Unit Three: Cultural Patterns and Processes

Culture

What is culture? How and why is culture diffused? How is culture imprinted on landscape?How is culture affected by globalization?What are the advantages and disadvantages of

globalization? How can language, religion, ethnicity, race and

gender be represented spatially?

Introduction to cultural processes

Culture as a Geographical Process

Cultural geography

Folk culture

Popular culture

Cultural practice called “gothic”

Sauer’s Cultural Landscape

This figure summarizes the ways the natural and cultural landscapes are transformed.

How do cultural traits diffuse?

Hearth: the point of origin of a cultural trait.

Contagious diffusion

Hierarchical diffusion

With Distance Decay, the likelihood of diffusion decreases as time and distance from the hearth increases.

With Time-Space Compression, the likelihood of diffusion depends upon the connectedness among places.

Which applies more to popular culture?

How are hearths of popular culture traits established?

Typically begins with an idea/good and contagious diffusion.

Companies can create/manufacture popular culture. (ie. MTV)

Individuals can create/manufacture popular culture. (ie. Tony Hawk)

Material and Nonmaterial Culture

Material Culture

The things a group of people construct, such as art, houses, clothing, sports, dance, and food.

Nonmaterial Culture

The beliefs, practices, aesthetics, and values of a group of people.

Folk Culture

spreads slowly, unchanging isolated promotes diversity

Popular culture:

globalwide-spread; ephemeral tends toward homogeneity many cultures

The Culture of Hip-Hop

The sources and diffusion of U.S. rap

U.S. Religious Population

Distribution by county, 2000

Cultural SystemsA cultural system is a collection of interacting components that shape a group’s collective identity, and includes traits, territorial affiliation, and shared history.

Geography and Religion

Geography and Language

Culture and Society

Origin of the world’s major religions >

Cultural LandscapeThe visible human imprint on the

landscape.

- How have people changed the landscape?- What buildings, statues, and so forth have they erected?- How do landscapes reflect the values of a culture?

Placelessness: the loss of uniqueness in a cultural landscape – one place looks like the

next.

The widespread distribution

of businesses and products

creates distinctive landscape

stamps around the world.

Convergence of Cultural Landscapes:

Borrowing of idealized

landscape images blurs

place distinctiveness.

Convergence of Cultural Landscapes:

House Types

Kniffen’s traditional

American house types:

New England

Mid-Atlantic

Southern Tidewater

Language

Language – a set of sounds, combinations of sounds,

and symbols that are used for communication.

Language and National Identity

Standard Language

a language that is published, widely distributed, and purposefully taught.

Government usually plays a big role in standardizing a language.

Language and Political Conflict

Belgium:

Flanders (Flemish language)

Wallonia (French language)

Percent of People 5 Years and Older Who Speak a Language other than English at Home

Dialectvariants of a standard language along regional or ethnic lines

- vocabulary-syntax- pronunciation- cadence- pace of speech

Isogloss

A geographic boundary within which a particular linguistic feature occurs

Mutual Intelligibility

Means two people can understand each other when speaking. Problems:

Cannot measure mutual intelligibilityMany “languages” fail the test of mutual intelligibilityStandard languages and governments impact what

is a “language” and what is a “dialect”

Distribution of Major Languages

Classifying languages by family and mapping their occurrence across the globe provide insights about human geography.

World Language Families

Indo-European Language

The Indo-European language blossomed in northeast central Europe in the fifth millennium B.C.

Language Maps

India’s linguistic landscape is complex with hundreds of distinct

languages in use

Extinct or threatened languages in Africa

Languages & Dialects of France

1789

On the eve of the French Revolution, language diversity in France was not so dissimilar from other

European regions that were consolidating into states.

How are Languages Formed?

Can find linkages among languages by examining sound shifts – a slight change in a word across languages over time.

eg. Milk = lacte in Latinlatta in Italianleche in Spanishlait in French

Language divergence –

when a lack of spatial interaction among speakers of a language breaks the language into dialects and then new languages.

