GEOG101 Study Guide

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Study Guide Structure

In this study guide, the sections in each unit (1a., 1b., etc.) are the learning outcomes of that unit. 

Beneath each learning outcome are:

• questions for you to answer independently;
• a brief summary of the learning outcome topic; and
• and resources related to the learning outcome. 

At the end of each unit, there is also a list of suggested vocabulary words.

 

How to Use this Study Guide

1. Review the entire course by reading the learning outcome summaries and suggested resources.
2. Test your understanding of the course information by answering questions related to each unit learning outcome and defining and memorizing the vocabulary words at the end of each unit.

By clicking on the gear button on the top right of the screen, you can print the study guide. Then you can make notes, highlight, and underline as you work.

Through reviewing and completing the study guide, you should gain a deeper understanding of each learning outcome in the course and be better prepared for the final exam!

Unit 1: Introduction to Geography

1a. Identify how the spatial perspective distinguishes geography from other disciplines

• How would you define geography as a discipline?
• What is the spatial perspective?
• Explain the difference between physical and human geography.

Originating from the Greek words meaning writing about the earth, geography uses a spatial perspective to understand the problems and phenomena of the world. In other words, geographers seek to understand "where" a phenomenon occurs (in space) and "why" it occurs at that place. This perspective distinguishes geography from history (which considers time or "when" and "why" things happened) and sociology (which systematically examines the structures of society).
 
We broadly define a spatial perspective as understanding "where" (in space) a phenomenon occurs and "why" it occurs at that place. Geographers use several techniques to achieve this understanding. For example, one way is to determine a position's absolute and relative location. Determining something's relative location involves gauging where it is with respect to something else. The concept of core and periphery is a common way to accomplish this.
 
Core areas are typically more-developed, urban, and industrialized; the periphery is generally less developed, made up of rural hinterland. Identifying regions as core and periphery can tell us a lot about their economic and political relationships, which are often one-sided. We determine the absolute location of an object by measuring its location in terms of latitude and longitude on a grid superimposed on the Earth. Since latitude and longitude are angular measurements, we measure them in degrees.
 
Geographers measure latitude north and south from the Equator (0°). The Earth's circumference is the longest at the Equator (the Earth is not a perfect sphere), so it is a natural starting point. Determining longitude east and west is more challenging than latitude since longitude does not have an obvious starting line. Geographers divide Earth into 360° of longitude. Most countries recognize Greenwich, England, as the starting line, 0°, which we call the Prime Meridian. We measure longitude to 180° east and west of the Prime Meridian, which is the International Date Line (IDL).
 
There are two major approaches to geography. Physical geography looks at the physical landscape of the world. Their focus is on the non-human aspects, such as landforms and the climate. Human geography, by contrast, examines the relationship between humans and the natural features of the Earth's surface. For example, they use maps to depict the cultural landscape or the terrain features of the Earth that humans have created or altered to establish trade routes, build cities, run factories, or farm different types of crops.
 
For a concise introduction to geography, see Introduction to Geography and the Five Themes, The Spatial Perspective, Subdisciplines of Human and Physical Geography, Concepts of Human Geography, and The World's Regions.

1b. Describe the importance and limitations of maps

• What are the main features of maps?
• What roles do maps play in geography?
• What are some of the problems associated with creating maps?

Maps are two-dimensional (that is, flat) representations of all or part of the Earth. Maps do not always include a scale or a coordinate system, such as latitude and longitude. We can use techniques of either relative or absolute location on a map. Many maps include a legend to help interpret the symbols on the map. There may also be a directional indicator, such as a compass rose.
 
These main features of maps help us to (1) locate a place that is represented on the map, (2) interpret what we see on the map, (3) measure distances on the map, and (4) identify the sources of the data used to make the map. Maps are a fundamental part of the study of geography.
 
However, it is important to remember that maps are spatial abstractions of the environment – they are graphic representations of landforms and terrain and the relationships between them. We use them to navigate, explore, communicate information, solve problems, and organize our ideas. Maps are an efficient way to share data that occurs in two- and three-dimensional space.
 
We call the study of maps cartography. Cartography includes any activity that focuses on the presentation and use of maps, such as teaching map use skills, studying the history of cartography, maintaining map collections, manipulating data for mapping, and designing and preparing maps.
 
There are two major problems associated with creating maps: determining how to project the roughly spherical Earth onto a two-dimensional map and fitting the Earth onto a map that is a size we can use.
 
First, expect to see some distortion when map makers convert the spherical Earth to a flat map. A map projection represents the Earth's surface on a two-dimensional flat plane, which always distorts at least one of the four properties: area, direction, distance, or shape. Note that one map may preserve its depiction of three of these four properties, but it may significantly distort the final aspect. Another map might be able to minimize the overall distortion by only distorting each property by a small amount.
 
Secondly, cartographers may reduce the actual size of a location when they represent the Earth to create a map that is of a manageable size. The scale of a map refers to the ratio of the distance between two locations on a map and the corresponding distance between the same two locations on Earth's surface. For example, depending on the terms, a 1:1000 scale map means that one centimeter on the map equals 1,000 meters or one kilometer on the Earth's surface. The concept of scale can be confusing. Remember that scale is a ratio, not the actual size of the map.
 
To review, see Introduction to Using Maps, Thematic Maps, and The Spatial Perspective.

1c. Name and explain examples of technologies geographers use

• What is geospatial technology? Can you give two examples?
• Define geographic information systems (GIS) as a geospatial technology.
• What kinds of information are used in GIS?

Geographers use many tools to study places and their relationships with each other. One approach is to use remotely sensed imagery of the Earth captured by satellites, aircraft, and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs or drones). These images can provide information about land use and cover to help us mitigate hazards. Much of this imagery was captured over time, which allows geographers to track changes in the landscape. Another source of information is the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) which provides detailed absolute location information for navigation.
 
Geographic Information Systems (GIS) integrate hardware, software, and data to capture, manage, analyze, and display geographically referenced information. Geographers use geographic information systems (GIS) to compile data, including remotely sensed imagery and GNSS locations, to study various phenomena. Maps are the most common mode of analysis and presentation, giving GIS a spatial perspective distinct from other modes of information science.
 
To review, see A Street Overlay, A GIS User Interface, An Ever-Evolving Map of Everything on Earth, Comparing Satellite Navigation Orbits, and Maps Show Us Who We Are, Not Just Where We Are.

1d. Assess the value of a regional approach to understanding the world

• What is the purpose of the regional approach in geography?
• What are the different types of regions used in geography?

Geographers divide the world in different ways to make it less complex. They call these different divisions realms. Each realm or region has one or more features in common. Vernacular regions are based on popular ideas about a particular area and give us ideas about how people see the world. For example, some Americans divide the United States into regions that do not have clear boundaries, such as the Midwest, Northeast, or South. Formal regions, on the other hand, have boundaries that are not open to debate. For example, France is a formal region because it is a country with internationally-recognized boundaries. Functional regions coincide with a particular attribute, function, or service.
 
To review, see Concepts of Human Geography, The Big Picture on Globalization, and The End of Globalization and the Beginning of Something New.

1e. Identify the Earth's physical components that contribute to human-defined regions

• What are two major physical components that have shaped human activity and human-defined regions?

Through the two facets of geography, physical and human geography, we know that the physical environment affects human activity, and human activity affects the physical environment.
 
When looking at the Earth's physical landscape, it becomes clear that several components play a major role in shaping human activity over time, including the recognition of various vernacular, formal and functional regions.
 
Climate is one of the most important predictors of human activity. Climate refers to long-term weather patterns that are affected by a location's latitude, terrain, altitude, and nearby water bodies. Many geographers use the Köppen climate classification system to name the functional regions we find worldwide based on major climatic zones.
 
Like national boundaries and vernacular regions, landforms, such as rivers, mountains, and seas, present another major component of the physical environment that shapes formal regions. These landforms result from the movement of tectonic plates, the rigid underground plates that float on top of a bed of molten magma in the center of the Earth and lie underneath these landforms.
 
 

Unit 1 Vocabulary

• absolute location
• cartography
• core area
• cultural landscape
• distortion
• Equator
• formal region
• functional region
• Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
• geography
• Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS)
• human geography
• International Date Line
• Köppen climate classification
• latitude
• longitude
• map
• periphery
• physical geography
• Prime Meridian
• realm
• relative location
• remotely sensed imagery
• scale
• spatial perspective
• tectonic plate
• vernacular region

Unit 2: Europe

2a. Describe Europe's physical geography, including the relative and absolute advantages of its location

• Why do parts of Europe exhibit a moderate climate despite its location as a northern continent?
• How have Europe's rivers and mountain ranges shaped the cultural and economic landscape?
• What factors have influenced the location of Europe's primary agricultural operations?
• Why has Europe's geography yielded so much biodiversity, and how has its population contributed to its decline?
  

Europe is a relatively small world region. However, its physical geography includes areas that are below sea level (the Zuider Zee in the Northern Lowlands), to mountains such as Mont Blanc in the High Alps. Most of Europe's agricultural activity takes place in the Northern Lowlands. The Alpine Region has been a barrier to movement and contributes to the temperate Type C climate of the Mediterranean region.
 
The Atlantic Ocean, and the Gulf Stream, in particular, make these temperate regions of Europe possible. However, the climate becomes less temperate the farther you travel from the coastline. Consequently, the winters in Warsaw are much colder than in Amsterdam, although they are both at about 52° N.
 
Although the Rhine and the Danube have separated places, they have also connected them. Europe has long depended on these rivers for its trade routes. Europe also depends on the natural resources and raw materials its physical geography provides. However, retrieving and using these materials has reduced the biodiversity in Europe and damaged the environment. For example, burning fossil fuels has created air pollution and acid rain, which has damaged forests like the Black Forest in southwest Germany.
 
To review, see European Physical Geography and Boundaries, The Physical Geography of Europe, and Map of Four Main Landforms of Europe.
 

2b. Relate Europe's part in the Age of Exploration to its colonial legacy

• What was the Age of Exploration?
• Why were Europeans motivated to colonize other parts of the world?
• What evidence remains for European colonialism in the United States, Canada, and India?
  

Europe's Age of Exploration began in the 1400s and lasted through the 1600s. It marked a significant increase in trade activity and colonialism. European colonialism affected the world in dramatic ways. Ocean access facilitated the ability of its population to colonize other parts of the world.
 
It is no coincidence that small European countries, including Belgium, France, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain, were the major colonial powers. Their access to the ocean allowed them to compensate for their small land area by looking elsewhere for natural resources. For example, the Belgians colonized the Belgian Congo to retrieve its rubber to manufacture tires, while the Portuguese sought mineral resources in Brazil.
 
French and British colonialism explains why we still see English-speaking and French-speaking regions in Canada. The French arrived in the 1500s and established permanent settlements along the St. Lawrence River in today's province of Quebec. French influence was so large in this region that they called it New France. The British eventually gained control of New France after the Treaty of Paris and created the British colony called Quebec. However, the British agreed to maintain the law of France, French as a second language, the Catholic religion, and the French agricultural system when it signed the Quebec Act to placate the French population.
 
In Africa and India, evidence of European colonialism often appears in the form of arbitrary political boundaries that often ignore the ethnic and religious composition of local populations. European colonialism also impacted the national languages spoken in these regions – the languages of Europe – English, French, and Portuguese – are now dominant in these areas.
 
To review, see Map of Colonial Africa and Origins of the Industrial Revolution.
 

2c.  Summarize factors that contributed to the Agrarian and Industrial Revolutions in Europe

• What cultural and natural factors led to the Agrarian Revolution and the Industrial Revolution in Europe?
  

The Romans and Vikings connected Europe to the outside world via its infrastructure and navigation. This new connection to the outside world helped spur Europe's Agrarian Revolution, particularly in Britain, where agricultural production increased at a rapid rate. Europe's network of rivers, forests, minerals, and other natural resources, helped fuel the Industrial Revolution. This European exchange of goods fostered the creation of a new cultural middle class which spread ideas about society, religion, the arts, and philosophy and eventually led to a political revolution.
 
