Geography Overview and Regions

Geography Overview

• Geography is the study of Earth and how it's shaped by physical and human forces.
• Eratosthenes, a Greek scholar, is considered the "Father of Geography" for using the term for the first time.
• Geography is divided into physical and human geography.
• Physical geography examines Earth's natural features and processes.
• Human geography (anthropogeography) focuses on how human cultures and societies impact the Earth.
• Geography's history dates back to 1500 B.C., but the term "geography" emerged around 200 B.C.

Geographic Regions

• Physical boundaries are natural features, and political boundaries are human-made.
• There are five macrogeographic regions: Oceania, The Americas, Africa, Asia, and Europe. These regions encompass subregions, which can further be divided into states and territories.

Geographic Tools and Concepts

• Geography is both a natural and social science.
• Cartography (mapmaking) is an ancient practice, evolving from clay tablets to modern tools.
• The Mercator projection is a common map projection.
• GPS (Global Positioning System) uses satellites for precise location determination.
• GIS (Geographic Information System) uses GPS data and other information to create interactive maps.

Defining Geographic Regions

• Mapmakers (cartographers) use different types of regions when representing the world.
• Types of regions include administrative, formal, functional, and vernacular regions.
• The seven continents are North America, South America, Eurasia, Africa, Australia, Oceania, and Antarctica. (Eurasia is a combination of Europe and Asia).
• Only North and South America are in the Western Hemisphere. The remaining continents are in the Eastern Hemisphere.
• Antarctica has no permanent human civilizations.
• Africa's regions are often defined by the Sahara Desert.

Locating Places on a Map

• Locating places involves progressively narrowing down locations from continents to countries, states/counties, and ultimately specific places.
• Continents, countries, states/counties, and cities are fundamental geographic units.