapmaking and its History
9. Needham, Joseph (1986). Science and Civilization in China: Volume 3. Taipei: Caves Books, Ltd. Page 512.
10. http://www.islamicity.com/education/ihame/default.asp?Destination=/education/ihame/20.asp
11. Société de Géographie, Paris, France
12. About Us
13. http://www.rgo.org.ru/
14. http://www.amergeog.org/
15. http://www.nationalgeographic.com/index.html
See also
: ''Main lists:
List of basic geography topics and
List of geography topics''
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List of countries
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Geography reference tables
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Map
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Geographical renaming
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National Geographic Society (
United States)
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National Geographic Bee (United States)
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Royal Geographical Society (
United Kingdom)
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Royal Canadian Geographical Society (
Canada)
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Geographer
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List of geographers
External links
★ Teaching Geography
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Geography at About.com - comprehensive resource on the discipline
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Juicy Geography - ideas and resources for teachers
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GeoInteractive - shared resources for teachers
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The Geography-Site
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Geography Teaching Today - Curriculum development project
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Geography - Selected websites
★ Multimedia Geography Resources
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Google Earth: View the World from your Desktop
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Flash Animations on Geographical Themes
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Geography Movies free for download
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Images of Life on Earth
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World in the Balance (PBS)
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Hypergeo : Electronical Encyclopedia of Geography
★ Geographical Associations and Pressure Groups
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International Geographical Union
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National Geographic Online
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Royal Geographical Society
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Association of American Geographers
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Royal Canadian Geographical Society
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Canadian Association of Geographers
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Russian Geographical Society (Moscow Centre)
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International Geographical Union - Russian National Committee
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