Europe's physical geography and natural resources played a significant role in its agricultural and industrial development. Because these factors vary over space, world regions create their own paths of development and progress at different rates.
 
The temperate climate of Europe features flat terrain, fertile soil, mineral wealth, forests, and access to fresh water, rivers, and coastlines. Access to these resources helped Europe move through the five stages of economic development according to the Demographic Transition Model (DTM). A lack of these resources can challenge a country's ability to attain a post-industrial society.
 
As a post-industrial society, Europe's population has undergone a rural-to-urban shift. Europe is now highly urbanized, the size of its families has decreased, and its population growth has slowed. Consequently, Europe is experiencing a deficit in the supply of low-priced labor, which has led to increased immigration as employers hire foreign workers to meet their needs.
 
To review, see Cooperation and Control in Europe and The Industrial Revolution.
 

2d. Describe Europe's migration patterns and demographic changes

• How did migration patterns in Europe change with the Industrial Revolution?
• What are the current migration patterns in Europe?
  

Before the industrial revolution, migration or the movement of people to Europe usually took the form of invasions from various empires, such as the Romans, Mongols, and Ottoman Empire. One notable exception was the Jewish diaspora which followed the conquest of Judea, the region we call Israel and Palestine, when a number of groups retreated to Europe, including the Assyrians, Babylonians, and Romans. A diaspora refers to a group of people who live outside of their ancestral homeland.
 
With the advent of the Industrial Revolution, migration and demographic patterns changed due to economic changes, especially in the agricultural sector. As the need for farmers decreased and factory workers increased, Europe experienced a rural-to-urban migration. To this day, the proportion of people living in rural areas is declining in the European realm. However, this rural-to-urban shift has not been as strong in Southern Europe as in other areas.
 
Europe's rural-to-urban shift has changed the size, density, and composition of its cities, such as a decline in the size of its families. There are several reasons for this, such as the higher cost of living in urban environments.
 
Other historical changes have affected the population of Europe. With the end of colonialism, Europe experienced an influx of migrants from former colonies in Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. In recent years, Europe's population has continued to change with the entrance of refugees from conflicts in North Africa and Southwest Asia, including Syria. As a result, there have been growing tensions between more secular European populations and the relatively more religious people of the greater Middle East.
 
To review, see European Migration, A New Approach to Defending the Human Rights of Migrants, Map of the European Migrant Crisis, and Current Migration Patterns and Debates.
 

2e. Summarize how the European Union and globalization have contributed to devolution in the region

• How has the cultural landscape in EU countries changed now that it is easier to cross borders?
• What are some advantages and disadvantages of sharing a currency such as the Euro with other countries?
• What are some advantages and disadvantages to EU citizens now that the EU negotiates international trade agreements on their behalf?
  

The European Union (EU) has helped many more countries participate in the global community and reap the local benefits of globalization. However, member countries have little control over who gets elected to the European Commission, which acts on their behalf during international negotiations, and the electoral process of EU commissioners is not always transparent.
 
Sharing a common currency is convenient and can help keep inflation low. However, countries with strong economies may come to resent having to bail their weaker neighbors out of trouble. They accuse them of being less fiscally responsible and less inclined to undertake unpopular but necessary structural reforms.
 
Within the European Union (EU), it is now possible to travel freely between member countries and use the same currency. However, this freedom can undermine traditionally-crafted products since it can be easier for customers to buy cheaper alternatives from neighboring countries. It is also easier for employers to employ workers from countries who are willing to work for lower wages than their resident labor pool. Free trade can benefit and hurt buyers or sellers, depending on which side you are on.
 
Although member countries can influence the world market through the EU, some argue the cost is too high. These voices prevailed during England's referendum to leave the EU (Brexit) in 2016.
 
To review, see Map of the European Union, Cooperation and Control in Europe, and Why Brexit Happened – and What to Do Next.
 

Unit 2 Vocabulary

This vocabulary list includes terms listed above that students need to know to successfully complete the final exam for the course.

• Age of Exploration
• Agrarian Revolution
• Alpine Region
• Brexit
• colonialism
• Demographic Transition Model (DTM)
• diaspora
• European Union (EU)
• Industrial Revolution
• Mediterranean region
• migrant
• migration
• Northern Lowlands
• post-industrial society
• refugee
• rural-to-urban shift
• Type C climate

Unit 3: Russia

3a. Describe Russia's climate and physical landscape and how they have influenced the human landscape

• Why is Russia dominated by the Type D climate?
• Although Russia has mountain ranges, including active volcanoes, describe the terrain that is most common in this vast region.
  

It is hard to overestimate Russia's vastness. Its northern latitude and size contribute to its Type D climate, also known as a continental climate, which dominates the realm. Because most of Russia is far from the moderating effects of oceans, temperatures are extreme, with freezing winters and hot summers. Precipitation is variable.
 
Russia has large contiguous areas with slight variations in elevation, although its physical landscape ranges from Lake Baikal, the deepest lake in the world, to Mount Elbrus, a dormant volcano in the Caucasus Mountains. Forests, grasses, and wetlands cover Russia's extensive plains, steppes, and plateaus. Tundra covers its northern extent because some of Russia extends into the Arctic.
 
To review, see Russia's Physical Geography and Climate, Russia and the Republics: Physical Geography, and Settlement and Development Challenges.
 

3b. Relate the concepts of relative and absolute location, and distance decay to Russia and its territorial aspirations

• Given its vast land area, how did the czars convince their subjects to minimize their cultural differences?
• What were the political cores of the Russian Empire?
  

As the largest territorial empire in the world, it is not surprising that Russia contains so many different ethnic groups. Its population speaks many languages and practices several religions. Most of its people connect their identity with their ethnic group rather than to Russia.
 
The czars engaged in the practice of Russification to convert their subjects into Russians via language instruction and conversion to Russian Orthodoxy. This attempt to spread the Russian identity throughout the provinces has proven less successful the farther people live from Moscow, the center of power. This is an example of distance decay.
 
St. Petersburg and Moscow were the political cores of imperial Russia. Peter the Great created St. Petersburg (now Leningrad) in the early 18th century. He moved the capital there from Moscow to rival the splendor and glamor of European cities. Although it was no longer the capital, Moscow remained an important city. Throughout the imperial period, Russia expanded east to the Pacific Ocean, south to the Black Sea and the Caucasus Mountains, and west to Poland.
 
To review, see Russia's Population Density, Settlement and Development Challenges, and Russian History and Expansion.
 

3c. Describe Soviet Russia's approach to socialism and how it impacted its economic development

• How did the Soviet Union implement socialism?
• What role does the government play in a socialist economy?
  

Socialism encompasses a wide range of economic and social systems. Under Stalin, the Soviet Union forced citizens to convert large family farms and privately-held land and businesses to collective or state control.
 
This process of forced collectivization caused the devastating famine of 1932–1933, when nearly four million people starved to death in the Ukrainian SSR alone. All in all, the Soviet command economy eliminated competition and allocated inputs and output quantities. Stalin also executed millions of people who did not agree with him.
 
To review, see Russian History and Expansion, Economics and Development in the Soviet Union, Socialism vs. Communism, and Famine, Subjugation and Nuclear Fallout: Russia and Ukraine.
 

3d. Describe Russia's pattern of human settlement in terms of the core-periphery concept and how it has impacted the environment

• What are the types of pollution associated with industrial and urban activity in Russia?
• What environmental problems are the taiga and tundra areas of Russia experiencing?
  

Russia's vast territory means there are more opportunities for environmental damage to occur and a greater chance the damage will go unnoticed or be ignored. Sewage and chemical pollutants from industrial centers and urban areas have contaminated the air, waterways, and water bodies, including the Black Sea, the Caspian Sea (the world's largest inland body of water by area), and Lake Baikal (the world's oldest and deepest lake). Despite its designation as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, proposed oil and gas exploration also threatens Lake Baikal's biodiversity.
 
Oil exploration and production pollution, including oil spills, have contaminated the Siberian tundra and taiga environments. Nuclear waste is dumped in the Arctic waters of the Barents Sea. Given their remoteness, concern for these vast ecosystems and the humans who live there have only recently received attention.
 
Coal-burning utilities, mining, and smelting activities in and around Siberian cities reduce air quality. The smog in Krasnoyarsk, a Siberian city on the Yenisei River, causes Black Sky emergencies. Overfishing depletes fish stocks in the Black Sea and Caspian Sea. These water bodies are the source of the increasingly rare caviar-producing wild sturgeon.
 
To review, see Russia's Physical Geography and Climate, Settlement and Development Challenges, Examples of Human Environmental Damage, and Russia: Environmental Problem Areas.
 

3e. Summarize the methods the government used to impose a Russian and Soviet identity on the population and its long-term effects on the human landscape

• What is Russification?
• What did the Republics of the USSR represent?
• How did the Soviets hope to dilute ethnic minorities?
  

Initially, the Czarist government of Russia attempted to instill a Russian identity in the various ethnic groups that lived in its territories. This was intended to be accomplished by teaching the Russian language and converting the people to Russian Orthodoxy. However, these attempts at Russification were not successful.
 
Rather than teach ethnic groups the Russian language and convert them to Russian Orthodoxy as the czars had attempted, the Soviet central government organized them into units they could control from Moscow. The USSR (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics) consisted of fifteen Soviet Socialist Republics (SSRs). The largest, the Soviet Federated Socialist Republic, included the area the central government considered ethnically Russian. The remaining SSRs represented separate ethnic groups, such as the Georgians, Kazakhs, Ukrainians, and Uzbeks.
 
These SSRs had little autonomy. The central government sought to dilute these ethnic groups by sending ethnic Russians into these SSRs. Members of these ethnic groups were also exiled to the hinterlands to separate them from the historic homeland of their people. Thus, it is common to find ethnic Russians who have lived in Kazakhstan (the former Kazakh SSR) and ethnic Ukrainians who have lived in Siberia (part of the former Soviet Federated Socialist Republic) for generations.
 
To review, see Russia and the Republics: Physical Geography, Russian Multiculturalism and Tension, Map of Soviet Nationalities by Republic, and Sovietization.
 

Unit 3 Vocabulary

This vocabulary list includes terms listed above that students need to know to successfully complete the final exam for the course.

• Black Sea
• Caspian Sea
• Caucasus Mountains
• collectivization
• command economy
• continental climate
• distance decay
• Kazakhstan
• Lake Baikal
• Mount Elbrus
• Russification
• socialism
• steppe
• Type D climate
• UNESCO World Heritage Site
• USSR (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics)

Unit 4: North America

4a. Summarize North America's physical geography and how it affected European settlement and westward migration

• What are the mountain landforms that separate North America's Atlantic Coastal Plain, Interior Plains, and Intermontane Plateaus?
• Why does the east coast have a coastal Plain, but the west coast does not?
• Why is the Canadian Shield sparsely populated?
• What is the general temperature pattern of North America from north to south?
• Why does the western United States experience a strong rain shadow effect?
  

The Appalachian Highlands separate the Atlantic Coastal Plain and the Interior Plains, including the Great Plains and the Central Lowlands. The Rocky Mountains separate the Interior Plains and the Intermontane Plateaus, including the Basin and Range Province. The Pacific Mountains are the western border of the Intermontane Plateaus and North America.
 
The west coast of North America lacks a coastal plain because it is an active tectonic plate boundary. The west coast is characterized by earthquakes and volcanic activity, whereas the east coast is not. The Atlantic Coastal Plain is in the interior of the North American Plate, about 2,000 miles from its eastern edge.
 
The northern portion of North America is dominated by the Canadian Shield. During the Ice Age, continental glaciation removed the soil from this area and deposited it in southern Canada and the northern United States leaving the bedrock known as the Canadian Shield exposed.
 
