The Nature of

Geography
CHAPTER 1

Rem 322 HUMAN AND PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY 20636 6:31-8:01PM

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What is GEOGRAPHY?
It is from Greek word, geographia,
THE NATURE OF GEOGRAPHY

literally "earth description" is a

field of science devoted to the study
of the lands, the features, the
inhabitants, and the phenomena of
Earth.
Geography is a broad division of human
knowledge which is concerned with the
study of the Earth's surface and its
relation to the activities of man.
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Webster defines geography as the science
of the earth and its life specially the
description of land , sea and air, and
the distribution of plants and animals
THE NATURE OF GEOGRAPHY

including man and his industries, with

reference to the mutual relations of
these elements.

Geography is simply captioned as "land

and people". Such a description indicates
the physical environment of the earth and
how it is related to its inhabitants, the
people.
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What is the relationship of
man in geography?
Man is the architect of the earth's surface.
THE NATURE OF GEOGRAPHY

He fashions and modifies it according to his

needs. The man-made features include the
different types of settlements.
All in geography is the study of the earth
as the home of man.
Man has always been concerned with the
nature of his homeland and the known world,
but it was not until the Golden Age of
Greece, where the science of geography was
firmly established.
THE NATURE OF GEOGRAPHY

History of
Geography
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Greeks
THE NATURE OF GEOGRAPHY

were the first known people to actively explore

geography as a science and philosophy with
major contributors including the famous
philosopher Aristotle
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Romans
THE NATURE OF GEOGRAPHY

added dimensions to the study by introducing

the concept of mapping as they explored new
lands to conquer
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Arabs
THE NATURE OF GEOGRAPHY

during the Medieval period, pursued geography

and maintained the Greek and Roman learnings
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Europeans
THE NATURE OF GEOGRAPHY

when Marco Polo published the accounts in his

journeys, Europe became interested in geography
mainly for economic reasons
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Geographia Generalis and
The Maps of the World
THE NATURE OF GEOGRAPHY

by Bernhardus Varenius and Gerardus Mercator

respectively;
the contributions of these well-known names in
geography expanded and enriched the field of
geography during the Renaissance period until
the end of 16th and 17th centuries, when the
great voyages of exploration revived a desire
for solid theoretical foundations and accurate
detail.
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by 18th century
THE NATURE OF GEOGRAPHY

geogprahy became recognized as a distinct

discipline and became part of a typical
university curriculum
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Alexander von Humboldt
Karl Ritter
THE NATURE OF GEOGRAPHY

the modern period of geography began toward the

end of 18th century
where two principal methods of approach to
geography can be distinguished:
the systematic, following Humboldt
the regional, following Ritter
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German and French

schools
THE NATURE OF GEOGRAPHY

were the most influential and developed

national schools of geography
German schools which dealt mainly with
physical geography developed a scientific
and analytical style of writing
French schools known for its descriptive
regional monographs presented in a lucid and
flowing manner; human and historical
geography were its forte
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Since the end of WWII

geography has experienced the explosion of

THE NATURE OF GEOGRAPHY

knowledge brought on by the new tools of modern

technology for the acquisition and manipulation
of data
they include:
aerial photography
remote sensors including infrared
satellite photography
and the computer for quantitative analysis
and mapping
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since the 1950s
THE NATURE OF GEOGRAPHY

the quantitative method of geographical

research has gained much ground
the leading exponents were:
Edward Ullman and William Garrison of the US
and Peter Haggett of Great Britain
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To the advancement and

development of geography
THE NATURE OF GEOGRAPHY

important contributions have been made by,

from Germany:
Ferdinand von Richthofen, Albert Penck,
Friedrich Ratzel, Alfred Hettner, Karl
Haushofer and Walter Christaller
from France:
Paul Vidal de la Blache, Jean Brunhes, Conrad
Malte-Brun, Elisee Reclus and Emmanuel de
Martonne
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To the advancement and

development of geography
THE NATURE OF GEOGRAPHY

important contributions have been made by,

from the United States:
William Morris Davis, Isaiah Bowman, Ellen
Churchill Semple, Carl O. Sauer, Albert Brigham
and Richard Hartshorne
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Today
THE NATURE OF GEOGRAPHY

geography is studied by governmental agencies

and in many of the universities of the world
geographic institutions like the
Royal Geographical Society of Great Britain
the American Geographical Society in the US
and the Societe de Geographie in France
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The Elements
of Geography
THE NATURE OF GEOGRAPHY

an analysis of the human habitat

indicates that its nature results from
the interaction of new groups.
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The Elements of Geography

THE ELEMENTS OF GEOGRAPHY

1. Physical or natural

2. Cultural or Human

3. Holistic synthesis
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Physical or Natural
THE ELEMENTS OF GEOGRAPHY

this includes the structure of the

environment including climate, landforms, and
other natural patterns which illustrates the
role of the physical elements as the backdrop
of human behavior.
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Cultural or Human
THE ELEMENTS OF GEOGRAPHY

covers the effect of human behavior on the

environment or the elements that resuts from
his presence. It also includes looking at
cultural, economic, and political impacts.
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Rocks and Minerals Population

Landforms Settlements

Soils Economic Activities

THE ELEMENTS OF GEOGRAPHY

Animals Transportation

Water Recreational Activities

Plants Religion

Atmosphere Political Systems

Rivers and Other Water Bodies Social Traditions

Environment Human Migration

Climate and Weather Agricultural Systems

Ocean Urban Systems

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Holitic Synthesis
THE ELEMENTS OF GEOGRAPHY

connects knowledge from a variety of

academic fields in both human and
physical geography.
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Hydrology Social Geography

