Topic outline of geography

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Geography is the study of the earth and its features, inhabitants, and phenomena.^[1] A literal translation would be "to describe or write about the Earth". The first person to use the word "geography" was Eratosthenes (276-194 B.C.). Four historical traditions in geographical research are the spatial analysis of natural and human phenomena (geography as a study of distribution), area studies (places and regions), study of man-land relationship, and research in earth sciences.^[2] Nonetheless, modern geography is an all-encompassing discipline that foremost seeks to understand the world and all of its human and natural complexities – not merely where objects are, but how they have changed and come to be. As "the bridge between the human and physical sciences," geography is divided into two main branches – human geography and physical geography.^[3]

The following outline is provided as an overview of and introduction to geography:

Map of the Earth

[edit] Essence of geography

Main articles: Geography and World

The themes of the 18 National Geography Standards of the National Council for Geographic Education include the following topics^[4][5][6]:

[edit] Branches of geography

Geography is divided into two main branches: physical geography and human geography. Each of these branches is divided into a number of subfields:

[edit] Geographic multi-disciplinary fields

Fields that draw upon various disciplines and have applications in geography:

• Cartography
• Demography and demographics
• Ethnography
• Geoarchaeology
• Geographic information science
• Geostatistics
• Philosophy of geography

[edit] Location and place

Concepts concerning location or place:

Atlas Climate Distance decay First law of geography Geocode Location Absolute location Latitude Prime meridian Longitude Equator Tropic of Cancer Tropic of Capricorn

Population Demographics Population Density Overpopulation World population Sense of place Terrain Topography Tourist attraction

Population density per square kilometre by country, 2006

[edit] The tasks and tools of geography

Main articles: Geosophy and Philosophy of geography

The approaches and activities of geographers, and the tools they use:

Exploration Geocode Geographic information system Globe

Maps Atlas Map making (cartography) Map projection Demographics Spatial analysis Surveying

The equal-area Mollweide projection

[edit] The World

Main article: World

The field of geography does not operate in a vacuum, and is greatly interconnected with other fields of study. This is most evident at the global level.

[edit] Geography, earth science, and Earth's spheres

A false-color composite of global oceanic and terrestrial photoautotroph abundance from September 1997 to August 2000, showing Earth's biosphere. Provided by the SeaWiFS Project, NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center and ORBIMAGE.

Main articles: Earth science and Earth's spheres

Geography is a key component of earth science, used along with physics, geology, meteorology, mathematics, chemistry and biology to build a quantitative understanding of the principal areas or interactive spheres of the Earth system, including its:

• Hydrosphere - all water found on, under, and over the surface of Earth
• Biosphere - all life on Earth
• Lithosphere - the crust and the uppermost mantle of Earth
• Atmosphere - the gases that surround the Earth (its air)

Other interpretations of this model of the Earth include the following additional spheres:

• Pedosphere - the outermost layer of the Earth that is composed of soil and subject to soil formation processes
• Geosphere - solid parts of Earth (which consist mostly of rock and regolith)
• Anthroposphere - all parts of Earth modified by humans
• Cryosphere - sometimes included in the hydrosphere, the ice on Earth (ice caps, glaciers, etc.)

[edit] Regions of the world

Main articles: Region, Subregions, Location, and Lists of places

Regions are areas, and can be defined by physical characteristics, human characteristics, and functional characteristics. The term is used in various ways among the different branches of geography. A region can be seen as a collection of smaller units, such as a country and its political divisions, or as one part of a larger whole, as in a country on a continent.

[edit] The Continents

Main article: Continent

A continent is one of several large landmasses on Earth. They are generally identified by convention rather than any specific criteria, but seven areas are commonly regarded as continents. They are:

Earth may have had a single supercontinent called "Pangaea"

1. Africa

2. Antarctica

3. Australia

The Americas:

4. List of basic North America topics

5. List of basic South America topics

Eurasia:

6. Europe

7. Asia

[edit] Biogeographic regions

Map of six of the world's eight ecozones      Nearctic      Palearctic      Afrotropic      Indomalaya      Australasia      Neotropic      Oceania and Antarctic ecozones not shown

[edit] Ecozone

Main article: Ecozone

The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) developed a system of eight biogeographic realms (ecozones):

• Nearctic 22.9 mil. km² (including most of North America)
• Palearctic 54.1 mil. km² (including the bulk of Eurasia and North Africa)
• Afrotropic 22.1 mil. km² (including Sub-Saharan Africa)
• Indomalaya 7.5 mil. km² (including the South Asian subcontinent and Southeast Asia)
• Australasia 7.7 mil. km² (including Australia, New Guinea, and neighbouring islands). The northern boundary of this zone is known as the Wallace line.
• Neotropic 19.0 mil. km² (including South America and the Caribbean)
• Oceania 1.0 mil. km² (including Polynesia, Fiji and Micronesia)
• Antarctic 0.3 mil. km² (including Antarctica).

[edit] Ecoregions

Main article: Ecoregion

Ecozones are further divided into ecoregions. The World has over 800 terrestrial ecoregions. See Lists of ecoregions by country.

[edit] Countries of the World

Main article: Political division

A political division, usually a country, is a region under the control of a government. Countries are further divided into administrative divisions including states, counties, cities, etc.

