Five Themes of Geography

GEOGRAPHY & CULTURE

Five Themes of Geography

Location—could be ‘absolute’ or ‘relative’

Interaction—focuses on people and their environment

Place—a region’s physical and human characteristics

Movement—how people, goods, ideas and technology move

Region—places with traits that distinguish them from other places

World Map

·  Know the continents, hemispheres, latitude and longitude lines

·  Be able to distinguish the important physical characteristics of each area

Culture

·  Culture—all of the things that make up a person’s way of life

·  Culture is inherited. Children learn important aspects of their culture from parents and grandparents through a process called transgenerational learning

·  Family structures can vary—the two major structures are extended and nuclear. You should also know the difference between a patriarchal and matriarchal family structure

·  Cultural behaviors (traits) are also typically enforced by the family as well as by society through laws and social pressures

·  Cultural Universals—aspects of culture that all societies share. This can include language, religion, art, clothing, forms of government and economic systems. We recognize 7 Cultural Universals.

Other Important Terms

·  Interdependence—dependence of countries on goods, resources and knowledge from other areas

·  Subculture-a group within a society with their own beliefs and values

·  Ethnocentrism—a belief that your own culture is superior to others

·  Diffusion—the movement of ideas/customs from one place to another

·  Values—attitudes or beliefs that a group holds to be important

Geography:

·  85% of Japan is covered by mountains

·  Lack of living space and arable land

·  no navigable rivers, get a lot of from the ocean

·  FEW natural resources

·  Many natural forces to deal with—tidal waves, earthquake

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Ancient Japanese History

·  Traditional Japanese religion is Shintoism—worshipping all living and non-living things

·  Lots of cultural diffusion from China and Korea—especially religion—Buddhism and Confucianism. Also borrowed language and culture.

Feudal Japan (1100-1900):

·  Feudal system—emperor (no real power),shogun (military commanders with the real power), daimyo, samurai, peasants, artisans and merchants

·  Tokugawa shogunate was the most powerful—centralizes power and creates peace for 300 years

·  Tokugawa isolated Japan from the outside world

Meiji Restoration (1868-1912)

·  Matthew Perry, an American officer, opens trade with Japan (Treaty of Kanagawa)

·  Meiji Restoration is an attempt by emperor to modernize and industrialize

·  Borrowed from the west, created a strong government, a strong military and many social reforms

·  Zaibatsu become very powerful

·  Japan is dependent on trade with the rest of the world to make money

Militaristic Japan (1930’s)

·  The Great Depression, unemployment, loss of world markets, nationalism lead to resentment of democracy and the rise of power by the military

·  Japan decides that only an aggressive foreign policy to imperialize other nations and create a Japanese empire is the only way to survive—annex Korea, attack Manchuria and defeat Russia in the Russo-Japanese War.

Japan after WWII (post-1945)

·  Defeat in WWII shows Japan that a militaristic approach is not a good one

·  Japan is helped by the U.S. and establish democracy and economic reforms

·  Japanese Economic Miracle

·  Adapts the latest technology, well-educated and skilled workers, money to invest and strict tariffs to limit foreign competition

·  Japan has a favorable balance of trade—it exports more than it imports; this causes a lot of anger and frustration by foreign companies wanting to sell their goods in Japan

·  Problems in the future—rapid urbanization, limited living space, high cost of living, birth rate slowing causing a shortage of workers.

Ancient China

·  Civilizations grew up along the Huang He (Yellow) River

·  Believed they were the Middle Kingdom—center of the Earth

·  Government run by ruling families called dynasties

Classical China

·  Most isolated by geographic barriers

·  Chinese rulers had a right to rule called the Mandate of Heaven

·  Rise and fall of dynasties explained by the Dynastic cycle

·  Chinese dynasties created strong gov’ts, economies and society, much of it based on the ideas of Confucius

·  Important advances in science and tech—paper, wheelbarrow, rudder, acupuncture, anesthesia, herbal remedies, as well as art—ivory, jade, ceramics and silk

·  Silk Road is the one route of contact with the west

·  Confucianism and Taoism are the two most important philosophies

·  Tang and Song dynasties are the two most successful—expand trade, calligraphy

·  Ming dynasty starts to isolate China—leads to an ethnocentric view of the world

Imperialism in China (1840’s…)

·  West wants to trade with China but China has no interest in this

·  Isolation means that China missed out on advances in the west, so the west has superior military technology to force China to open its ports

·  British fight China in Opium War, which forces China into unfair treaties and let the western powers carve out spheres of influence.

