an overview of geography year2

AN OVERVIEW OF GEOGRAPHY

2nd gradersSocial Studies Department

Almudena Corrales Marbán


1. IntroductionThe science of geography is likely the oldest of all sciences.

Geography is the answer to the question that the earliest

humans asked, "What's over there?" Exploration and the

discovery of new places, new cultures, and new ideas have

always been basic components of geography.

Thus, geography is often called the "mother of all

sciences" as studying other people and other places led to

other scientific fields such as biology, anthropology, geology,

mathematics, astronomy, chemistry, among others.


2. What does the word geography mean?The word "geography" was invented by the ancient Greek scholar Eratosthenes and literally means "writing about the earth." The word can be divided into two parts - ge and graphy. Ge means the Earth and graphy refers to writing.

In Spanish we would say – “geo” y “grafía”-. Geo significa Tierra y grafía, escritura. Por lo tanto escritura o descripción de la Tierra.

Of course, geography today means much more than writing about the Earth but it's a difficult discipline to define. Many geographers have done their best to define geography but a typical dictionary definition today reads, "The science of the Earth's physical features, resources, climate, population, etc."


Just let you know some definitions of Geography along history:

"The purpose of geography is to provide 'a view of the whole' earth by mapping the location of places." - Ptolemy, 150 CE

"Synoptic discipline synthesizing findings of other sciences through the concept of Raum (area or space)." - Immanuel Kant, c. 1780

"Synthesizing discipline to connect the general with the special through measurement, mapping, and a regional emphasis." - Alexander von Humboldt, 1845


To reinforce this aspect please watch:

http://geography.about.com/od/studygeography/a/geog101.htm


3. Divisions of GeographyToday, geography is commonly divided into two major branches - cultural geography (also called human geography) and physical geography.

In Spain, geographers usually divided it into:

1. Geografía física.2. Geografía humana

Y podemos añadir:3. Geografía económica

4. Geografía políticaEstas dos pueden incluirse

dentro de la humana.


3.1. Physical Geography

Physical geography is the branch of geography

dealing with the natural features of the

Earth, the home of humans. Physical geography

looks at the water, air, animals, and land of

the planet Earth (i.e. everything that is part of

the four spheres - the atmosphere, biosphere,

hydrosphere, lithosphere). Physical geography is

closely related to geography's sister science -

geology - but physical geography focuses more

on the landscapes at the surface of the Earth

and NOT WHAT IS INSIDE OUR PLANET.

REMEMBER !

Physical Geography LOOKS AT:

everything that is part of the four

spheres – the

atmosphere, biosphere,

hydrosphere, lithosphere


Cultural geography is the branch of geography

dealing with human culture and its impact on

the Earth.

Cultural geographers study:

Languages

Population

Religion Politics

Agriculture

Urban areas AND

MORE…

3.1. Human/Cultural Geography


3.3. Other key areas

Other key areas of geography include

regional geography (which involves the

in-depth study and knowledge of a

particular region and its cultural as well as

its physical characteristics) and

geographic technologies like GIS

(geographic information systems) and GPS

(global positioning system).


4. WHAT DO GEOGRAPHERS DO?You might wonder……….and what do geographers do? Are they so important?

Of course, they are!Geographers are everywhere, governments receive specialised reports on:

• Geology

• Town planning

• Freshwater lake ecosystems

• Other environmental impacts

• Traffic impacts

• Economics

an overview of geography year2

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