Human Geography
Nature and Scope
- Geography
Geography as a field of study is integrative , empirical and practical. thus, the reach of geography is extensive and each and every event or phenomenon which varies over space and time can be studied geographically
Physical geography studies physical environment and Human geography studies "The relationship between the physical / natural and the human worlds , the spatial distributions of human phenomena and how they come about, the social and economic differences between different parts of the world "
the core concern of geography as a discipline is to understand the earth as home of human beings and to all those elements which have sustained them. thus, Emphasis is on study of nature and human beings.
Its subject matter should be organised and approach of the study should be regional or systematicBoth physical and human phenomena are described in metaphors using symbols from the human anatomy .
German Geographers describe the 'state/country 'as a' living or organism' networks of road , railways and water way have often been described as "arteries of circulation".
Nature of Human Geography
Human geography studies the inter- relationship between the physical environment and human socio-culture environment created by human beings though mutual interaction with each other.
The elements of physical environment are landforms, soils, climate ,water ,natural vegetation and diverse .
Houses ,villages, cities, road-rail networks ,industries, farms, ports, items of our daily use . and all other elements of material culture have been created by human beings using the resources provided by the physical environment .
Naturalisation of Human and Humanisation of Nature
Human beings interact with their physical environment with the help of technology.
Environmental determinism
It is interaction between primitive human society and strong forces of nature was termed as environmental determinism.
Primitive Societies
primitive societies which live in complete harmony with their natural environment.
In all such cases nature is a powerful force ,worshipped, revered and conserved.
There is direct dependence of human beings on nature for resources which sustain them the physical environment for such societies becomes the "Mother Nature "
Possibilism
It is the theory that the environment sets certain constraints or limitation , but culture is otherwise determined by social conditions .
A geographer , Griffith Taylor introduced another concept which reflects a middle path between the two ideas of environmental determinism and Possibilism .
Human Geography though the corridors of time
Human geography have a long temporal continuum through the approaches to articulate them have changed over time.
This dynamism in approaches and thrusts shows the vibrant nature of the discipline.
There was little interaction between different societies and the knowledge about each other was limited .
Fields and Sub- fields of Human Geography
Human geography consists of a number of sub- disciplinary fields that focus on different elements of human activity and organization.
for Example : Cultural geography, economic geography, health geography, historical geography etc..