·  Taiping Rebellion—peasants revolt against Chinese government—new gov’t creates many reforms but west puts old governments back in power

·  Boxer Rebellion—final push to get rid of the west

China Struggles for a New Government (1900s…)

·  Dr. Sun Yat-Sen forms the Kuomintang (Nationalist Party) while Mao Zedong helps to form the communist party

·  After Sun Yat-Sen dies, Chiang Kai-Shek takes over the Kuomintang party—he hates communists—civil war begins between the two groups

·  Mao Zedong becomes leader of the communists and flees the Nationalists in the Long March—wins the support of the peasants by the communists behavior

Communist China (1930’s-present)

·  Great Leap Forward—Mao’s attempt to increase industrial/agricultural output

·  Put people into communes—whole effort was a failure

·  Cultural Revolution—to renew loyalty to Mao by ridding China of anything western or dynastic China using Red Guards

·  Deng Xiaoping takes over when Mao dies in 1976 and brings more economic freedom with the Four Modernizations—farming, industry, science/tech, and defense. Also introduces Special Economic Zones and the Responsibility System.

·  Failure to create political reforms led to demonstrations like Tiananmen Square

·  China today has had difficulty in relations with the U.S. because of human rights violations and communism, but their large market, workforce and staggering growth have made them an economic force to be reckoned with.

LATIN AMERICA

Ancient Civilizations

·  Maya flourished between 300-900. Profited with agriculture, trade of goods and their technology (raised-field farming, packed roads)

·  Achievements include palaces and pyramids, a 365 day calendar, number system and hieroglyphic system

·  Inca (Andes Mts.) and Aztecs (Mexico) also flourished in the Americas prior to the arrival of European conquistadors.

Colonial Latin America

·  Spain & Portugal led the race to colonize Latin America after Columbus and later expeditions by Pizzaro, Cortez and others opened up relations

·  Spain was able to conquer Latin America because of their superior military

·  Disease killed off millions of Native Americans who were never exposed to European diseases

·  Treaty of Tordesillas—divides the New World between Spain and Portugal

·  Spanish set up plantations but needed more labor to replace the Native Americans and imported slaves from Africa—had a devastating effect on Africa

·  Social Structure—peninsulares, creoles, mestizos and mulattoes—power is based on amount of Spanish blood you have

·  Government—Spain had strict control over its colonies

·  Religions—Catholic church is the most powerful influence

·  Encomienda System—Spanish had permission to demand land/tribute from natives

·  Mercantilism—Spain exports more than it imports—takes raw materials from colonies and forces them to buy Spanish-made products only.

·  Forced Latin America to become dependent on the production of single cash-crops in order to make money.

·  Portugal rules over Brazil

Latin American Independence

·  Inspired by the Enlightenment thinkers and the revolutions in N. America and France, many Latin American countries worked for their own independence—famous liberators are Simon Bolivar, Toussaint L’Overture, Bartolome de las Casas and Padre Hidalgo.

·  After independence, many nations saw periods of unrest and the rise of military dictatorships.

Latin America Today

·  Overdependence on one crop has led to countries trying to diversify their agriculture. Many still rely on cash crops

·  Debt crisis—many countries have to borrow money to try and build industry. Recession has forced these countries to use their borrowed money to pay off interest on other loans rather than building industry

·  Drug Trade—poor farmers rely on this cash crop for survival. LA govt’s unable/unwilling to stop it. Huge N. American demand feeds the industry,

·  In an effort to diversify industry, the rainforest is being cleared for grazing land. This had led to many protests from the rest of the world.

·  Issues today—overpopulation, reliance on one cash-crop, large debts, large gaps between rich and poor, urbanization/overcrowding, deforestation.

·  OAS—Organization of American states is a mini-UN to protect one another

·  NAFTA—North American Free Trade Agreement helped stimulate Mexico’s growth and keep a balance of trade between Mexico, USA and Canada.

General Info.

·  India has a large, very diverse population

·  Hinduism is the dominant religion and there is conflict between Hindus and Muslims

·  Monsoons are important for survival

Early Indian Civilizations

·  Indus Valley River civilization—known for its well constructed grid-pattern cities like Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro

·  Contributions include Sanskrit and many Buddhist shrines and temples. Gupta India—strong Hindu influence, caste system, Arabic numbers, medical advances and literature recorded in Sanskrit.

