Introduction and Key Terms of Cultural Geography

1. Definition of Cultural Geography Fundamental Concepts Introduction and Key Terms of Cultural Geography Vermeer’s The Geographer. Holland, 1669

2. What is CULTURE? What are its elements? How is it transferred? How does it affect the landscapes of the world?

3. What is CULTURE? • Culture is learned behavior that is passed on by imitation, instruction, and example. • Culture is almost entirely relative. Proper behavior and traditions shift from culture to culture. • U.S. current problems: 1) little shared culture2) no one is teaching culture • For example: sex education - Home? School? • Note: experiencing another culture is useful for gaining perspective on your own. • Candidate for harshest punishment in history? Banishment in so-called “primitive” cultures.

4. Geographic Importance of Culture • Geographers study culture because it leaves dramatic imprints on the earth, both physical and cultural. • Language: a crystal ball into culture. • Religion: strongest determinant of ethics. • Nationalism and Borders • Material Culture: tools, clothes, toys, etc. • Architecture: Suburban garages vs. earlier porches

5. Spatial DistributionDefinition: the location and arrangement of a phenomenon across space. • Includes: • Density: the frequency with which something occurs in a given area. • Concentration: the extent to which it is focused in clusters or, alternately, evenly dispersed across space. • Pattern: a geometric or regular arrangement of the phenomenon across space.

6. Describing Distributions

7. Rheris Valley, Atlas Mountains, Morocco.Photo by Yann Arthus-Bertrand.

8. Phoenix, Arizona

9. Collegeville, Pennsylvania

10. Hong Kong, China

11. San Francisco, California

12. Farm Fields near Des Moines, Iowa

13. Fields near Pullman, WashingtonPhoto by Yann Arthus-Bertrand

14. Marina Del Rey, Los Angeles, California

15. Napa, California

16. Key Concepts • REGION - an area that shares common characteristics • Formal - whole area shares essential uniformity across the space (i.e., City of Glendale) • Functional – the region is defined by some activity or function or process (i.e. cell phone coverage, English speaking countries, etc.) • Vernacular – common perception of cultural identity (i.e.,“Deep South”)

17. Formal Regions- whole area shares essential uniformity across the space.

18. Functional Regions - defined by a node of activity and distance decay from center (i.e. cell phone coverage)

19. Functional Region - defined by a node of activity and distance decay from center (i.e. cell phone coverage) What is the function in this example? What acts as the node of functionality?

20. Vernacular Regions

21. Vernacular Regions – areas that include common perception of cultural identity (“Deep South”)

22. Spatial Analysis • Geographers search for patterns in the distribution and movement of human activities and environmental processes. Where do we find hunger? Where did crime occur this week? Where is petroleum produced?

24. Spatial Analysis: Crime Mapping Click on the Map!

25. Diffusion • Relocation • Hierarchical • Contagious • Stimulus

26. Diffusion • Relocation • Hierarchical • Contagious • Stimulus

28. Diffusion • Relocation • Hierarchical • Contagious • Stimulus

29. Tobler’s 1st Law of Geography • All things are related. However, all other things being equal, those things that are closest together are more related. • Related Concepts: • Distance Decay • Friction of Distance

31. Space • Latitude and Longitude - a reference system designed to provide “absolute” location (as opposed to relative locations). • Parallels of Latitude • Meridians of Longitude • Glendale College is located at 34 10 03 N 118 13 41 W

33. Place and Sense of Place • Every place is unique. Imagine where you lived as a child. What made that special? • Sensory • Architecture • Symbolic • Humanistic Geography - values the individual perspective. • Place and Placelessness (Relph, 1978)

34. What kinds of cultural values are reflected in each of these American houses? Gated community?

35. What kinds of cultural values are reflected in this landscape?

36. The Cultural Landscape • The result of the natural environment and all of the changes to it as a result of a particular culture. (Carl Sauer) • Environmental Determinism: environment is primary determinant of culture. • Possibilism: humans are primary determinant of culture.

38. N.Y.C. Environmentally Determined?

39. What about Bali, Indonesia?

40. Where are we? What values are reflected in each? What relation to physical environment?

41. Timber House, Switzerland Mosque in Istanbul, Turkey Yurt on Mongolian Steppe Suburban Home, Chicago

42. Historically tied to Military Functions: Role in Colonization Role in Imperialism Role in Cold War Historically Ethnocentric Historically Patriarchal Geography and Politics • Foreign - 4) Situated in an abnormal or improper place. 5) Not natural: alien. • The American Heritage Dictionary

43. Core (Devoloped Countries ) U.S., Europe, Japan, Australia Wealthy Powerful Control Media and Finance Technologically advanced Periphery (Less Developed Countries) Poor Dependent upon Core countries for: Education Technology Media Military Equipment Financing Key Concepts:Core-Periphery

44. Key Concepts:Core-Periphery

45. 1994 U.S. StatsPopulation: 292 millionPopulation density: 29 people per sq. km.Total fertility rate: 2.0 children per womanPopulation doubling time: 116 yearsPercentage urban/rural: 78% urban, 22% ruralPer capita energy use: 8,148 kg. oil equivalentInfant mortality: 6.7 deaths per 1,000 birthsLife expectancy: 74 (male), 80 (female)Adult illiteracy: 3% (male), 3% (female)Internet users: 165 million All of the possessions of a statistically avearge U.S. family. Photograph by Peter Menzel.

46. 1994 India StatsPopulation: 1.0 billionPopulation density: 318 people per sq. km.Total fertility rate: 3.0 children per womanPopulation doubling time: 36 yearsPercentage urban/rural: 28% urban, 72% ruralPer capita energy use: 494 kg. oil equivalentInfant mortality: 66 deaths per 1,000 birthsLife expectancy: 62 (male), 64 (female)Adult illiteracy: 32% (male), 55% (female)Internet users: 7 million All of the possessions of a statistically average Indian family. Photograph by Peter Menzel.

47. 1994 Japan StatsPopulation: 128 millionPopulation density: 336 people per sq. km.Total fertility rate: 1.3 children per womanPopulation doubling time: 289 yearsPercentage urban/rural: 79% urban, 21% ruralPer capita energy use: 4,316 kg. oil equivalentInfant mortality: 3 deaths per 1,000 birthsLife expectancy: 78 (male), 85 (female)Adult illiteracy: 1% (male), 1% (female)Internet users: 56 million All of the possessions of a statistically average Japanese family. Photograph by Peter Menzel.

48. 1994 Mali StatsPopulation: 12 millionPopulation density: 9.1 people per sq. km.Total fertility rate: 7.0 children per womanPopulation doubling time: 23 yearsPercentage urban/rural: 26% urban, 64% ruralPer capita energy use: 22 kg. oil equivalentInfant mortality: 118.7 deaths per 1,000 birthsLife expectancy: 48 (male), 49 (female)Adult illiteracy: 64% (male), 84% (female)Internet users: 30,000 All of the possessions of a statistically average Malian family. Photograph by Peter Menzel.

49. Globalization • The increasing interconnectedness of different parts of the world through common processes of economic, political, and cultural change. The economic, cultural, and environmental effects of globalization are highly contested. Panama, 1997

50. End of Slides Steamship Routes, Circa 1900