Geography Vocabulary

1. Geography Vocabulary

2. Location • Answers the question, “Where is it?” by describing position of the earth’s surface.

3. Absolute Location • Gives the exact location of a position, such as an address or coordinate

4. Relative Location • Gives a position of one place by referring to another place, such as north of Scranton

5. Place • Identifies the natural and human features that make one place different from every other place, such as the desert or rain forest.

6. Human-Environment Interaction • Focuses on the relationship between people and the environment

7. Movement • Answers the question, “How do people, goods, and ideas move from place to place?

8. Regions • Areas that share at least one common feature, such as the tropical climate region or the mid-Atlantic region

9. Globe • A round, scale model of the earth

10. Parallels of Latitude • Imaginary horizontal lines, running east to west, that measure the distance north and south of the Equator

11. Meridians of Longitude • Imaginary vertical lines, running north to south, that measure the distance east and west of the Prime Meridian

12. Same-Shape Maps • Map projections that accurately show the shapes of landmasses, such as the Mercator projection

13. Equal-area Maps • Map projections that show the correct size of landmasses

14. Robinson maps • A compromise between the Mercator and equal-area projections that gives a useful overall picture of the world

15. Compass Rose • A symbol resembling a star which shows the cardinal or main directions: north, south, east, and west and sometimes the intermediate directions: northeast, northwest, southeast, and southwest.

16. Key • A box which shows the symbols and colors used on a map and what each one means, sometimes called a legend.

17. Scale Bar • A measuring tool which helps you find the actual distances between points shown on a map, usually in both miles and kilometers. • Sometimes called a distance scale.

18. Political Map • A map which shows political borders: continents, countries or divisions within countries, such as states or provinces.

20. Physical Map • A map which represents what a region looks like by showing its major physical features, such as hills and plains.

22. Migration • The act or process of people moving from one place to another with the intent of staying there.

23. Subsistence Farming • The production of food mainly used by the farmer’s own family.