The Crown Jewel of the British Empire

·  India became a colony of Great Britain in the 1700s. Pros—Britain brought technology, transportation/communication systems, hospitals and schools to India.

Cons—Indian culture/people are seen as inferior, forced to buy British goods

·  Nationalism in India—Indian National Congress wants self-rule

·  Mohandas Gandhi uses civil disobedience, passive resistance to win support (Great Salt March, boycotts).

·  Tensions rise in India (Sepoy Mutiny and Amritsar) and violence occurs.

·  India achieves independence in 1947. Becomes a parliamentary democracy modeled after Great Britain. Immediate conflict between Hindu majority & Muslim minority.

Problems Faced in Independent India

·  Industrial Growth--Mixed economy and some westernization—economic growth is hindered by a lack of natural resources.

·  Social Equality-Hindu caste system very much alive in more isolated rural areas, less education for women/poor, ethnic and religious prejudice

·  Food Production-high cost of farm equipment, rapid population growth, Green Revolution

·  Religious Separatism-After independence, Muslim minority is suspicious of Hindu majority. Violence between groups leads to creation of Pakistan—a Muslim state. Still tensions between these groups and other religious groups (Sikhs).

India Today

·  Still a lot of conflict between Muslims, Hindus and Sikhs

·  India struggling with modernization vs. tradition—dealing with the caste system and Indian cultural identity as western culture moves in

·  Women struggling for equal rights—many moving to cities to escape the traditional rural areas

·  Diversity in language, religion, etc makes it hard to unify

·  Struggled with Pakistan, who wants to unite with Muslims—both recently tested nuclear weapons. Continued conflict over the area of Kashmir.

·  Demand for natural resources increasing as populations booms.

·  Indian economy growing rapidly; many people in India are acquiring jobs from western countries, leading to tension regarding job outsourcing.

·  Human rights groups working to better the lives of lower castes and the poor.

Geography

·  A continent of smooth coastlines and few natural harbors

·  Lack of geographic barriers near coast made it easy for slave traders to invade

·  Many natural resources and a variety of climates has created diverse cultures, especially between Saharan and Sub-Saharan Africa

·  Culture has deep roots in traditional society—village governments, importance of family and varied religious beliefs

Ancient African Kingdoms

·  Ghana, Mali and Songhai—traded gold for salt

·  Mansa Musa (Mali)—famous for his conversion to Islam and pilgrimage to Mecca. Borrowed from the Muslims and brought back famous scholars, texts to create his own capital city of Timbuktu.

·  Geography encouraged the rise of many powerful kingdoms, all of whom made their money through trade

Slave Trade

·  In an effort to resupply the slave population in the America’s, European countries invaded Africa for slaves

·  Slaves traveled the Middle Passage to the Americas—the slave trade took between 12 and 20 million Africans and had a devastating effect on kingdoms and villages.

Imperialism

·  Scramble for Africa—Europe’s leaders meet at the Berlin Conference and divide up Africa amongst themselves

·  White Man’s Burden—originally a Rudyard Kipling poem, it came to represent the philosophy behind the justification of imperialism in Africa

Colonialism and Independence

·  Through civil wars, boycotts and other means, African nations begin to gain their independence under leaders (Jomo Kenyatta, Mobutu Sese Seko, Kwame Nkrumah)

·  African nationalism (pan-Africanism) takes shape under Nelson Mandela and the African National Congress

South Africa/Apartheid

·  While other nations gained independence, South Africa remained under apartheid

·  Conditions—black Africans lived in homelands, separate facilities, no interracial marriage, blacks forced to carry papers, discrimination, and denial of education.

·  The ANC and Nelson Mandela worked to end apartheid, Mandela jailed for 27 years.

·  Economic sanctions and disapproval from the world (S. Africa banned from Olympics) pressured government under F.W. de Klerk to change. Ended apartheid, freed Mandela, who became president in the first free elections in 1994.

Issues Today

·  Rwanda—site of genocide in mid-1990’s. Two-thirds of the Tutsi tribe was slaughtered by the Hutus in a government sponsored genocide campaign.

·  Legacy of imperialism—ethnic conflict, civil wars, struggling economies

·  AIDS epidemic—highest % of HIV positive people in the world