In North America, temperatures generally get warmer from north to south in accordance with their locations relative to the Equator. Precipitation generally decreases from east to west. The Pacific Mountains create a rain shadow effect that limits precipitation in much of the western half of the United States, including eastern Washington and Oregon, the Great Plains, and the Desert Southwest. The east coast lacks a coastal mountain range that would prevent moisture-laden air from reaching the interior.
 
To review, see Classifying North America's Climate, North America's Rain Shadow Effect, North America's Physical Setting, and Landforms in the United States and Canada.
 

4b. Describe the effects of colonization on the indigenous landscape of North America

• What was the impact on the indigenous populations of North America when European colonists arrived?
• Where in North America did the different colonial powers settle?
• What is the current evidence of colonial influence in North America?
  

Britain, France, and Spain all altered the physical and cultural landscape of North America. It is estimated that the colonists reduced the indigenous populations of North America by 80 to 90 percent – initially through the spread of disease and then by violence as the colonists seized their land and forced them to relocate. The colonists arrived from different directions, dominating parts of North America accordingly.
 
The British arrived on the eastern seaboard, settling in areas from South Carolina to New England. They eventually turned their sights northward, entering Canada by way of Hudson Bay. The French arrived from the north, entering the Gulf of St. Lawrence. They penetrated Canada and the Great Lakes and made their way down the Mississippi River Valley. The Spanish arrived from the south, establishing the oldest colonial city in North America, St. Augustine, Florida. They also made their way into the Desert Southwest, Texas, and California.
 
The evidence of European colonialism exists today in the languages spoken in the areas they infiltrated, the names of places, and patterns of land use. In the case of Canada, it is also part of the British Commonwealth.
 
To review, see North American History and Settlement, Territorial Claims in North America, Why Aren't There More Native American Restaurants?, and A History of Indigenous Languages.
 

4c. Outline North America's role in globalization, including the effect of location and economic development

• What role has North America played in global trade?
• How is the concept of a cultural melting pot related to globalization?
  

The United States was still a global superpower after the Cold War. It has the largest economy in the world and surpasses the combined output of the European Union. North America has also played a significant role in global trade.
 
Canada and the United States are members of the Group of Seven (G7), which serves as a political forum for the world's leading industrialized countries, and the World Trade Organization (WTO), an intergovernmental organization that regulates international trade.
 
In 1994 Canada, Mexico, and the United States brokered the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) to promote regional trade by increasing economic cooperation among the three countries. Prior to NAFTA, goods bought and sold between Mexico and the United States were subject to expensive tariffs, although Canada and the United States engaged in free trade. The three countries negotiated a similar agreement, the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), when NAFTA expired in 2018.
 
Immigrants and refugees continue to move to Canada and the United States because the region tends to offer a safer environment than countries around the world plagued by war, famine, and the negative effects of climate change. The robust economy of the United States offers greater access to job opportunities, education, and health care.
 
Many immigrants and refugees try to blend into American culture. Some abandon their traditions, while others try to balance their cultural heritage with the practices of their newly adopted country. While the idea of a cultural melting pot is a source of pride for many Americans, others fail to appreciate the people who are the source of this diversity. All too often, feelings of xenophobia and racism, especially towards illegal immigration, have made it difficult for many immigrants to achieve the so-called American Dream.
 
To review, see North American History and Settlement, French Influence in Canada, Industrial Development in North America, and North America's Global Connections.
 

4d. Describe industrialization in North America, including its access to raw materials and its impact on the urban landscape

• What was the urban landscape and resource use like in North America before and after industrialization?
  

Before industrialization, the population of North America was predominantly urban, with vast expanses of sparsely populated land. The urban areas were generally coastal or located along rivers and lakes. As populations increased on the east coast of North America, it became increasingly necessary to support that growth with agricultural production and natural resources.
 
Consequently, the urban areas in the interior of North America, such as Winnipeg and Denver, served as gateways to these resources. Other interior cities grew up along the transcontinental railways of Canada and the United States.
 
In 1760, the U.S. economy was based on agriculture and natural resource production when the Industrial Revolution officially began in Europe. Some of the earliest innovations in U.S. industry, such as its cotton mills and textile factories, were based on its available raw resources.
 
Since hydropower was the primary source of energy for these early manufacturing plants, the U.S. factories were located almost exclusively in the northeastern corridor due to the region's abundant fast-moving rivers. After the Civil War (1861–1865), steam power manufacturing spread throughout the United States, allowing the southern states to industrialize. The industrial core region had high concentrations of manufacturing output.
 
Industrialization in the United States continued to shape the pattern of human settlement in North America. Since industrial development occurred in urban areas, people moved to the cities from their rural farming communities to find work.
 
Today, as a result of this rural-to-urban shift, more than 80 percent of people in the United States live in cities. In some cases, cities have grown so much that they have overlapped, creating a megalopolis. However, economists have witnessed a decline in U.S. manufacturing as the workforce has shifted to jobs in the service industries, such as retail and finance.
 
To review, see Industrial Development in North America, North America's Global Connections, The Urban Landscape in North America, Canada's Quebec-Windsor Corridor, and Urban Sprawl.
 

4e. Identify changes that have occurred in North American cities, including how they relate to spatial patterns of inequality at the local level

• What allowed cities to increase in size beginning in the late 19th century?
• Why have edge cities supplanted central business districts (CBDs)?
  

Originally, North Americans lived in compact cities since most services were located in a city's central business district (CBD), and people had to live within walking distance of those services. When the streetcar was invented in 1888, people were no longer limited by walking distance to navigate the cities in which they lived. They could live farther away and count on the streetcar to get them to jobs, goods, and services. Their only limitation was walking distance to streetcar stops. The streetcar meant that the city was no longer confined to a small, densely populated area. It could now expand beyond the city center. This trend continued as transportation opportunities increased to the point that edge cities developed.
 
People with automobiles who could afford to leave old urban areas began migrating to areas even farther from the city center. These suburban developments grew to have their own job and shopping opportunities meaning residents no longer needed the old city's central business district. Today, the original city centers are now connected by edge cities, suburbs, highways, and railways.
 
To review, see The Urban Landscape in North America, Canada's Quebec-Windsor Corridor, Urban Sprawl, Patterns of Inequality in North America, and Poverty in Toronto.
 

Unit 4 Vocabulary

This vocabulary list includes terms listed above that students need to know to successfully complete the final exam for the course.

• American Dream
• Appalachian Highlands
• Atlantic Coastal Plain
• British Commonwealth
• Canadian Shield
• central business district (CBD)
• Central Lowlands
• cultural melting pot
• Desert Southwest
• edge city
• Great Lakes
• Great Plains
• Group of Seven (G7)
• Gulf of St. Lawrence
• Interior Plains
• Intermontane Plateaus
• megalopolis
• Mississippi River Valley
• North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)
• Pacific Mountains
• rain shadow effect
• Rocky Mountains
• suburb
• United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA)
• World Trade Organization (WTO)

Unit 5: Middle and South America

5a. Summarize the region's physical geography, including where and why earthquakes, volcanoes, and hurricanes occur, and the significance of the Amazon River Basin

• What is the dominant physical landscape in Central America?
• Why is Middle America vulnerable to hurricanes?
• What is altitudinal zonation?
• What landforms and land cover types characterize South America's physical landscape?
• How do South America's location and landforms affect its climate?
• Where are the agricultural regions of South America?
  

Mountain ranges, lowlands, and coastal plains characterize the physical landscape of Central America, and mountainous terrain is the most prevalent. Because this region has so many mountain ecosystems, the residents of Central America have adapted their activities based on altitudinal zonation. For example, farmers grow different crops at different elevations.

Altitudinal Zones in Central and South America

Hurricanes that form north of the Equator rotate counterclockwise. Middle America is in the hurricane belt – the rimland and east coast of the mainland are susceptible to hurricanes that develop over the Atlantic; the rimland and west coast of the mainland are vulnerable to hurricanes that develop over the Pacific.
 
We see so many different physical landscapes in South America because it is so vast. These include mountain ranges, valleys, rivers, lakes, deserts, plains, plateaus, and highlands. The Andes Mountains, the longest mountain chain on Earth, are on the west coast of the continent. This area is tectonically active. The valleys, or altiplanos, between the Andes mountain range offer farmers fertile land for agriculture.
 
Although we often associate the Amazon River Basin with Brazil, it covers more than a third of the continent, including Ecuador and Peru to the west, Bolivia to the south, and Colombia, Venezuela, and other countries to the north. While tropical forests are an iconic image of South America, the realm also features the driest non-polar desert in the world. The rain shadow effect of the Andes Mountains is responsible for the Atacama Desert of Chile and Peru.
 
We often associate South America's climate with the tropical Amazon Rainforest. However, vast areas of the continent do not straddle the Equator. Since South America stretches from 12° N to 54°S, its climate includes tropical, temperate, arid, cold, and polar climate areas. Variations within these climate types exist due to the local topography.
 
South America's plateaus, plains, and highlands are agricultural regions, including the Pampas and the Mato Grosso Plateau. However, some highlands, such as the Guiana Highlands, are too rugged and remote for agricultural activity.
 
To review, see The Geographic Features of Middle and South America, The Panama Canal, The Amazon River Basin, Warmer Ocean Temperatures and Saharan Dust, The Amazon Belongs to Humanity, Atacama Desert – the Ultimate Survival, and How a Hurricane Forms.
 

5b. Compare the rimland and the mainland areas in terms of colonization, land use patterns, and economic activities

• What are the characteristics that explain the division of Middle America into the rimland and mainland regions?
• How did the pattern of land use differ in these regions?
• How does the ethnicity of these two regions reflect their colonial history?
  

Geographers divide Middle America into two regions – the rimland and the mainland – based on their location, physical geography, differing occupational activities, and colonial dynamics. The physical geography of these two regions has contributed to the patterns of land use.

Mainland and Rimland Characteristics of Middle America Based on Colonial Era Economic Activities

The colonists converted the rimland islands and coastal areas to plantation agriculture once they assumed control. Plantation agriculture, which had originated in northern Europe, increased efficiencies by growing a single crop for export on a large plot of land.
 
It took longer for colonists to penetrate the larger mainland region. Spain imposed the hacienda style of land use when they colonized this region. The hacienda system enhanced the social prestige of the colonists through land ownership rather than focusing on profits through exports. The region featured a greater amount of crop diversity.
 
In the rimland, the native Amerindian population that survived the diseases the colonists brought were forced to provide labor during the harvest. The enslaved people the landowners had brought from Africa to enhance their workforce altered the ethnicity of many parts of the rimland. The rimland became a mixture of people of European and African descent. On the mainland, the native Amerindian population engaged in subsistence farming to survive. Since enslaved people from Africa were uncommon, the ethnicity of the people who lived on the mainland became a mixture of people of Amerindian and European descent.
 
To review, see Colonization and Conquest in Middle America, Pre-Colonial Caribbean, Paths to Settle the Caribbean Islands, Languages of the Caribbean, The Colonial Landscape, Colonial Activity in South America, and The Haitian Revolution.
 

5c. Compare the locations of the Inca, Maya, and Aztec Empires with the location of the indigenous population in this region

• Why are Mesoamerica and the Andes considered one of the ancient cultural hearths of world civilization?
• What is the geographic extent of the Mesoamerican and Andean cultural hearths?
  

Geographers point to Mesoamerica (Middle America) and the Andes as two places where civilization began. We call them ancient cultural hearths because they established influential customs, innovations, and ideologies.
 
The Olmec, Maya, Toltec, Aztec, and other civilizations helped build the Mesoamerican cultural hearth, which extended from central Mexico, including the Yucatán Peninsula, through the isthmus of Central America.
 
The Maya civilization (c. 900 BCE–900 CE) was centered on the Yucatán Peninsula. It extended west into today's Mexican provinces of Chiapas and Tabasco and east into what is now Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras. The Maya built on the achievements of the Olmec (1600–350 BCE) and made significant advancements in mathematics and astronomy. They developed an accurate calendar and made remarkable contributions to architecture, engineering, and the development of the city-state.
 