• Countries with more than one capital

[edit] Countries by continent

Countries of Africa	Countries of Asia	Countries of Europe
Countries of North America	Countries of Oceania	Countries of South America

More territories: Bouvet Island • French Southern Territories • Heard Island and McDonald Islands • South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands • Antarctic territorial claims

[edit] Country subdivision types

Main article: Country subdivision

A country subdivision is a designated territory created within a country for administrative or identification purposes. Examples of the types of country subdivisions:

Bailiwick Canton Commune County Department District Duchy Emirate Federal state Parish Prefecture Province Region

Rural district Settlement Municipality City Borough Township Village Shire State Subdistrict Subprefecture Voivodeship

Provinces and territorial disputes of the People's Republic of China .

[edit] More region or area types

• Biodiversity hotspot
• Geographical zone
• Hardiness zone
• Industrial region
• Mainland
• Metropolitan area
• Special Economic Zone
• Time zone

[edit] Some specific areas

• Atlantic World
• Bermuda Triangle
• Pacific Rim
• Pacific Ring of Fire

[edit] Geographical features

Regions are further differentiated by virtue of being geographical features, or by the geographical features in them (or both). A geographical feature is a landform, a body of water, or an artificial creation large enough to show up on a regional map.

[edit] Natural geographical features

Features of the World that are naturally occurring:

[edit] Landforms

Main article: Landform

A landform is part of the terrain, defined by its shape and location in the landscape, and is typically an element of topography. Landforms are characterized by aspects such as elevation, slope, orientation, stratification, rock exposure, and soil type. Examples of landforms:

Arroyo Badlands Beach Bluff Canyon Cave Cove Cliff Coast Coral reef Crater, impact Crater, volcanic Cuesta Dell Delta Desert Escarpment Forest Geyser Glacier Grassland Gulch Headland Cape Hill Dune Foothills Hoodoo Island Archipelago Atoll Islet Volcanic arc Highland

Isthmus Landmass Continent Large island Supercontinent Lowland Meadow Mesa Mountain Mountain pass Mountain range Moraine Pingo Plain Prairie Savanna Steppe Tundra Plateau Presque-isle Promontory Peninsula Reef Ridge Sandbar Spit Subterranea Valley (also vale, or dale) Cirque Gully Ravine Volcano Watershed

The Ganges river delta in India and Bangladesh is one of the most fertile regions in the world. The volcano Mount St. Helens in Washington, United States.

[edit] Bodies of water

Main article: Body of water

A body of water is any significant accumulation of water on a geographical scale. Some bodies of water can be man-made, but most are naturally occurring. Some bodies of water collect and move water, such as rivers and streams, and others primarily hold water, such as lakes and oceans. Bodies of water that are navigable are known as waterways.

Arch Channel Geyser Inlet Bay Gulf Sound Cove Estuary Firth Fjord Lagoon Lake Oxbow lake Loch Ocean Pond

River Sea Source of a river Spring Strait Stream Tide pool Vernal pool Waterfall Waterway Wetland Bog Fen Marsh Mudflat Swamp

Fjord in Sunnmøre, Norway

[edit] Manmade geographical features

Manmade geographical features, artificial creations large enough that they may show up on a regional map,:

Airport Aqueduct Artificial dwelling hill Artificial island Artificial reef Breakwater Bridge Canal Causeway Dam Dike Levee Farm Manmade harbor Marina Nation National park Nature reserve Orchard Park Pier Pipeline

Port Railway Ranch Reservoir Road Highway Race track Street Settlement Village Town City Megalopolis Subsidence crater Ski resort Train station Tree farm Tunnel Viaduct Wharf Wildlife reserve

The Palm Jumeirah is one of the 3 Palm Islands of Dubai, the 3 largest artificial islands in the World. The Jumeirah is connected to land by a 300-meter long bridge. Note the surrounding crescent island which also serves as a breakwater. The Alaskan Way Viaduct in Seattle allows a high traffic volume to share a limited space.

[edit] Geography of specific regions

See also: Regional geography

v • d • e Geography of North America Sovereign states Antigua and Barbuda · Bahamas · Barbados · Belize · Canada · Costa Rica · Cuba · Dominica · Dominican Republic · El Salvador · Grenada · Guatemala · Haiti · Honduras · Jamaica · Mexico · Nicaragua · Panama1 · Saint Kitts and Nevis · Saint Lucia · Saint Vincent and the Grenadines · Trinidad and Tobago1 · United States Dependencies and other territories Anguilla · Aruba1 · Bermuda · British Virgin Islands · Cayman Islands · Clipperton · Greenland · Guadeloupe · Martinique · Montserrat · Navassa Island · Netherlands Antilles1 · Puerto Rico · Saint Barthélemy · Saint Martin · Saint Pierre and Miquelon · Turks and Caicos Islands · United States Virgin Islands 1 Territories also in or commonly reckoned elsewhere in the Americas (South America).

v • d • e Geography of South America Sovereign states Argentina · Bolivia · Brazil · Chile · Colombia · Ecuador · Guyana · Panama1 · Paraguay · Peru · Suriname · Trinidad and Tobago1 · Uruguay · Venezuela Dependencies Aruba1 / Netherlands Antilles1 (Netherlands) · Falkland Islands / South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (UK) 2 / French Guiana (France) 1 Territories also in or commonly reckoned elsewhere in the Americas (North America and/or Central America).  2 Territories also in or commonly reckoned to be in Antarctica.