Climatology Cultural Geography

THE ELEMENTS OF GEOGRAPHY

Biogeography Economic Geography

Holistic
Synthesis
Geomorphology Behavioral Geography

Meteorology Political Geography

Pedology Urban Geography

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Branches of
Geography
THE NATURE OF GEOGRAPHY

Regional Geography
Topical Geography
Physical Geography
Human Geography
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Regional
Geography
BRANCHES OF GEOGRAPHY

deals with all or many of the

geographic elements of a place or
region. Within the region, it
investigates and analyzes the
distribution and association of
elements which give the region its
distinctive character.
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Geography
BRANCHES OF GEOGRAPHY

concentrates on the study of one

earth feature or human activity as
it occurs throughout the world.

woldwide pattern of soil

quality
railroad transportation
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Physical is concerned with the location of such

earth features as land, water, and

Geography
climate; their relationship to one
another and to human activities; and the
forces that create and change them.
BRANCHES OF GEOGRAPHY

Branches of Physical Geography:

GEOMORPHOLOGY
CLIMATOLOGY
MATHEMATICAL GEOGRAPHY
OCEANOGRAPHY
BIOGEOGRAPHY
MEDICAL GEOGRAPHY
PEDOGENESIS
HYDROLOGY
METEOROLOGY
 GEOMORPHOLOGY - studies land and water MATHEMATICAL GEOGRAPHY - has to do with 30

forms as well as the development of the accurate measurements of the earth and
irregularities in the surface of the earth. the calculation of the exact location of
glaciation river floodplains points on the earth's surface such as the
underground caves shorelines exact location of a city in latitude and
coral reefs sand dunes longitude.
volcanic features the erosion cycle
BRANCHES OF PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY

BIOGEOGRAPHY - study of the geographical

distribution of plants, known as PLANT
CLIMATOLOGY - analyzes differences and
GEOGRAPHY and as PHYTOGEOGRAPHY, and of
similarities in climate from place to
animals, known as ZOOGEOGRAPHY.
place.
- it is also related to ecology, which
wind movements cloud formation
studies the relationship between plants
temperature changes
and animals and their habitat or
precipitation of all kinds
environment.

OCEANOGRAPHY - study of the ocean and its MEDICAL GEOGRAPHY - study of the
phenomena, current wave activity, relationship between disease-causing
temperature differences, and tides. organisms and their physical environment.
 PEDOGENESIS - deals with the process of METEOROLOGY - scientific study of the 31

soil formation. atmosphere and its associated phenomena.

pedon - is a basic soil sampling unit atmosphere - the vast gaseous envelope
that that is often viewed as a soil of air that surrounds the earth.
profile that goes from the surface to a
depth where soil meets bedrock.
BRANCHES OF PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY

HYDROLOGY - study of hydrosphere.

hydro - is GREEK for water.
Forms of WATER:
atmosphere oceans
lakes rivers
glaciers snowfeilds
groundwater

WATER MOVEMENTS:
evaporation condensation
precipitation desposition
runoff infiltration transpiration
sublimation groundwater flow
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Human also known as anthropology.

Its primary concern is man and his works

Geography
so that it is closely allied with the
other social sciences such as economics,
political science, history, sociology,
BRANCHES OF GEOGRAPHY

and anthropology.

Types of Human Geography:

CULTURAL GEOGRAPHY
POPULATION GEOGRAPHY
POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY
HISTORICAL GEOGRAPHY
ECONOMIC GEOGRAPHY
URBAN GEOGRAPHY
BEHAVIORAL GEOGRAPHY
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CULTURAL GEOGRAPHY - study of the distribution
of cultural traits such as customs,
traditions, taboos, religions, dialects, and
dwellings.
TYPES OF HUMAN GEOGRAPHY

POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY - study of

the relationship between political
unit such as provinces or states,
nations, or unions of nations.

POPULATION GEOGRAPHY - study of the numbers

and distibution of people. Political geographer also study how
boundaries are drawn, how well
The population geographer deals with regional these are observed, and the
differences in numbers, ethnic groupings, probable problems or disputes they
religious compositions, and rate of population may create.
growth.
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HISTORICAL GEOGRAPHY - study of the URBAN GEOGRAPHY - study of cities with the
manner by which geographical patterns of important roles cities play in the life of
man and his works change through time; a nation.
or it may place emphasis only on the
complete geography of a small region at It is the study of the site of a city and
a certain time. how it has influenced the type and
direction of its growth, the function of a
TYPES OF HUMAN GEOGRAPHY

city and its specializations if there are

ECONOMIC GEOGRAPHY - study of the widely any, as well as the suburbs or its so-
varying economic conditions across the called support area with which the city has
earth. strong commercial ties.
resource availability
GEOLOGY cost of transportation
land use BEHAVIORAL GEOGRAPHY - is the branch of
natural resource availability geography that inductively explores
CLIMATE working conditions bahavior and the rationale behind the
productivity decision-making process and the
SOCIO- production of models replicating such
POLITICAL economic decisions behavior.
FACTOR
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WORLD GEOGRAPHY

the world is a book and those who do

not travel read only a page

THANK YOU
- St. Augustine

SO MUCH!