The Aztec Empire (1325–1519) extended from southern Mexico into central Mexico. Many consider the Aztec city of Tenochtitlán (today's Mexico City) one of the world's largest and most sophisticated cities. When the Aztecs conquered other groups, they demanded respect by forcing them to pay taxes and involuntary tributes. The Aztecs made significant advances in agriculture and urban development.
 
In the Andes Mountains of South America, the Inca Empire (1200–1572) extended from the present-day countries of Colombia in the north, through Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia, down to Chile and Argentina in the south. It was the largest empire in the Americas. Building upon the advancements of previous cultures in the Andean culture hearth before them, the Inca developed complex agricultural techniques and forms of animal husbandry suited to high altitudes and created remarkable textiles. They also built an elaborate system of roads that connected the cities and communities that made up the empire to the capital in today's Cuzco, Peru.
 
Although the Europeans decimated the Aztec, Inca, and many other Amerindian populations, we see evidence of these rich Mesoamerican and Andean civilizations in their descendants, artworks, and architecture.
 
To review, see Colonization and Conquest in Middle America, Indigenous Peoples in the Americas, The Colonial Landscape, and Inca Expansion Map.
 

5d. Summarize the pattern of European colonialism across the region, including the significance of the Treaty of Tordesillas

• What were the immediate effects of European colonists on the Amerindians?
• What evidence is there of European colonialism in Middle America today?
• Why did Spain colonize the west side of South America while Portugal colonized the east side?
• What is the significance of the Tordesillas Line?
  

The European colonists devastated the Amerindians of Middle America. Within 100 years, they had decimated 84 to 90 percent of the population with the diseases they carried, enslavement, execution, and warfare. The colonists pursued immediate profit, stole precious metals and gems, and seized the land they conquered.
 
Today, we see many of the changes the colonists brought or imposed. For example, the people in Middle and South America speak Spanish, Portuguese, French, Dutch, and English. Many follow the Christian religion, particularly Catholicism. The colonists also brought domesticated animals, crops, building methods, and city planning.
 
The countries of Europe's Iberian Peninsula – Spain and Portugal – colonized all of South America with the exception of the Guianas, present-day Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana. Spain focused on conquering the west coast because they were already in Middle America, which borders present-day Colombia.

Colonial Activity in South America

We credit Francisco Pizzaro, a Spanish conquistador stationed in Panama, with colonizing South America after he landed in Peru to search for gold and silver. Meanwhile, the Portuguese colonists seized the land they discovered on the east coast of Brazil in 1500 to expand their empire.
 
As the Spanish and Portuguese penetrated South America's interior from opposite directions, they eventually lay claim to the same territory. They turned to the Catholic church to establish a boundary between the two colonies, which they called the Tordesillas Line of 1494. The British, Dutch, and French colonized the Guianas using the same methods they used to colonize the rimland of Middle America. Today, French Guiana is the only remaining colony on the continent of South America.

Colonies of South America, 1796

To review, see Colonization and Conquest in Middle America, Indigenous Peoples in the Americas, Colonial Activity in South America, The Colonial Landscape, The Haitian Revolution, and Inca Expansion Map.
 

5e. Outline factors that contribute to income inequality and political instability in this region

• What are the roots of inequality in Middle and South America?
• What factors contribute to the political instability of the region?
  

Middle America and South America are plagued by social, economic, and political inequality. The European colonists banned rural farmers and the descendants of Amerindian peoples and enslaved Africans from owning land or benefiting from the wealth it could produce. This economic exclusion, which also reduced their social standing and political power, led to the formation of an enormous lower class of poor workers.
 
In both regions, the social structure and human settlements reflect major disparities in socioeconomic class. Wealth and political power are centralized among an elite class that inhabits the urban cores of most cities. The urban core is frequently surrounded by a ring of middle-class settlements and a series of outer slums and squatter settlements. The peripheral populations often lack access to the services found in the central cities.
 
While some governments have attempted tax reform and created programs to aid economic development, the underlying inequalities remain. Some countries, such as Argentina, Ecuador, and Venezuela, have created socialist systems to address these problems, but economic turmoil has caused political instability. For many people in the region, liberation theology has provided a sense of hope by blending Christianity with political activism emphasizing social justice, poverty, and human rights.
 
To review, see Urban Development in South America, Urban Unrest Propels a Global Wave of Protests, Income Inequality in Middle and South America, Inequality and Political Instability in Latin America, Patterns of Globalization in Middle and South America, and The Deadly Genius of Drug Cartels.
 

Unit 5 Vocabulary

This vocabulary list includes terms listed above that students need to know to successfully complete the final exam for the course.

• altiplano
• altitudinal zonation
• Amazon Rainforest
• Amazon River Basin
• Amerindian
• Andes Mountains
• Atacama Desert
• Aztec Empire
• conquistador
• cultural hearth
• economic exclusion
• Francisco Pizzaro
• Guiana Highlands
• hacienda system
• hurricane
• Inca Empire
• liberation theology
• mainland
• Mato Grosso Plateau
• Maya
• mountain ecosystem
• Olmec
• Pampas
• plantation agriculture
• rimland
• Tordesillas Line

Unit 6: Sub-Saharan Africa

Physical Features of Africa

6a. Distinguish between the Sahel or African Transition Zone and the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa

• What are the characteristics that distinguish the African Transition Zone from Sub-Saharan Africa?
• What is Sub-Saharan Africa's dominant climate type?
• What are the most important physical features of Sub-Saharan Africa?
  

The African Transition Zone is also known as the Sahel, an Arabic term for coast or shore. This zone is the southern coast or shore of the Sahara Desert. To the north of the African Transition Zone, the climate is arid, dominated by type B climates. To the south, the climate is tropical, dominated by Type A climates.
 
This tropical climate gives way to dry, temperate (Type C climate) conditions and then predominantly arid conditions (Type B climate) in southern Africa, which includes the Namib and Kalahari Deserts. Despite its proximity to the Equator, the Horn of Africa is arid due to the rain shadow effect of the Ethiopian Highlands, which is also known as the Ethiopian Plateau. The Congo River, which is second only to the Amazon River in terms of discharge volume, flows through the heart of Sub-Saharan Africa's tropical rainforest.
 
Most of the high elevations are in the east-northeast of the Sub-Saharan Africa realm, in the vicinity of the Great Rift Valley. Sub-Saharan Africa also has many lakes which started out as depressions in the East African Rift Zone that later filled with water. Some of the most prominent lakes include Lake Tanganyika, Lake Malawi, Lake Albert, and Lake Victoria.
 
To review, see Physical Landscape of Sub-Saharan Africa, Physical Geography of Sub-Saharan Africa, The Great Rift Valley, Koppen-Geiger Climate Classification for Africa, and Africa by Satellite.
 

6b. Describe factors that have led to desertification in parts of Sub-Saharan Africa

• What cultural and natural factors have led to desertification in Sub-Saharan Africa?
  

Desertification tends to occur on the outskirts of already existing deserts. In Sub-Saharan Africa, examples would include the Namib Desert, the Kalahari Desert, and most notably, the Sahara Desert. Not surprisingly, the Sahel or African Transition Zone comprises the part of Africa most prone to desertification.
 
Desertification refers to how previously fertile land transforms into a desert due to a variety of reasons, such as climate change or other human activities.
 
Among the most well-known natural causes of desertification is climate change. Warming temperatures not only alter precipitation patterns but also increase the speed of evaporation. Certain human activities make these matters worse. For example, overgrazing by cattle can greatly reduce vegetation causing the erosion of fertile topsoil. As the desert expands, farmers tend to migrate south to search for more fertile soil. This can lead to conflict with southern farmers and further stress the land.
 
To review, see Physical Landscape of Sub-Saharan Africa, Physical Geography of Sub-Saharan Africa, The Great Rift Valley, Koppen-Geiger Climate Classification for Africa, and Africa by Satellite.
 

6c. Explain how the human history of Sub-Saharan Africa affected its ethnic and linguistic diversity

• What cultural features characterized Sub-Saharan African cultures before colonialism?
• How many languages are spoken on the continent of Africa?
• Describe the pattern of religions on the continent of Africa.
  

Through growing fossil evidence, it is widely recognized that Sub-Saharan Africa, especially the grasslands and forests of East Africa and Southern Africa, was home to the human species. Beginning with homo erectus, our ancestors left Africa as they evolved a little less than two million years ago. They traveled as far as Indonesia and China. Some eventually arrived in Europe and western Asia, where they evolved into the Neanderthals. Those that stayed in Africa became the first modern humans (or homo sapiens) and eventually dispersed out of Africa around 100,000 years ago.
 
During the intervening years, pre-colonial Africa has been characterized by many diverse cultures with rich histories. Scholars have recognized more than 800 distinct ethnic regions – several distinct cultural groups lived within some of these ethnic regions. Some tribes coexisted peacefully, while others warred over territory. Most practiced shifting cultivation for subsistence.
 
The family was the basic social and economic unit in these African societies, and the extended family was important politically. Tribes consisted of landholding groups of families united by common ancestry and language. In addition to these tribes, pre-colonial Africa was also characterized by several large empires, particularly in the Sahel region and West Africa.
 
The people of Sub-Saharan Africa speak more than 2,000 languages, 30 percent of the world's languages. Many of these were never written down. Colonialism and globalization have made it difficult for some of these languages to survive.
 
In terms of religion, most of the countries of Sub-Saharan Africa continue to practice traditional animistic or tribal religions. A number of world religions are also present in the region, particularly Christianity and Islam. Here too, the African Transition Zone has played an important role. While most Sub-Saharan African countries have been greatly influenced by Christianity, Islam seems to have greater influence in the Sahel and northwards.
 
To review, see The Dispersal of Homo Erectus, Homo Neanderthalensis, and Homo Sapiens, Pre-Colonial Sub-Saharan Africa, History of Sub-Saharan Africa, and Powerful Stories that Shaped Africa.
 

6d. Describe the pre-colonial landscape of Sub-Saharan Africa and the effects of European colonialism

• What were the main cultural features of pre-colonial Sub-Saharan African societies?
• What were the effects of European colonialism in Sub-Saharan Africa?
  

Colonial empires expanded their colonial holdings to expand agricultural production and obtain mineral resources to fuel the Industrial Revolution that was spreading across Europe. France, Italy, Britain, Portugal, Belgium, and Germany recognized the resource potential of Sub-Saharan Africa.
 
European colonialism completely reshaped the political and ethnic landscape of Africa. Although policies varied across the continent, colonialism generally refers to the control Europeans forced on the territories they conquered in Africa. For example, Belgium adopted a paternalistic attitude in the Congo and was especially violent toward the population; France tried to spread the French culture and language in its colonies, while the British often partnered with local rulers.
 
In general, the Europeans focused on exporting goods and gave little attention to local development or connectivity. They made their colonial borders arbitrary and often divided pre-existing ethnic groups. Local communities which had practiced subsistence agriculture were forced to export their crops to European markets. Although the colonists constructed rail lines in Africa, they were designed to transport resources from the interior of the continent to the coastal ports. They showed no concern for linking city centers that would have promoted other forms of trade among the indigenous population.
 
Eventually, the Europeans granted independence to their African colonies, but the ease of transition varied widely. For example, many of the British colonies had a gradual transition of power because the British had practiced indirect rule. Other colonies, such as the Belgian Congo, had to resort to violent means to remove their colonial administration.
 
To review, see Pre-Colonial Sub-Saharan Africa, The Slave Trade Through a Ghanaian Lens, Sub-Saharan African Colonization, African Slave Trade, and History of Sub-Saharan Africa.

 

6e. Identify recent and historic barriers that have impeded economic growth in Sub-Saharan Africa, including the role of foreign countries and organizations

• What are some of the problems that have plagued countries since gaining their independence?
• Why are most countries on the continent of Africa in subsistence mode?
• Why is it difficult for women to get an education or a job outside the home in the realm of Sub-Saharan Africa?
• What role do endemic and epidemic diseases play in impeding economic growth?
  

