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World Geography
Chapter 3 & 4 Vocab
Term | Definition |
---|---|
Culture | The way of life that distinguishes a people, for example, government, language, religion customs, and beliefs |
Population Density | the average number of people living in a given area |
Birthrate | the number of live births each year per 1,000 people |
immirant | a person who moves into a country |
Emigrant | a person who leaves a country to live elsewhere |
Urbanization | the growth of city populations |
Rural | of, or characteristic of, the countryside |
Culture Hearth | a place in which important ideas begin and thereafter spread to surrounding cultures |
Culture Convergence | the contact and interaction of one culture with another |
Diffusion | the process by which a culture element is transmitted from one group or individual group to another |
Cultural Divergence | the restriction of a culture from outside influences |
Sovereignty | the country's freedom and power to decide on policies and actions |
Unitary System | a system government in which one central government holds most of the political power |
Federation | a government structure in which some powers are given to the national government and other powers are reserved for more local governments |
Confederation | a system of government in which individual political units keep their sovereignty but give limited power to central government |
Authoritarian | Descriptive of a system of government in which leaders hold all political power |
Dictatorship | a system of government in which absolute power is held by a small group or one person |
Totalitarianism | A system of government in which a central authority controls all aspects and society |
Monarchy | A system of authoritarian government headed by monarch- a king, queen, shah, or sultan- whose position is usually inherited |
Democracy | a system of government in which the people are invested with the power to choose their leaders and determine government policy |
Traditional Economy | An economic system in which families produce goods and services for their own use, with little surplus and exchange of goods; also known as a subsistence economy |
Market Economy | An economic system in which decisions about production, price, and other economic factors are determined by the law of supply and demand |
Command Economy | An economic system that is controlled by a single central government |
Natural Resource | A material in the natural environment that people value and use to satisfy their needs |
Renewable Resource | a natural resource that the environment continues to supply or replace as it is used |
Nonrenewable resource | a natural resource that cannot be replaced once it is used |
fossil fuel | Any one of several nonrenewable mineral resources formed from the remains of ancient plants and animals used for fuel |
nuclear energy | A type of energy produced by fission- the splitting of uranium atoms in nuclear reactor, releasing stored energy |
water power | Energy produced from falling water to move machinery or generate electricity |
geothermal power | Energy produced from the Earth's intense interior heat |
solar energy | Energy produced by the sun |
primary economic activity | an economic activity that takes or uses natural resources directly, such as fishing or mining |
subsistence farming | farming that provides only enough for the needs of a family or a village |
commercial farming | the raising of crops and livestock for sale in markets |
secondary economic activity | an economic activity in which people use raw materials to produce or manufacture new products of greater value |
cottage industry | a small-scale manufacturing operation using little technology, often located in or near people's homes |
commercial industry | a large-scale manufacturing operation the employs many people and produces large quantities of goods. |
tertiary economic activity | an economic activity in which people do not directly gather or process raw materials but pursue activities that serve others: service industry |
quaternary economic activity | an economic activity that focuses on the acquisition, processing, and sharing of information, such as education or research |
export | an item that is sent out of the country for sale |
import | an item that is brought into the country for sale |