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 |
immigrant | 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 |
cultural convergence | The contact and interaction of one culture with another |
diffusion | The process by which a cultural element is transmitted from one group or individual to another |
cultural divergence | The restriction of a culture from outside influences |
sovereignty | A country's freedom and power to decide on policies and actions |
unitary system | A system of 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 a central government |
authoritarian | Descriptive of a system of government in which leaders hold all political power by a monarch-a king, queen, shah, or sultan-whose position is usually inherited |
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 of society |
monarchy | A system of authoritarian government headed by a 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 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 a nuclear reactor, releasing stored energy |
water power | Energy produced by falling water to move machinery or generate electricity |
geothermal energy | 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 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 that 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 |