While independence movements successfully freed African countries from European control, many faced difficult decisions on how they should politically organize their new states. During colonization, the European powers had redrawn the map of Africa without any regard for the long-standing, underlying ethnic territories. Some groups were forced to live with groups they had fought with for centuries. Other ethnic groups were divided among two or more colonies.
 
The new political map of Africa reinstated the artificial boundaries the Europeans had created, a predicament that de-incentivized cooperation among countries and regions with significant cultural differences.
 
Meanwhile, the economy of many Sub-Saharan countries remains structured around subsistence agriculture, which is not profitable. With increased urbanization, families have grown significantly, placing greater pressure on the agricultural sector. In addition, the cultural expectation is that women will care for the children. This limits educational and economic options for women since children make up the majority of the population. However, women must also perform agricultural work to feed their families and care for ailing and aging family members.
 
Several illnesses, such as hepatitis and hookworm, exist among the Sub-Saharan population in relatively steady numbers. They are endemic to Africa. Epidemic diseases affect large numbers of people on a regional scale. For example, the two African regions of West Africa and Central Africa have suffered from periodic epidemics of Ebola, a deadly viral hemorrhagic fever.
 
Malaria is the deadliest disease in Sub-Saharan Africa. Sudden epidemics of this mosquito-borne disease can affect large populations. In addition, nearly 70 percent of the total number of people living with HIV/AIDS reside in Sub-Saharan Africa. HIV/AIDS is spread by unsafe sexual practices, such as having unprotected sex with multiple partners. People living in other regions typically receive long-term treatments when diagnosed with HIV/AIDS, but its fatality rate is much higher in Sub-Saharan Africa.
 
To review, see Democracy in Africa: Success Stories That Defied the Odds, Filming Democracy in Ghana, Modern Sub-Saharan African Landscape, Lagos, Nigeria: The City That Keeps Growing, COVID-19 Shows Why African Data Is Key for the Continent's Response to Pandemics, Famine in Ethiopia: Eritrea's Long-Running Feud with Tigrayans, Economics and Globalization in Sub-Saharan Africa, Debt Distress in Africa: The Way Forward, and Scaling the African Sharing Economy.
 

Unit 6 Vocabulary

This vocabulary list includes terms listed above that students need to know to successfully complete the final exam for the course.

• African Rift Zone
• African Transition Zone
• climate change
• Congo River
• desertification
• Ebola
• Ethiopian Plateau
• Great Rift Valley
• HIV/AIDS
• homo erectus
• homo sapiens
• Horn of Africa
• indirect rule
• Kalahari Desert
• Lake Albert
• Lake Malawi
• Lake Tanganyika
• Lake Victoria
• Malaria
• Namib Desert
• Neanderthal
• Sahara Desert
• Sahel
• shifting cultivation
• tribe
• Type A climate
• Type B climate
• urbanization

Unit 7: North Africa and Southwest Asia

7a. Describe the physical geography of North Africa and Southwest Asia, including the Sahel or African Transition Zone, and factors that have led to desertification in some areas

• What role does the ITCZ (Intertropical Convergence Zone) play in the position of the African Transition Zone?
• Why are colonial political borders in conflict with the seasonal shifts in the African Transition Zone?
  

Also known as the Sahel, the African Transition Zone is a climate phenomenon that shifts depending on the seasons. It is where the subtropical high-pressure belt, which contributes to the arid conditions of the Sahara Desert, meets the ITCZ (Intertropical Convergence Zone), an equatorial low-pressure zone that makes the tropics wet. Because the ITCZ shifts seasonally, the location of the African Transition Zone also changes. In the summer, it shifts north, making the conditions wetter. In the winter, it shifts south, making the conditions drier.
 
This pattern varies when the high and low-pressure belts stall for other environmental reasons, which can periodically leave the Sahel with no moisture.
 
For thousands of years, the people who lived in the Sahel followed the moisture, migrating north in the summer and south in the winter, unencumbered by political borders. When the colonial powers imposed political boundaries on the landscape, they curtailed the movement of these nomads and, in some cases, divided them. Many of the conflicts ongoing in the African Transition Zone can be traced to this clash between traditional practices and interference from outside powers.
 
To review, see North Africa and Southwest Asia's Key Geographic Features and Physical Geography of the Middle East and North Africa.
 

7b. Relate the distribution of oil and mineral resources in North Africa and Southwest Asia to the concepts of inequality and globalization

• Where are the mineral and oil resources of North Africa and Southwest Asia found?
• How have these resources affected globalization and inequality in the region?
  

The prevalence of arid climates throughout North Africa and Southwest Asia means water is a valuable resource to the people who live in this realm. By contrast, the region's oil, natural gas, and mineral resources make it indispensable to other regions.
 
The Arabian Peninsula's oil fields are in the east and northeast, intersecting Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, UAE (United Arab Emirates), Oman, and Iraq. There are oil fields to the south of Yemen, but the ongoing war has left its fossil fuel deposits untapped. Mineral resources such as copper, gold, and iron ore are found along the west side of the Arabian Peninsula, including the Hijaz and Asir Mountains. In North Africa, we see oil fields in Egypt, Libya, and Algeria. Libya has the largest amount of crude oil reserves.
 
Oil and gas revenues are vital to the economies of the countries on the Arabian Peninsula, with the exception of Yemen due to its ongoing civil war. The people of the Arabian Peninsula enjoy a high standard of living. For example, Kuwait uses its substantial oil revenues to provide free education and medical care to its small population. In addition, the thriving oil and gas economies of these countries attract migrants and investment from all over the world. Saudi Arabia, for example, has millions of foreign workers in the petroleum industry.
 
The influx of foreign workers and investment has influenced some countries' efforts at globalization policies. To varying degrees, Bahrain, Qatar, UAE, and Oman have sought to balance their Arab traditions with modernization, such as building shopping malls and resorts, improving infrastructure, and allowing American franchises. Some of these countries are diversifying their economies through global banking opportunities, free-trade zones, tourism, and, in the case of Qatar, welcoming a U.S. military installation.
 
The constant demand for fossil fuels has rendered many countries in North Africa and Southwest Asia vulnerable to foreign control and influence. The uneven distribution of oil resources has led to inequalities and wealth gaps within and between countries. Ethnic inequalities have emerged among the groups who reside in these countries.
 
To review, see North Africa and Southwest Asia's Key Geographic Features, Oil Resources in North Africa and Southwest Asia, and Saudi Arabia's Major Oil and Gas Infrastructure.
 

7c. Explain how the position of North Africa and Southwest Asia as a major crossroads promoted diversity in the human landscape

• Describe how the position of North Africa and Southwest Asia as a major crossroads promoted diversity in the human landscape.
  

The people who live in North Africa and Southwest Asia have adapted to the region's hot and arid climate. Buildings in urban centers typically feature high roofs and ceilings to allow the hot air to rise and keep the living area cooler. Shaded courtyards promote airflow in the surrounding rooms and maintain maximum privacy. The distinctive dress reflects the physical landscape. Men wear long, flowing robes and cotton headdresses to shield themselves from the sand and sun. Women adorn similar traditional clothing, which also reflects their modesty and religious values.
 
Some cultural groups migrate to cooler areas during the hottest parts of the year. For example, the Berbers, an indigenous group in North Africa, traveled each season to search for water, land, and shelter as they herd their livestock. However, the lives of these pastoral nomads have changed significantly in recent years. Governments have encouraged these traditional groups to practice settled agriculture. Colonial and international boundaries have destroyed or cut off many of their traditional migratory paths.
 
To review, see North Africa and Southwest Asia's Key Geographic Features, Silk Road Trade, Silk Routes in Central Asia and Afghanistan, and Religion in North Africa and Southwest Asia.
 

7d. Describe the pattern of colonization in North Africa and Southwest Asia and how it has affected the human landscape, including its pattern of urbanization

• What types of colonialism did the peoples of North Africa and Southwest Asia practice before World War I?
• How did European colonialism affect the region after World War I?
  

Arab military forces spread Islam across the region after Muhammad died in 632. The Islamic Empire (632–1258) lasted nearly 600 years and stretched from the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal) across North Africa and the Arabian Peninsula and into Pakistan. Its capital moved from Medina, the Islamic holy city in today's Saudi Arabia, to Damascus (today's capital of Syria), and finally to Baghdad (today's capital of Iran).
 
The Ottoman Empire (1299–1922), which originated in modern-day Turkey, controlled much of North Africa and coastal Southwest Asia until Europe's allied powers carved up its territories following World War
 
For example, the European diplomats who attended the Congress of Vienna in 1815 gave France a mandate to control Syria, Britain received a mandate to control Iraq and Palestine, and Italy would rule Libya. The Europeans paid little attention to underlying ethnic or resource issues in the regions they controlled. As in Sub-Saharan Africa, ethnic groups were divided and forced to share new territories with hostile groups. These ethnic and religious tensions remained after the countries gained independence and continue to this day.
 
To review, see Conquest in North Africa and Southwest Asia, Russian Turkestan, Morocco and Western Sahara: A Decades-Long War of Attrition, The Political Landscape, Yemen: Understanding the Conflict, and Effect of Urbanization in North Africa and Southwest Asia.
 

7e. Summarize why Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are tied to North Africa and Southwest Asia and how these religious ties have impacted the human landscape

• How are Judaism, Christianity, and Islam connected to North Africa and Southwest Asia?
• What impact have these religions had on the human landscape of the region?
  

Many call North Africa and Southwest Asia a cultural hearth since it is often considered the cradle of ancient civilizations and modern religions. The religions Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all originated in Southwest Asia. We call them the Abrahamic religions because they consider Abraham a patriarch and Moses a major prophet. All three are monotheistic – a fundamental tenet is that there is only one God. They also have similar creation stories.
 
Of course, there are major differences between these religions, such as who delivered the word of God to their followers. Jews believe Abraham established the first covenant with God. The Torah, the central Jewish text, discusses the creation of the world and the establishment of this covenant. Christianity developed from the life and teachings of Jesus, a Jewish preacher and prophet. The Bible is the central Christian text. Islam is based on the teachings of the prophet Muhammad. The Koran is the central Islamic text.
 
Islam is the dominant religion in North Africa and Southwest Asia. It is a strong cultural force that unifies and divides people in the region. Islam spread throughout the realm in accordance with the trade and migration of people through a geographic process we call spatial diffusion.
 
Islam was divided between Sunni and Shia Muslim groups after Muhammad's death (632 AD) since he did not specify who should continue his work. Those who followed Ali, Muhammad's cousin and son-in-law, became Shia Muslims. Those who followed Abu Bakr, Muhammad's close companion, became Sunni Muslims. This division determines the role the Imam (the spiritual leader) plays. For Shia Muslims, the Imam has divine knowledge and authority and must be from the lineage of Muhammad. For Sunni Muslims, the Imam leads them in worship, provides religious guidance, and serves as a community leader.
 
To review, see Religion in North Africa and Southwest Asia, Semitic Religions, Geography of Conflict: Searching for Peace in the Middle East, Who are Yemen's Houthis?, Religious Conflict in North Africa and Southwest Asia, Islamic Faith and Tradition, and Human Rights for Women.
 

7f. Identify factors that have contributed to border disputes and violent conflicts in North Africa and Southwest Asia and how these barriers have impeded development

• What role did colonialism and the physical environment play in the border disputes and conflicts of modern North Africa and Southwest Asia?
• How have these conflicts impeded development in the region?
  

Today's political map of North Africa and Southwest Asia continues to reflect the arbitrary boundaries the European colonists created during the past century. This legacy, in addition to religious tensions, has made the region prone to political instability, conflict, and violence.
 
Geography has restricted development and transit in North Africa and Southwest Asia due to several strategic choke points – narrow passages, such as canals, valleys, or bridges, that allow travelers and economic commerce to traverse to another region. Examples include the Suez Canal, a canal built from the Mediterranean to the Red Sea, and the Strait of Hormuz, which lies between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. Political forces have fought bitterly throughout history to control these restricted, narrow channels.
 
