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Chapter No. 1 Geographical Thought

Geographical thought encompasses the theories and philosophies that have shaped the geographical discipline, tracing its evolution from ancient Greek contributions to modern advancements. The study of geography employs various methods, including systematic, regional, descriptive, and analytical approaches, and is divided into physical and human geography. Significant contributions have been made by various geographers across different countries, and contemporary geography benefits from technological advancements in data acquisition and analysis.

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45 views

Chapter No. 1 Geographical Thought

Geographical thought encompasses the theories and philosophies that have shaped the geographical discipline, tracing its evolution from ancient Greek contributions to modern advancements. The study of geography employs various methods, including systematic, regional, descriptive, and analytical approaches, and is divided into physical and human geography. Significant contributions have been made by various geographers across different countries, and contemporary geography benefits from technological advancements in data acquisition and analysis.

Uploaded by

Alone Heart
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Geographical Thought

Geography
Geographical Thought
Geographical thought is the study of theory and philosophy within or that have shaped the
geographical discipline, essentially defining what we know and how we know it.

Development of Geographical Thought


Evolution: Geography was first systematically studied by the ancient Greeks, who also
developed a philosophy of geography; Thales of Miletus, Herodotus, Eratosthenes (word
geography), Aristotle, Strabo, and Ptolemy made major contributions to geography.
The Roman contribution to geography was in the exploration and mapping of previously unknown
lands. Greek geographic learning was maintained and enhanced by the Arabs during the Middle
Ages. Arab geographers, among whom Idrisi, Ibn Battuta, and Ibn Khaldun are prominent, traveled
extensively for the purpose of increasing their knowledge of the world. The journeys of
Marco Polo in the latter part of the Middle Ages began the revival of geographic interest outside
the Muslim world.
With the Renaissance in Europe came the desire to explore unknown parts of the world that led to
the voyages of exploration and to the great discoveries. However, it was mercantile interest rather
than a genuine search for knowledge that spurred these endeavors. The 16th and 17th cent.
reintroduced sound theoretical geography in the form of textbooks (the Geographia generalis of
Bernhardus Varenius) and maps (Gerardus Mercator's world map). In the 18th cent. geography
began to achieve recognition as a discipline and was taught for the first time at the university level.

Modern Geography: The modern period of geography began toward the end of the 18th cent.
with the works of Alexander von Humboldt and Karl Ritter. Thenceforth two principal methods of
approach to geography can be distinguished: the systematic, following Humboldt, and the regional,
following Ritter. Of the national schools of geography that developed, the German and the French
schools were the most influential. The German school, which dealt mainly with physical geography,
developed a scientific and analytical style of writing. The French school became known for its
descriptive regional monographs presented in a simple and flowing manner; human and historical
geography were its strength. Although emphasis has shifted several times between the approaches
and viewpoints, their interdependence is recognized by all geographers.
Since the end of World War II, geography, like other disciplines, has experienced the explosion of
knowledge brought on by the new tools of modern technology for the acquisition and manipulation
of data; these include aerial photography, remote sensors (including infrared and satellite
photography), and the computer (for quantitative analysis and mapping). The quantitative method
of geographical research has gained much ground since the 1950s, Edward Ullman and William
Garrison of the United States and Peter Haggett of Great Britain being leading exponents.

Important Contributions
Important contributions to the advancement of geography and to the development of geographic
concepts have been made by Ferdinand von Richthofen, Albrecht Penck, Friedrich Ratzel,
Alfred Hettner, Karl Haushofer, and Walter Christaller in Germany; Paul Vidal de la Blache, Jean
Brunhes, Conrad Malte-Brun, Elisée Reclus, and Emmanuel de Martonne in France; and William
Morris Davis, Isaiah Bowman, Ellen Churchill Semple, Carl O. Sauer, Albert Brigham, and Richard
Hartshorne in the United States. Today geography is studied by governmental agencies and in many
of the world's universities. Research is stimulated by such noted geographic institutions as the
Royal Geographical Society (1830, Great Britain), the American Geographical Society (1852,
United States), and the Société de Geographie (1821, France).

Geography
Introduction
Geo “Earth” and Graphy “to describe” literal meaning of geography is to describe about the earth’s
surfaces. In other words, “Geography is largely the study of the interaction of all physical and
human phenomena and landscapes created by such interactions.”
It is about how, why, and where human and natural activities occur and how these activities are
interconnected.

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Geographical Thought
Methods and Branches
Geography may be studied by way of several interrelated approaches or methods i.e.,
systematically, regionally, descriptively, and analytically.

Systematic Approach: The systematic approach organizes geographical knowledge into


individual categories that are studied on a worldwide basis.
The Regional Approach: The regional approach integrates the results of the systematic method
and studies the interrelationships of the different categories while focusing on a particular area of
the earth.
The Descriptive Approach: The descriptive approach describes where geographical features and
populations are located.
The Analytical Approach: The analytical approach seeks to find out why those features are
located where they are.
In the study of geography two main branches may be distinguished
 Physical geography
 Human (or Cultural) geography, originally anthropogeography.
Physical Geography: based on the physical sciences, studies the world's surface, the
distribution, description, and nature of its land and water areas. Climate, landforms, and soil are
examined as to origin and are classified as to distribution. Drawing on the biological sciences, fauna
and flora (biogeography) are brought into an areal pattern. Through the mathematical sciences the
motion of the earth and its relationship to the sun (seasons), the moon (tides), and the planets are
studied, as well as mapmaking and navigation.

Human Geography: Human geography places humans in their physical setting; it studies their
relationship with that environment as well as their conscious activities and continuous progress in
adapting themselves to it (and to other humans) and in transforming their environment to their
needs. Human geography may in turn be subdivided into a number of fields, such as economic
geography, political geography (with its 20th-century offshoot, geopolitics), social geography
(including urban geography, another 20th-century ramification), environmental perception and
management, geographical cartography, geographic information systems, and military geography.
Historical geography (which reconstructs geographies of the past and attempts to trace the evolution
of physical and cultural features) and urban and regional planning are sometimes considered
branches of geography.

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