Geography

Category: Fields of research

Geography is the study of the Earth’s physical features, climate, resources, and the way humans interact with and impact these elements. It looks at both the natural environment (like landforms, bodies of water, ecosystems, and weather patterns) and the human-built environment (such as cities, roads, and cultures).

Geography can be divided into two main branches: 1) physical geography – focuses on the natural features of the Earth, like mountains, rivers, deserts, ecosystems, and climate patterns; and 2) human geography – examines the relationship between people and their environments, looking at topics like population, urban development, culture, economics, and politics.

In social sciences, geographical determinism refers to a theoretical and analytical approach that argues that major aspects of economy, culture, and social organization are determined by natural geographical factors such as bodies of water, soil, climate, terrain patterns, ecosystems, flora and fauna, mineral resources, etc. Some of the theoretical approaches that are most influenced by geographical determinism are: anthropogeography, ecological-evolutionary theory, human ecology, historical materialism, and cultural materialism.

References:

Bauman. Globalisation: The Human Consequences (1998);

Braudel. The Mediterranean and the Mediterranean World in the Age of Philip II, 2 vol. (1972, in French 1949);

Cvijić. The Annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serb problem: with two maps (1909);

- La Peninsule Balkanique: Geographie Humaine (1918);

- Studies in Jugoslav Psychology (1931);

Du Bois. Africa, Its Geography, People and Products (1930);

Durkheim. Division Of Labor In Society (2014, in French 1893);

Harvey. Justice, Nature and the Geography of Difference (1996);

- Spaces of Hope (2000);

- Spaces of Capital: Towards a Critical Geography (2001);

- Spaces of Global Capitalism: Towards a Theory of Uneven Geographical Development (2006);