Many newly-formed government leaders, who had fought to gain local independence from their European colonizers, had a military rather than political background. Monarchs had secured support from local military and religious leaders. Meanwhile, the discovery of oil in the region has brought significant wealth and reignited Western interest in the region.
 
The Israeli-Palestinian conflict, civil wars in Syria, Libya, and Yemen, the rise of al Qaeda and ISIS, and the Arab Spring pro-democracy movement of 2011 represent just some of the conflicts and tensions that have confounded this region. They point to an intersection of religious values, political instability, and a battle for control over territory and resources.
 
To review, see Physical Geography of the Middle East and North Africa, The Political Landscape, Yemen: Understanding the Conflict, Who are Yemen's Houthis?, Religious Conflict in North Africa and Southwest Asia, Islamic Faith and Tradition, and Human Rights for Women.
 

Unit 7 Vocabulary

This vocabulary list includes terms listed above that students need to know to successfully complete the final exam for the course.

• Abrahamic religions
• Abu Bakr
• Ali
• al Qaeda
• Arabian Peninsula
• Arab Spring
• Asir Mountains
• Berbers
• Bible
• choke point
• Christianity
• Congress of Vienna
• fossil fuel
• Gulf of Oman
• Hijaz Mountains
• Intertropical Convergence Zone
• ISIS
• Islam
• Islamic Empire
• Judaism
• Koran
• Medina
• monotheism
• Muhammad
• Ottoman Empire
• pastoral nomad
• Persian Gulf
• petroleum industry
• Shia
• spatial diffusion
• Strait of Hormuz
• Suez Canal
• Sunni
• Torah

Unit 8: South Asia

8a. Describe the physical geography of South Asia, including processes associated with natural hazards and groundwater resources

• What is the topographic relief of South Asia?
• How does precipitation vary across South Asia?
• What water features connect the Himalayas to the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal?
• Why are human populations so vulnerable to the effects of monsoonal precipitation?
• Why are the results of monsoonal precipitation more devastating when there has been a drought?
  

The topographic relief and variation in precipitation of South Asia are dramatic. The topographic relief of South Asia is the difference between Mount Everest, the highest elevation at 29,029 feet, and Maldives, the lowest elevation at less than one foot, in the region. Mount Everest is the highest point on Earth, and the Maldives is the country with the world's lowest elevation.
 
The variation in precipitation in South Asia is also dramatic, with deserts in India and Pakistan and monsoon conditions in India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Myanmar. The two rainiest places on Earth are both in India along the northeast border of Bangladesh, the country with the tenth-highest average annual precipitation. The dramatic nature of this realm includes hazards in the form of earthquakes and flooding.
 
In addition to its topographic and precipitation superlatives, South Asia also has some of the world's most famous rivers. The Indus River rises in the Himalayas and empties into the Arabian Sea near Karachi, Pakistan, and has been a center of human civilization for thousands of years. The Indus River is sacred to Hindus.
 
The Ganges River also rises in the Himalayas and empties into the Bay of Bengal. It is the third largest river in the world, after the Amazon and Congo Rivers, in terms of discharge. The Ganges is the most sacred river to the Hindus. In addition to their religious importance, these rivers are vital to the physical survival of Pakistanis, Indians, and Bangladeshis.
 
Monsoons are seasonal winds that cause heavy rain in the summer but leave the landmass dry in the winter. In the realm of South Asia, when the ITCZ migrates north in the summer, moisture-laden air from the Indian Ocean is drawn to the warmer landmass. Thus, these monsoonal winds bring torrential rains in the summer. When the ITCZ migrates south in the winter, the winds reverse and blow from the cooler landmass to the warmer ocean.
 
Because humans tend to live along rivers to access water and fertile soil, they are vulnerable when the rivers flood. Every year, monsoonal rains and the ensuing floods displace people, destroy infrastructure, and increase the prevalence of waterborne diseases. If drought conditions precede the rainfall, flooding occurs sooner because the rain runs off the dry, crusty surface directly into streams and rivers. When soils are dry, it takes longer for water to infiltrate the surface.
 
To review, see South Asia's Physical Landscape, Physical Geography of South Asia, Monsoon Rains and Clean Water in Pakistan, and The Maldives: Rising Seas and Coastal Development.
 

8b. Describe the patterns of human settlement in South Asia and the challenges associated with rapid population growth and urbanization

• Describe major patterns of human settlement in South Asia.
• What is the environmental impact of the population on Nepal's physical landscape?
• How has population growth contributed to the environmental issues that confront Pakistan and Bangladesh?
  

The earliest human settlers came to South Asia nearly 75,000 years ago. By 3,300 BCE, the first urban civilizations developed around the Indus River and relied on the monsoon rains to water their agricultural fields. After the Indus civilization, Aryans from Persia brought Sanskrit, and the foundations of the caste system and Hinduism settled in northern India. A series of empires – including the Maurya Empire, the Islamic Empire, the Mughal Empire, and finally, the British Empire – later occupied South Asia.
 
Today, high population growth is straining the resources of South Asia. From water to education, there is not enough to meet the needs of the people. The population density, the number of people per square mile, of these countries is staggering, and many people live in overcrowded conditions. The physiologic density, the number of people per square mile of arable land, of these countries is even higher.
 
The peripheral countries and buffer states of South Asia face a variety of environmental challenges. For example, Nepal's increasing population is straining its natural resources. Deforestation and soil erosion are on the rise as land is cleared for agricultural production to accommodate the growing population. Nepal also suffers from the environmental damage tourists cause at its many natural and cultural attractions.
 
Pakistan's and Bangladesh's resources are being depleted as their populations continue to grow. As two of the most densely populated countries in the world, arable land in Pakistan and Bangladesh is at a premium. Deforestation is widespread to clear land for crops and housing. Drinkable freshwater is another valuable resource that is increasingly scarce as the population grows.
 
Population growth also strains the existing water distribution and sewage infrastructure resulting in the discharge of pollutants into waterways. The summer rains brought by monsoons exacerbate the problem because water levels rise and rivers overflow their banks, carrying sewage and other pollutants into drinking water supplies. Waterborne diseases increase, and ecosystems are contaminated.
 
To review, see Patterns of Human Settlement in South Asia, South Asia's Population Dynamics, Challenges and Opportunities in South Asia, Geography of South Asia Modern Issues, Population Pyramids Help Predict the Future, and Population Pyramid for Bhutan.
 

8c. Explain how Britain's colonization of South Asia affected the evolution of the region's borders

• Why did the British Empire withdraw from South Asia in 1947?
• Describe how the British partition of India resulted in the sovereign states of Bangladesh and Pakistan.
• What evidence exists for the British Empire's influence on daily life in India and Pakistan?
  

The British Empire colonized most of South Asia during the 19th century. Through the trade activities of the British East India Company, Britain began establishing colonies in 1857. By 1947, the British Empire was no longer able to maintain control due to local resistance and the effects of its involvement in World War II – rebuilding Great Britain required substantial resources at home. As the British withdrew, they partitioned British India into India and Pakistan based on religious differences.
 
Following partition, India would accommodate the Hindu population, while Pakistan was designated for the Muslim population. Pakistan was divided into West and East Pakistan, but these areas were physically separated by 1,000 miles of Indian expanse and had many cultural differences.

Map of the Partition of India (1947)

When the partition occurred, many Hindus were left in Pakistan, and many Muslims were left in India. War broke out when the newly formed governments of Pakistan and India were unable to manage the mass migration of people attempting to reach their country of choice. Relations between West and East Pakistan were strained from the outset because their cultural differences exceeded the similarity of a shared religion (Islam). War eventually broke out between the two, resulting in a new sovereign state. The western portion of Pakistan remained Pakistan, while the eastern portion became Bangladesh.
 
In addition to creating the political boundaries of South Asia, English is one of the two official languages in Pakistan (Urdu and English) and India (Hindi and English). English is not an official language in Bangladesh, although it remains a lingua franca.
 
To review, see Patterns of Human Settlement in South Asia, Geography and Origins of Culture in South Asia, East versus West – the Myths that Mystify, Britain's Indian Empire, and The Partition of India (1947).
 

8d. Explain why Buddhism and Hinduism are tied to South Asia and how these religious ties have affected it

• What are some of the similarities and differences between Hinduism and Buddhism?
• How do the geographic branches of Buddhism vary?
• Which of the religions practiced in South Asia originated there?
• Where is Islam the dominant religion in South Asia?
  

The dominant religions in South Asia are Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam. Buddhism presides in Bhutan and Sri Lanka. Hinduism is prevalent in India and Nepal. Islam governs Bangladesh, Maldives, and Pakistan. Of these, Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, and Jainism originated in South Asia.
 
Hinduism and Buddhism originated in northern India and are the world's third- and fourth-largest religions. The population has practiced Hinduism in some form for more than 4,000 years, whereas Buddhism originated about 2,500 years ago. Hindus and Buddhists use some of the same basic vocabularies and have some similarities in terms of symbolism and practices. There are, of course, substantial differences. Below are a few examples.

• Hindus do not have a single founder.
• Buddhists renounce the caste system.
• Hindus worship deities and have the concept of a soul, but Buddhists do not.
• Buddhists do not recognize a God. Instead, they show reverence and devotion to the Buddha.
  

As Buddhism spread from northern India, different variations developed according to geography, what teachings were followed, and how monks were ordained, among other factors. The northern branch, Vajrayana Buddhism, is often called Tibetan Buddhism. The southern branch, Theravada Buddhism, is sometimes called Southern Buddhism. The eastern branch, Mahayana Buddhism, is often referred to as East Asian Buddhism. Regardless of the focus of each branch, all hold to the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path taught by the Buddha.
 
To review, see Patterns of Human Settlement in South Asia, Cultural Groups in South Asia, Geography and Origins of Culture in South Asia, and East versus West – the Myths that Mystify.
 

8e. Identify the reasons for ethnic and religious conflict in South Asia and barriers that have impeded economic development

• What role did partition play in the ethnic conflicts of South Asia?
• How have religious conflicts caused government instability in India and Sri Lanka?
  

South Asia has diverse cultures, ethnic landscapes, and religious beliefs. Some of the longest-lasting ethnic and religious conflicts in the region resulted from the British partition. This is especially true in border states of India, such as Jammu and Kashmir, where the government is primarily Hindu, but the population is 75 percent Muslim.
 
The British division of East and West Pakistan into two countries provides another example. Although separated by 1,000 miles, West Pakistan initially governed the western and eastern regions of the country. Although they share the religion of Islam, the cultural differences were too significant to overcome. The people living in East Pakistan felt ignored by West Pakistan.
 
The population of East Pakistan was predominantly Bengali – they speak the Bengali language, and we designate them as the people of the region around the Bay of Bengal. The administration in West Pakistan chose Urdu as the national language, a move that further alienated East Pakistan. Mass protests and violence led Bangladesh to form its own country in March 1971.
 
The various religions of India – Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism, Sikhism, Jainism, Christianity, and indigenous belief systems – have not coexisted peacefully. Although India is officially secular, most people have some attachment to religion, and religious conflicts continue to occur throughout the region.
 
In Sri Lanka, the majority Buddhist population has shaken its traditional peaceful image due to violent conflict between the minority Tamils and Muslims. Despite ethnic and religious turmoil throughout the 20th century, government and community leaders throughout South Asia have embraced new models of economic development and cooperation in the hope of reducing poverty and conflict in the region.
 
To review, see Patterns of Human Settlement in South Asia, Cultural Groups in South Asia, Geography and Origins of Culture in South Asia, South Asia's Population Dynamics, Challenges and Opportunities in South Asia, Geography of South Asia Modern Issues, Many Faces of Inequality in India, and How Can We Create Happy Societies?.
 

Unit 8 Vocabulary

This vocabulary list includes terms listed above that students need to know to successfully complete the final exam for the course.

