The Five Themes of GeographyThe Five Themes of GeographyWhat is Geography

What are the five themesHow are the five themes used

How will I use this in class

What is Geography?What is Geography?

• Comes from the Greek word “geographia”—meaning “to describe the earth”

• Geographers view the world by looking at how space is used on earth and the interactions that take place

• Geography is the study of the distribution and interaction of physical and human features on the earth

The Five Themes of GeographyThe Five Themes of Geography

• Tools used in Geography—

Maps, Charts, Graphs, tables, observations and the five themes

• The themes organize information to make it easier to study—geography is very broad

Theme: LocationTheme: Location

• Where is it?

• Location can be described either relatively or absolutely

Absolute LocationAbsolute Location• The exact location of

a place on the globe or map

• To find exact location you use the grid system on the globe or map

• The grid system is made up of Longitude and Latitude lines

Relative LocationRelative Location

• Describing location of one place in terms or relation to another place

• McDonalds is one block down from the Kroger

• Cairo, Egypt is located near the mouth of the Nile River in Africa

• For relative location to be useful, you must already have some grasp of where certain things are located.

Theme: PlaceTheme: Place

• What is it like?

• Can be described physically or culturally

• Physically– mountains, rivers, lakes, climate, vegetation

• Culturally– religion, population, language, ethnic background

Theme: RegionTheme: Region

• How are areas similar or different?

• A region is an area of earth’s surface with similar characteristics—physical, cultural, economic, or political

• There are Three types of regions

1. Formal

2. Functional

3. Perceptual

Formal RegionsFormal Regions

• Defined by a limited number of related characteristics

• Example: The Sahel region in Africa is a desert area characterized by specific climate, vegetation, and land use patterns

• Political regions– continents, countries, or states

• Economic regions—The Breadbasket of the U.S.

• Cultural regions– The Middle East

Functional RegionsFunctional Regions

• Two or more places connected by interactions or connections usually through movement.

• Example: a city and its suburbs connected by highways, railroads, subways, and bus lines

Perceptual RegionsPerceptual Regions• A place in which people perceive, or see, the

characteristics of the region in the same way

Example: The South

Theme: Human-Environment Interaction

Theme: Human-Environment Interaction

• How do people relate to the physical world?

• Adapting- Humans changing themselves to meet the surrounding environment

Example: using air conditioning in a hot climate

• Altering– Humans changing the environment to meet their personal needs

Example: Building a dam to control flooding or cutting down trees to create farm land

Theme: MovementTheme: Movement

• How do people, ideas, and products move from one location to another?

• Geographers analyze movement by looking at three types of distance: linear distance, time distance, and psychological distance

Theme: MovementTheme: Movement

• Linear Distance: how far a person, idea, or product moves across the earth

Example: geographers look at how physical geography can prevent linear movement (mountains, oceans)

• Time Distance: amount of time it takes for a person, idea, or product to reach a place

Example: how long did it take for Christianity to spread, trade of products

Theme: MovementTheme: Movement

• Psychological Distance: the way people view distance. The more familiar you are with a place the closer it seems to be to you.