Language convergence –

when peoples with different languages have consistent spatial interaction and their languages collapse into one.

How are Languages Formed?

How do Linguists Study Historical Languages?

Backward reconstruction – tracking sound shifts and the hardening of consonants backward to reveal an “original” language.Can deduce the vocabulary of an extinct

language.Can recreate ancient languages (deep

reconstruction)

Historical Linkages among Languages

Indo-European language family

Proto-Indo-European language

Nostratic Language

From Anatolia diffused Europe’s languagesFrom the Western Arc of Fertile Crescent diffused North

Africa and Arabia’s languagesFrom the Eastern Arc of Fertile Crescent diffused Southwest

Asia and South Asia’s languages.

Renfrew Hypothesis:Proto-Indo-European began in the Fertile Crescent, and then:

Agriculture TheoryWith increased food supply and increased population, speakers from the hearth of Indo-European languages migrated into Europe.

Dispersal HypothesisIndo-European languages first moved from the hearth eastward into present-day Iran and then around the Caspian and into Europe.

The Languages of Europe

Romance languages

Germanic languages

Slavic languages

Nigeria

more than 400 different languages.

How do Languages Diffuse?

human interactionprint distributionmigration traderise of nation-statescolonialism

Spatial Interaction helps create:

Lingua franca –A language used among speakers of different languages for the purposes of trade and commerce.

Pidgin language –a language created when people combine parts of two or more languages into a simplified structure and vocabulary.

Creole language –a pidgin language that has developed a more complex structure and vocabulary and has become the native language of a group of people.

Global Language

Is a global language the principle language people use around the world in their day-to-day activities?

OR

Is a global language a common language for trade and commerce used around the world?

Place

Place – the uniqueness of a location, what people do in a location, what they create, how they impart a certain character, a certain imprint on the location by making it unique.

Toponym

Toponym – a place name

A toponym:Imparts a certain character on a placeReflects the social processes in a placeCan give us a glimpse of the history of a place

Changing Toponyms

When people change the toponym of a place, they have the power to “wipe out the past and call forth the new.”

- Yi-Fu Tuan

Religion

“a system of beliefs and practices that attempts to order life in terms of culturally perceived ultimate priorities.”

- Stoddard and Prorak

“perceived ultimate priorities” often translate into a list of things a follower “should” do and ways a follower “should” behave.

Classifications of Religions

Monotheistic religions – worship a single deity.

Polytheistic religions – worship more than one deity, even thousands.

Animistic religions – belief that inanimate objects posses spirits and should be revered.

Classifications of Religions

Universalizing religions – religions that actively seek converts because members believe they offer belief systems of universal appropriateness and appeal.

Ethnic religions – religions whose adherents are born into the faith and whose members do not actively seek converts.

Religions of the World

Where are universalizing religions located?Where are ethnic religions located?

Hearths of Religion and Philosophy by 500 BCE

From the Hearth of South Asia

Hinduism –originated in Indus River Valley over 4000 years ago.

* ritual bathing, karma, reincarnation

sacred text: Vedas

sacred sites: Ganges River

social manifestation: caste system

diffusion: through South Asia and into Southeast Asia

From the Hearth of South Asia

Buddhism –splintered from Hinduism 2500 years ago. Originated in a region from Nepal south to the Ganges River area.

* anyone can achieve salvation, reach enlightenment

founder: Siddartha (the Buddha)

sacred sites: stupas

diffusion: most strongly into Tibet in the north and

into East Asia

From the Hearth of Huang He (Yellow) River Valley

Taoism –originated in China more than 2500 years ago

* oneness of humanity and nature

founder: Lao-Tsu

sacred text: “Book of the Way”

social manifestation: Feng Shui

diffusion: East Asia

From the Hearth of Huang He (Yellow) River Valley

Confucianism –originated in China about 2500 years ago

* real meaning of life lay in the present

founder: Confucius

sacred text: “Confucian Classics”