• Aryans
• Bangladesh
• Bay of Bengal
• Bengali
• Buddhism
• buffer state
• caste system
• deforestation
• Four Noble Truths
• Ganges River
• Himalayas
• Hindi
• Hinduism
• India
• Indus civilization
• Indus River
• lingua franca
• monsoon
• Mount Everest
• Pakistan
• partition
• Sri Lanka
• Urdu
• Vajrayana Buddhism

Unit 9: East and Southeast Asia

9a. Summarize the physical geography of East and Southeast Asia, including its natural hazards and environmental challenges

• What impact do the Himalayan Mountains and the Tibetan Plateau have on the physical geography of China and Mongolia?
• Why is Japan prone to earthquakes?
• What features separate the mainland and insular regions of Southeast Asia?
  

Due to its proximity to tectonic plate boundaries, the realm of East Asia experiences earthquakes and volcanoes and includes some of the most dramatic landscapes. The Himalayan Mountains and the Tibetan Plateau resulted from a collision between the Indian tectonic plate and the Eurasian tectonic plate. Their influence extends beyond that collision zone into central and eastern China and southern Mongolia. The rain shadow effect of the Himalayan Mountains prevents moisture-laden air from reaching the Gobi Desert, which straddles China and Mongolia. In addition, the headwaters of the Yangtze (Yangzi) River and Yellow (Huang He) River are in the Tibetan Plateau. They are the third- and sixth-longest rivers in the world.
 
To the east of China, the islands of Japan are volcanic islands at the intersection of four tectonic plates and part of the Ring of Fire. Consequently, Japan is prone to earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions.
 
The Arakan Mountains and Naga Hills stretch across Myanmar and India to the south and southeast of China. China's Yunnan Plateau has rolling hills that divide Southeast Asia from the rest of the continent. The Mekong and Irrawaddy Rivers dominate this region.
 
Separated from mainland Southeast Asia by the South China Sea and the Strait of Malacca, the islands that comprise insular Southeast Asia are also part of the Ring of Fire, which means they are also prone to earthquakes, volcanoes, and tsunamis.
 
To review, see Physical Landscape of East and Southeast Asia, Southeast Asia Physical Geography, Living with Disasters, and East and Southeast Asia: History and Settlement.
 

9b. Identify the paths of human settlement throughout East and Southeast Asia, including its location as a cultural hearth

• Describe the earliest settlements in East and Southeast Asia.
• How did the Ice Age affect human settlement in the region?
• How did trade help spread important religions and philosophies across the region?
  

Human settlement in East and Southeast Asia began in China around 80,000 years ago. During the New Stone Age, the people in this region made advances in farming and agriculture, domesticated animals, and created pottery to use in their homes. They grew rice along China's Yangtze River around 6,500 BCE. They later formed villages, created walled cities, and eventually established some of the world's greatest dynasties, or families of rulers.
 
While some humans stayed in East Asia, others went along the coast and populated other areas of Southeast Asia approximately 50,000 years ago. All of this occurred during the glacial period we call the Ice Age, when huge ice sheets covered North America, Europe, and Asia. Since these huge glaciers trapped such vast amounts of water, ocean levels were much lower than they are today. The islands of Southeast Asia, including Indonesia and Malaysia, formed a single landmass known as Sunda, while Australia and New Guinea comprised another large landmass known as Sahul.
 
The Chinese dynasties that emerged after 3,300 BCE were largely isolationist and were protected by the physical barriers that separated mainland China from the rest of Asia, including the Himalayas, the western highlands, and the Gobi Desert in East Asia. These dynasties dominated the political landscape throughout much of the region's history. They established a vast network of trade routes, supported a strong military, and forged connections with the people who lived in Korea and Japan. China was unified under the Han dynasty.
 
During this time, several indigenous religions and philosophies developed in China, including Confucianism. Confucius believed communities benefit from creating strong relationships – within the family and among members of society as a whole. Confucianism emphasizes the importance of human goodness and self-reflection rather than the need to worship a divine being. Confucius also believed in promoting education. His teachings have dominated Chinese, Japanese, and Korean culture for centuries.
 
Southeast Asia, on the other hand, was less isolationist than China. Trade routes promoted the spread of Hinduism and later Buddhism throughout the region. Port cities and religious or ceremonial centers, such as Angkor Wat, thrived. Business and personal connections also promoted Islam throughout Southeast Asia, such as the Sufi missionaries who advanced a mystical branch of Islam. Today, Indonesia has the largest Muslim population in the world.
 
To review, see East and Southeast Asia: History and Settlement, Foundations of East Asian Culture, Management Lessons from Chinese Business and Philosophy, The Ancient, Earth-Friendly Wisdom of Mongolian Nomads, Rebuilding the Silk Road, A Metropolis Arose in Medieval Cambodia, and The Khmer Empire.

 

9c. Explain the impact of colonialism on the region, including the concepts of shatter belt, domino theory, and the implementation of communism

• What was the extent of European colonization in East Asia?
• What European and East Asian powers colonized the realm of Southeast Asia?
• Why did communism emerge in China?
• Why did the United States intervene in Vietnam?
  

East and Southeast Asia exhibit characteristics of a shatter belt, an area of political conflict between states. For example, their quest for new opportunities for trade motivated Portugal and Spain to reach Southeast Asia during the 16th century, followed by the Netherlands, Britain, and France.
 
Japan responded in kind to defend itself against Europe's imperial ambitions. In 1868, the Japanese Emperor Meiji ended the shogunate and promoted a series of reforms during the Meiji Restoration to modernize and industrialize the country as they began a systematic study of the developed world.
 
European colonizers were not able to conquer China in the same way they were able to dominate other parts of Southeast Asia. China was more technologically advanced than other societies. For example, they had established transportation networks and were using paper and gunpowder before these advances had spread to Europe. They had already recognized the necessity of clean water to avoid the spread of disease.
 
However, the Industrial Revolution soon gave the Europeans an advantage. The Europeans were able to produce goods more quickly than the Chinese. The British also resorted to increasing the availability of opium, so it was accessible throughout Chinese society. The Chinese government sought to counter the devastating effects of opium on the population by destroying this deadly drug trade. The British demanded compensation for the opium the Chinese government had destroyed, leading to the Opium Wars. Britain's superior weapon systems meant it was able to dictate the terms of the "peace" agreements that followed.
 
Other countries also had a colonial presence in China. Portugal predated the British, renting the island of Macau from China to use as a trading post until it gained full colonial control after the Opium Wars. Germany, France, Japan, and Russia also had a colonial influence on China.
 
Although the European colonizers were less involved in China as they recovered from the effects of World War I, Japan continued to expand its influence. Japan sought more territory for its population, occupying much of Southeast Asia and China during World War II, including Thailand, which the European powers had not colonized. Britain controlled Myanmar to the west, while France controlled Cambodia, Vietnam, and Laos to the east. The two colonial powers agreed to leave Thailand as a buffer between the territories they governed.
 
Throughout the 20th century, the nationalist Kuomintang-led government of the Republic of China and the Communist Party of China sought to control the country. Communist ideals had garnered popular support as the population responded to the exploitation of European colonialism.
 
In Europe, Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels observed the exploitation of the working class in Germany and Great Britain during the preceding century and presented an alternative system (communism) that would place the major means of production (mines, mills, factories, and railroads) and the resulting profits in the hands of the working class (proletariat).
 
When Mao Zedong's communist army claimed victory in 1949, Chiang Kai-shek's Nationalist government fled to Formosa (Taiwan). The Communists claimed the mainland as the People's Republic of China, and the Nationalists claimed Taiwan as the Republic of China.
 
As a site of competing colonial interests, Vietnam had long been pulled in different directions. By the time Vietnamese nationalist forces had pushed the French out of the country in 1954, there were competing visions for how Vietnam should move forward. Communist ideology had gained traction in the north, while the south preferred democracy and a free-market economy.
 
The international community picked sides: the Soviet Union supported the communist nationalists in the north, and the United States supported the non-communist faction to the south. U.S. policymakers feared Vietnam would "fall" to communism which would spread to its neighbors and shut out U.S. interests in Asia, according to the domino theory.
 
To review, see East and Southeast Asia's History and Settlement and Political Conflicts and Changes in East and Southeast Asia.

 

9d. Describe how factors such as location and population density have impacted the region's economic development, industrialization, and environmental challenges

• With so few natural resources, how can Japan be so successful economically?
• Who are the four Asian Tigers? How have these areas become economically successful?
• Explain why Singapore is an entrepôt for Southeast Asia.
• Why has the Philippines become attractive to global corporations?
  

Several factors helped Japan rebuild its economy after the devastation of World War II: Japan was an industrialized society before the war, the United States provided support to rebuild its infrastructure, and Japan's centripetal forces outweighed the centrifugal forces. Japan undertook major economic reforms, and the United States boosted the economy when it bought Japanese materials to fight in the Korean War.
 
Japan had become a dominant economic power despite its lack of natural resources. Centripetal forces (attitudes that unite people in support of the state) likely contributed to its economic success. Its population shares a common ethnic heritage and is not divided by competing interests. Its workforce is highly skilled and educated, savings rates and investment are generally high, and corporations take advantage of economies of scale. Japan's economic success is closely associated with its reputation for high-quality, durable manufactured goods.
 
Other parts of Asia have experienced high rates of economic growth, although China and Japan remain the region's largest economies. One example is the so-called Four Asian Tigers, a term referring to Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan. These nations industrialized quickly and developed export-driven economies, low taxes, and free trade.
 
Singapore's strategic central location has enabled it to serve as an entrepôt, a port where goods are imported, stored, traded, and exported. It is a shipping gateway and airport hub. Although Singapore is a free-market economy, it maintains tight control over economic development to encourage foreign investment, including authoritarian-like policies to maintain social stability.
 
It participates in a trade triangle with Malaysia and Indonesia to compensate for its lack of raw materials and inexpensive labor. For example, Singapore receives crude oil from Indonesia, refines it, and then ships it to global markets. Due to the high percentage of ethnic Chinese, foreign corporations use Singapore as a geographic and cultural gateway to China.
 
The Philippines has also attracted the attention of global corporations interested in business process outsourcing (BPO) because it is politically stable, has an educated, professional labor force, employment costs are low, and the long-term United States' military presence meant English as a lingua franca. BPO can include a range of functions, such as payment processing, technical support, and sales. Many global corporations have created call centers in the Philippines, India, and Singapore to take advantage of the cost savings from outsourcing.
 
To review, see Geography of East Asia: Modern Issues, Interpretations of Communism, Patterns of Economic Development in East and Southeast Asia, Global China into the 21st Century, Hong Kong's Handover to China, Architecture in Modern Singapore, Comparing Singapore and Hong Kong, China's Global Infrastructure Projects, and Deforestation.
 

9e. Identify and explain the origins of territorial tensions in the region

• What is the "One China" policy?
• Explain the core-periphery relationship between China and Tibet.
• Describe the differences between South and North Korea.
• Describe the plight of the Rohingya people.
  

Because the East Asia region exhibits the traits of a shatter belt, territorial tensions continue to be felt among various countries. For example, the People's Republic of China (PRC) asserts only one sovereign state can use the name China, an approach called the one-China policy. Its leaders oppose Taiwan's use of the Republic of China (ROC). The PRC believes Taiwan is part of China's territory and must be reunified with the mainland. However, neither the PRC nor the ROC considers the other to be the legitimate national government of China.
 
Another example of territorial tensions in the region is the tempestuous relationship between Tibet and China. Historically, Tibet has been an independent theocracy – the Dalai Lama is its head of state and spiritual leader. However, Tibet has been under China's control since 1950. The Dalai Lama has been in exile in India since 1950, and China abducted the Panchen Lama in 1995. Although we call Tibet one of China's autonomous regions, in practice, Tibet has little autonomy.
 
China's strategic interest in Tibet is due to geography and economics. Tibet buffers China from India and has valuable natural resources. As the rural periphery of China's urban core, Tibet can provide minerals, energy resources, and timber to support China's industrial development.
 
Similarly, the residents of Hong Kong (and much of the international community) had hoped China would continue following a policy that allowed Hong Kong to manage its own affairs as a free-market economy, with independent courts and protection of basic political rights. However, China changed course in 2020.
 
