How do geographers think
geographically?
An overview of key
concepts and vocabulary

Themes in geography:
 Human Environmental Interactions
 Location
 Movement
 Place
 Region

Human/Environmental Interaction
 The interactions
between human social
and economic systems
and the earth’s
ecosystem.

Location: absolute
 The definitive location
of a place using a
recognized coordinate
system, such as
latitude and longitude.

Location: relative
 The location of one place
relative to another place,
in terms of:
 Direction
 Distance
 Landmarks
 Relationships
 Time

Movement
 The flow of people,
goods, and ideas from
one place to another
through diffusion:

Diffusion: expansion
 The outward movement from
a hearth (point of origin)
through either:
 Hierarchical diffusion
 Contagious diffusion
 Stimulus diffusion

Diffusion: relocation
 The permanent
physical relocation of
people from one
location to another.

Place
 The human and/or physical
characteristics that give meaning and
character to a place (a sense of place)
that distinguishes them from other
places on earth.

Human Characteristics
 Cultural landscape
 Languages
 Religions
 Folk or Pop culture
 Ethnic groups

Physical Characteristics
Arid
 Landforms (terrain)
 Mountains Snowy River
Rivers, lakes, seas
Cold

 Forests Lake Forest
 Weather
 Climate