diffusion: East Asia, Southeast Asia

From the Hearth of the Eastern MediterraneanJudaism –

originated in Southwest Asia about 4000 years ago. * first major monotheistic religion, covenant betweenGod (one God) and Abraham (the chosen people)sacred text: Torahfounder: Abrahamsacred sites: Jerusalem (Western Wall), land between

the Mediterranean and the Jordan Riversocial manifestation: Zionismdiffusion: into European cities during the diaspora,

into N. America during WWII, into Israel overlast 50 years

From the Hearth of the Eastern MediterraneanChristianity –

originated in Southwest Asia about 2000 years ago. * monotheistic religion, follow teachings of Jesus toachieve eternal lifesacred text: Biblefounder: Jesus (son of God)sacred sites: Bethlehem, Jerusalemsplit in the church:

* split into Eastern Orthodox and RomanCatholic churches in 1054

* Protestant sect split off in 1400s and 1500sdiffusion: into Western Europe, and then world wide

during colonialism and after.

First Split in Christianity, 1054 CE Western Roman empire = Roman CatholicismEastern Roman empire = Eastern Orthodox

From the Hearth of the Eastern Mediterranean

Islam –originated on Arabian peninsula about 1500 years ago.

* monotheistic religion, revelations Muhammadreceived from Allah, Five Pillars.

sacred text: Qu’ranfounder: Muhammadsacred sites: Mecca, Medina, Jerusalemsplit in the church:

* shortly after Muhammad’s death, split into Sunni Muslims (great majority)Shi’ite Muslims (concentrated in Iran)

diffusion: across Arabian peninsula, across NorthAfrica, into Spain and also east into Southeast Asia

The Diffusion of Islam

Minaret (for call to prayer)stands on the Sabah State Mosque in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia

Religions of the World

Shamanism –a community faith tradition in which people follow their shaman, a religious leader, teacher, healer, and visionary.

Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage

Sacred Sites

places or spaces people infuse with religious meaning.

Pilgrimage

purposeful travel to a religious site to pay respects or participate in a ritual at the site.

Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage

Vatican City

Pope John Paul II greeted pilgrims in St. Peter’s Square

Sacred Sites of JerusalemJerusalem is sacred to three major religions:Judaism (Western Wall)

Christianity (Church of the Holy Sepulchre)

Islam (Dome of the Rock)

Sacred Landscapes of Hinduism

Hinduism – pilgrimages follow prescribed routes, and rituals are followed by millions.

Varanasi, India on the Ganges River where Hindus perform morning rituals.

Sacred Landscapes of Buddhism

Swedogon Pagodo in Yangon, Myanmar

Eight hairs of the Buddha are preserved under the dome (chedi)

The HajjPilgrims circle the holy Kaaba in the Grand Mosque in Mecca, Saudi Arabia during the Hajj.

Conflicts along Religious Borders

Interfaith BoundariesBoundaries between the world’s major faiths.

Intrafaith BoundariesBoundaries within a single major faith.

Interfaith Boundary in Africa

Israel and Palestine

Landscapes of SettlementsIsraelis have had a policy of building settlements for Jews in the Occupied Territories

Landscape of the Gaza Strip, 2005In 2005, the Israeli government pulled out of the Gaza Strip, burning down Jewish settlements and handing control over to Palestinians.

The West Bank

with a the proposed security wall, parts of which the Israeli government has already built.

The Horn of Africa

Amharic (Coptic) Christianity is in central Ethiopia

Islam diffused into the Horn of Africa

Indigenous religions remain in pockets,

The Former Yugoslavia

Genocide

Ethnic Cleansing

Northern Ireland

Identities are tied to Religion, but are deepened by:

- Economics

- colonial experiences

- activity spaces (segregation)

Religious Fundamentalism and Extremism

Religious fundamentalism –a return to the basics of their faith.

found in Christianity, Judaism, and Islam

Religious extremism – fundamentalism carried to the point of violence.

found in Christianity, Judaism, and Islam

Islamic Extremists and Jihadan Islamic holy war against the West

Rise of Secularism

Secularism –

indifference to or rejection of organized religious affiliations and ideas.

- Where is secularism on the rise and why?