Most regard North Korea's version of communism as the most repressive in the world. Its citizens and centralized economy are tightly controlled; individuals cannot move freely and can only access state-run media. Living conditions for North Koreans are desperate, with food shortages and inadequate energy to provide electricity consistently.
 
It is not surprising that conflicts continue in East and Southeast Asia, given its colonial history and strategic location. In 2021, Myanmar's military seized power from a democratically-elected party in a coup. The military government has responded to protests with violence, and human rights abuses are widespread. Ethnic groups continue to fight for increased autonomy and independence.
 
The Rohingya are a Muslim community connected to Rakhine State in Myanmar. In 1882, Myanmar's Citizenship Law excluded the Rohingya from full citizenship because it claimed they were not an official indigenous race. The Rohingya have been violently driven from their homes with charges of genocide. However, few countries are willing to provide them with a safe haven.
 
To review, see Patterns of Economic Development in East and Southeast Asia, Political Conflicts and Changes in East and Southeast Asia, Interpretations of Communism, The Korean Peninsula at Night, A Year after Myanmar's Coup, The Rohingya Quest for Better Refuge, and Hong Kong's Handover to China.
 

Unit 9 Vocabulary

This vocabulary list includes terms listed above that students need to know to successfully complete the final exam for the course.

• Angkor Wat
• business process outsourcing (BPO)
• centripetal force
• communism
• Communist Party of China
• Confucianism
• Dalai Lama
• domino theory
• dynasty
• entrepôt
• Four Asian Tigers
• glacier
• Gobi Desert
• Han dynasty
• Hong Kong
• Ice Age
• Indonesia
• Irrawaddy River
• Kuomintang
• Macau
• Malaysia
• Meiji Restoration
• Mekong River
• Mongolia
• New Stone Age
• North Korea
• one-China policy
• Opium Wars
• People's Republic of China (PRC)
• Philippines
• proletariat
• Republic of China (ROC)
• Ring of Fire
• Rohingya
• shatter belt
• Singapore
• Strait of Malacca
• Taiwan
• Tibet
• Tibetan Plateau
• tsunami
• Yangtze (Yangzi) River
• Yellow (Huang He) River

Unit 10: Oceania

10a. Describe how the different landscapes in Oceania relate to their distance from tectonic plate boundaries and factors that have contributed to their high levels of biodiversity

• What are the principal geographic regions of Oceania?
• What is the difference between high and low islands?
• How are low islands related to high islands?
• Which regions are dominated by high or low islands?
  

Oceania is dominated by the maritime climate of the Pacific Ocean. Australia is the largest landmass in the region. It is relatively stable geologically because it lies in the middle of its own tectonic plate. The country is relatively flat, has no active volcanoes, and has only had a few large earthquakes. The interior of the country, known as the Outback, is dominated by arid deserts and grasslands. The Great Dividing Range of mountains separates the Outback from the more temperate forest on the eastern coast.
 
In addition to Australia, Oceania includes three major island groups located throughout the Pacific Ocean. Polynesia is a large, triangular region that stretches from New Zealand to Easter Island to the Hawaiian and Midway Islands. The large islands of Melanesia (New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, and Fiji) lie to the west of Polynesia, northeast of Australia. The tiny islands of Micronesia are north of Melanesia.
 
These three island groups are characterized by different types of islands. The distinction between high islands and low islands is based on their origin rather than their elevation. High islands are of volcanic origin, and low islands are coral atolls that were formed from the sedimentation or uplift of coral reefs. We see examples of low islands that are hundreds of feet in elevation. Nauru in Micronesia is 233 feet above sea level. Likewise, some high islands are only a few hundred feet above sea level.
 
High and low islands are often located near each other because low islands typically surround submerged extinct volcanoes as atolls. The islands that were once high have eroded so much that they have subsided, leaving only a ring of growing coral visible at the surface. Most of Micronesia is composed of low islands, whereas Polynesia and Melanesia have many high islands. All three regions intersect the Pacific Ring of Fire.
 
To review, see Map of Australia and New Zealand, Melanesia, Micronesia, Polynesia, and Physical Landscape of Oceania.
 

10b. Explain how political struggles among members of the international community have influenced Antarctica and the world's oceans

• What countries claimed territory in Antarctica before 1959?
• Explain what the Antarctic Treaty regulates.
• Who lives in Antarctica?
  

Before 1959, seven countries claimed territory in Antarctica: Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, New Zealand, Norway, and the United Kingdom. Friction among several claimant countries led to negotiations that resulted in the Antarctic Treaty, which regulates international relations regarding Antarctica.
 
In addition to the seven claimants, five additional countries signed the Antarctic Treaty: Belgium, Japan, South Africa, the United States, and the Soviet Union. There are now 54 signatories to the Antarctic Treaty.
 
Countries that want consultative status demonstrate their commitment to the continent by engaging in substantial research there. The signatories have agreed to set the continent aside as a scientific preserve that is restricted to peaceful purposes. The Treaty bans military activity, resource extraction, and waste disposal.
 
The most recent action to increase the environmental protection of Antarctica was the Madrid Protocol in 1998. One of the new key provisions of the Treaty is a requirement that all activities, including tourism, undergo an environmental assessment. Antarctica does not have a native human population. The people who live there staff research stations: about 1,000 people are there in the winter and about 5,000 in the summer.
 
To review, see World's Oceans and Polar Frontiers, Haunting Photos of Polar Ice, and Exploring Antarctica: To the South Pole and Back.

 

10c. Relate the dynamic nature of the polar regions to climate change, including how the physical attributes of the countries in Oceania affect their ability to respond

• Why are the effects of global warming on Antarctica critical for the entire world?
  

As Earth's atmospheric temperature increases, Antarctica's ice pack decreases. In addition to the rising global sea level as the Antarctic ice sheet melts, global temperatures have been increasing. Without white snow and ice to reflect the Sun's rays, the remaining darker surfaces will absorb solar radiation, further increasing the temperature of Earth's atmosphere. The higher temperatures will also cause more extreme weather events.
 
The global sea level rise will drastically affect the countries in Oceania. The coral atolls of the Pacific are particularly vulnerable to rising sea levels because many are only slightly above sea level. Many risk being totally submerged. Rising sea levels will also damage high islands by contaminating their fresh water supplies and agricultural land.
 
To review, see World's Oceans and Polar Frontiers, Haunting Photos of Polar Ice, and Exploring Antarctica: To the South Pole and Back.
 

10d. Describe the factors contributing to Oceania's varying degrees of urbanization, economic activities, and patterns of settlement

• How has the relative isolation of Oceania affected its economic activities?
  

It took thousands of years and advances in navigation and ocean transportation for humans to settle the rest of the Pacific islands. People gradually migrated to Melanesia and Fiji by 900 BCE, and then east and north. Humans did not populate the far reaches of Polynesia, including Hawaii and Easter Island, until much later due to the long distances that separate their landmasses. The islands of New Zealand were one of the last to be settled – Eastern Polynesians did not arrive until around 1,250 CE. The population established themselves as the Māori.

Map of Human Migrations across the Pacific Islands

The countries of Oceania struggle economically due to their relative distance and isolation from other world regions. We call this the tyranny of distance. Most of the economies are based on exports, which are more expensive since they must be shipped. Of course, imports also require shipping. Some islands have adopted import-substitution industries to replace foreign imports with domestic production.
 
Australia is relatively unique among developed countries because its economy is heavily based on commodity exports. Geography plays a major role in its export-oriented economy. Australia has a significant amount of natural resources – it exports more coal than any other country and has the world's second-largest diamond mine.
 
Geography is key to the economic development of the Pacific's smaller islands, whose natural resources tend to be limited. These remote islands rely on long shipping routes, and many depend on trade with Australia, China, Japan, New Zealand, and the United States. Many residents speak Pidgin English, a simplified form of English, in addition to their native tongue. Tourism offers a significant source of income for many Pacific countries, such as the islands of Fiji.
 
To review, see The Patterns of Human Settlement in Australia and the Pacific, Australia's Core Areas, and Population Density of New Zealand.
 

10e. Summarize the human geography of Oceania before and after colonialism and the role isolation plays in the region in terms of global connectivity

• Why are the Pacific islands considered an extreme peripheral realm?
• Long self-sufficient, why must many Pacific Islands now rely on core regions for economic support?
• How has globalization affected the islands of the Pacific?
• Explain why tourism is important to the economies of the Pacific Islands.
  

We consider all three regions of the Pacific – Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia – an extreme peripheral realm because their natural resources have not, historically, been vital to any core areas.
 
Fishing has long supported the economies of the Pacific Islands, but overfishing has made maintaining this food staple impossible. Increasing population rates have exacerbated the problem of low fish stocks. Consequently, the Pacific Islands are increasingly dependent on the world's core regions to feed their population and gain national wealth. Although some islands have natural resources, such as the phosphates mined on the Micronesian island of Nauru, most depend on their attractive climate and beaches. Tourism is a major source of revenue.
 
Several islands and archipelagos are under the jurisdiction of the United States, France, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand. Consequently, western culture has significantly influenced the traditional cultures of Guam, the Northern Marianas Islands, Wake Island, American Samoa, the Hawaiian Islands, New Caledonia, French Polynesia, Pitcairn Islands, and the Cook Islands. Modern technology has made globalization inevitable even among the independent countries of the Pacific Island realm. The islands of the Pacific are not as isolated as they once were.
 
To review, see The Patterns of Human Settlement in Australia and the Pacific, Stories My Family Forgot: Assimilation of Indigenous Communities, Australian Residents by Country of Birth, Pacific Nations Grapple with COVID's Terrible Toll, and Laws Governing Undersea Cables Have Hardly Changed Since 1884.
 

10f. Summarize the main environmental concerns of the Pacific islands, including how different types of islands respond to the effects of climate change

• What natural hazards threaten many of these islands?
• Why is freshwater in short supply on many islands?
• How is climate change expected to affect the Pacific Islands?
  

Various environmental issues challenge the regions of the Pacific Islands. Troops from Japan, the United States, and New Zealand all fought on the islands during World War II. Guam, Hawaii, Fiji, and New Caledonia were particularly affected by deforestation, ordnance dumping, and the introduction of invasive species, among other forms of environmental degradation.
 
During the Cold War, France, the United Kingdom, and the United States tested their nuclear weapons on the islands of the Pacific. For example, the United States detonated its nuclear weapons on the Bikini Atoll, which is part of the Marshall Islands in eastern Micronesia. Radioactive fallout and the presence of unexploded ordinances (bombs, shells, grenades, and land mines), which often kill and maim farmers and other passersby, remain a concern.
 
Because many Pacific islands are part of the Ring of Fire, they are vulnerable to volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, and tsunami waves. Their remote locations complicate evacuation efforts.
 
The increasing population on many of these islands has also strained their freshwater supplies. The islands must rely on rainfall to replenish their freshwater resources.
 
In addition to these challenges, sea level rise due to climate change threatens the existence of many of these island countries. The islands of Kiribati in Micronesia and Polynesia may, for example, become completely submerged. On other islands, sea level rise means the contamination of freshwater supplies and agricultural land, and other hazards.
 
To review, see The Changing Landscape of Oceania, Kiribati and Sea Level Rise, My Country Will Be Underwater Soon Unless We Work Together, Antarctica's Riskiest Glacier Is Under Assault, and Ordinance Dumping and Environmental Degradation.
 

Unit 10 Vocabulary

This vocabulary list includes terms listed above that students need to know to successfully complete the final exam for the course.

• Antarctica
• Antarctic Treaty
• Australia
• Bikini Atoll
• commodity export
• coral atoll
• Easter Island
• environmental degradation
• extreme peripheral realm
• high island
• ice pack
• ice sheet
• Kiribati
• low island
• Madrid Protocol
• maritime climate
• Melanesia
• Micronesia
• Māori
• Nauru
• Oceania
• Outback
• Pidgin English
• Polynesia
• sea level rise
• tourism
• tyranny of distance