The Study of Human Geography

What is Culture?•The beliefs and actions that define a group of people’s way of life

Culture1. Customs / Beliefs2. Language3. Religion4. Technology5. Institutions / Government

Customs / Beliefs

(Lead to Traditions)

Reflect the values of a society

Family StructureParents may live with just their children. Other places parents, children, and extended family live together.

Gender Roles:•Roles specifically assigned to men and women.

Changing Gender Roles:•Women in America have seen many changes

Traditional Roles•Many countries in the world maintain traditional roles for women.

Language• Needed to communicate

Religion• Set of beliefs about the meaning of

life and the supernatural

• Customs and practices deal with those beliefs

Major Religions

JudaismChristianityIslamHinduismBuddhism

AnimismSikhism

Technology

• Urban vs. Rural

• Modern vs. Traditional

Rural

Urban

Modern Technology

Traditional Technology

Institutions / Governments• Institution –take care of social needs

• Government –protect from outsiders and regulate behavior

Schools

Hospital

Military

Cultural HearthPoint of origin of a cultural trait

Cultural Hearth

Cultural ConvergenceThe contact and interaction of one

culture with another

Spain introduces Roman Catholicism into Mexico

Mexican American culture introduces Roman Catholicism to the Southwest US

Spreading European Languages

Cultural Divergencerestriction of a culture from outside

influences

Cultural Divergence

Cultural Divergence

Cultural Divergence

Cultural Diffusion(also known as spatial diffusion)

a cultural element is transmitted across some distance from one group or

individual to another

Spread of Christianity from Europe to America

Spanish introducing horses to America

Movies made in America going to the rest of the world

Buddhism spreading into China

Islam spreading into Indonesia

Spreading European Languages