Human Geography Essay (Freshman Final)

Population and migration; cultural patterns and processes; political organization of space; agriculture, food production, and rural land use; and industrialization and economic development are extremely important concepts to the study of human geography and its influence on how people live today.

The distribution of people, also known as population, affects every aspect of human geography. It can explain how people relate to each other and their demands on the environment. Throughout history, population patterns have changed and the global population has exploded. Geographers use population pyramids to observe and connect the patterns found in population and migration. Migration is defined as the permanent and semi-permanent relocation of people from one place to another. These patterns, including push and pull factors, play a large role in population. Techniques such as looking at the patterns of population density and population composition can be very beneficial to geographers studying human geography. Another reason population and migration serve as a contributing force to human geography is by causing culture clashes and conflicts when migrants move to new locations. As you can see, the patterns of population and migration are very important to the study of human geography.

Culture patterns and processes are influential because they affect how people behave, think, and act. Practices, technologies, behaviors, and attitudes are all learned from one’s culture. Geographers tend to use charts and diagrams to show relationships among elements of culture. Most cultures tend to begin in a “culture hearth” and spread outwards. Types of culture include folk culture, where traditions are preserved, and pop culture, focusing on newer trends. Two major elements of culture include language and religion. Language includes ways of speaking, known as dialects, and accents. Religion is additionally important for geographers to study because it is intertwined deeply in all history and geography. Unlike other cultural elements, religion has not decayed and is still clear today. All cultural patterns and processes have made a large impact on the development of human geography and how humans interact.

Different than in the past, today’s political organization consists of mostly independent states who share borders, languages, and other cultural traits. As history has moved forward and developed, political organization has played a crucial role, especially in conflicts over borders and land. Empires and kingdoms have been reshaped by global forces, wars, and changing ideas during human history. Political organization can also be analyzed on a smaller scale and shapes how power is distributed in a nation. Voting and political leadership are both deeply intertwined with boundaries and political organization. Geographers may turn to theories such as the Organic Theory, Heartland Theory, and Rimland Theory. These theories show how land can be important for countries to gain power and how political organization and space are important to human geography.

Agriculture, food production, and land use have allowed the human population to grow and expand. This modernization of growing food is due to mechanization, use of chemicals, and research. This major development has allowed most of the population to work outside of agriculture and focus on other aspects of development. Geographers use models such as the “Von Thünen Model” to connect farmers to their land and income. This model, which is recognized as rings surrounding a market, can help geographers analyze agricultural strategies. The “Commodity Chain” is another useful model that has helped human geography develop and modernize. Geographers may study food production to calculate the world’s carrying capacity and think into the future. Agriculture, food production, and land use are one of the most important categories of human geography, helping geographers understand food and its journey.

The final concept of human geography is “Industrialization and Economic Development.” Industrialization, beginning with the Industrial Revolution in the 18th century, has diffused throughout the world and reshaped all aspects of life. The growth and spread of industrialization has dramatically increased manufacturing and productivity, making goods much more accessible. These large developments and reshaped how people work, behave, and live. Whether companies and multinational corporations decide to outsource or use the locational triangle, they are trying to move forward and modernize. When looking at industrialization and economic development, geographers use measures of development. These include measures of social, economic, and human development. Rostow’s Model, showing the stages of economic growth, and Wallerstein’s Theory, a method of categorizing based on development, can be extremely useful for geographers analyzing the many effects industrialization has on human geography.