1. http://library.osu.edu/sites/rarebooks/ja pan/2_14_photos.html

2.  What causes local diversity? › Local geography › Local trends › Isolation › Different experiences › Desire to be unique › Heritage › Different views/perspectives

3.  The Himalayas are very isolated  The people there have developed unique cultural practices and beliefs  They live in a very unique environment and it is reflected in their culture, beliefs, arts, views, artifacts, government, etc…  Their artwork really reflects these

4. Fig. 4-4: Cultural geographers have identified four distinct culture regions based on predominant religions in the Himalaya Mountains.

5.  There is also diversity that creates a unique blends- Hindus, Buddhists, Muslims, and Animists http://www.himalayanart.org/search/s et.cfm?setID=91

6. http://www.himalayanart.org/search/set.cfm?setID=1802

7.  Environmental determinists believe environment determines everything  Possibilists say it influences a lot but not everything- humans have some power of modification and adaptation  It has an impact on everyone  In folk cultures, it has more of an impact still  In popular cultures, the impact seems diminished somewhat

8.  Isolation promotes cultural diversity › Himalayan Art  Influence of the physical environment › Distinctive food preferences › Folk housing › U.S. folk house forms

9.  Environmental determinism- the environment determines culture  As important as in the past?  Possibilism- people are influenced by their environment but can adopt and modify it

10.  People can live in similar areas and adopt different social customs  People can live in different areas and have similar social customs  Environment is one factor in influencing social customs

11.  Physical environment can promote certain things and limit certain things  Folk cultures tend to be more attuned and influenced by their environment  Why?  Less technology, more a part of their ancestors’ culture, they are less likely to promote change in their customs, likely to be in LDCs, less education, less exposure to popular culture, more rural

12.  Three necessities of life illustrate the impact of environment on folk culture  Food  Shelter  Clothing  Think of Koppen’s model of climate regions

14.  Distinctive food preferences  Folk food habits are more influenced by the local environment  You are more likely to eat more of what is most easily available- in some cases you eat all that is available  In MDCs, they have more options and sophisticated trade, bringing in pretty much whatever they want  In LDCs and particularly amongst folk cultures, they tend to be more limited

15.  What you grow up with also influences what you prefer  “Their water tastes funny”  Different seasonings  Different lasagna  Often stem from what’s available  The contribution of the location’s physical features to the way food tastes is called terroir (French word for land)

17.  In the 1800s, geographer Vidal de la Blache said, “Among the connections that tie [people] to a certain environment, one of the most tenacious is food supply; clothing and weapons are more subject to modification than the dietary regime, which experience has shown to be best suited to human needs in a given climate.”

18.  People get accustomed to what they grow up with  In folk cultures, it is often limited to what is available to them by hunting, gathering, fishing, and farming  Even in MDCs you have things people are more likely to eat than other products even if they have access to just about anything

19.  Soybeans (great source of protein and widely grown in Asia) are toxic raw, but it takes fuel to cook them until they are edible so many groups eat them as sprouts, ferment them (soy sauce), and steam them into bean curd  Fried food in Italy because of food shortages  Slow cooking in Northern Europe because of adequate wood supply  Bostan farmers in Turkey- grow lots of food in small gardens

20. Fig. 4-5: The bostan, or traditional vegetable garden, provides fresh vegetables in a large city such as Istanbul

21.  Food diversity in Transylvania, Europe  Different ethnic groups live there- it isn’t just the environment that influences what people eat but cultural traditions too (social/religious/ethnic)  Mostly working/lower class- soup is a common meal for that group  Each ethnic group puts a different spin on it  Lots of different influences

22.  Some cultures are known for certain foods (curry in India)  Food attractions are foods preferred by groups  Some cultures are known for certain taboos on foods (foods they won’t eat) which are often religious based  Often these traditions go way back  More common and enduring in world folk cultures

23.  Some people eat certain things to take in characteristics of the plant or food- desirability from the opposite sex, strength, calmness  The Abipone Indians of Paraguay eat Jaguars and Bulls to make them strong and fast  Some won’t eat certain things to avoid characteristics of the plant or food  The Ainus in Japan don’t eat otters because they are considered forgetful animals

24.  Many dos and taboos come from religious sources  Hindus do not eat cattle (sacred animals), the Hebrew Jews did not eat animals that do not chew their cud or that have cloven feet, and Muslims do not eat pork, many groups avoid alcohol  They also often have certain foods consumed or not consumed at certain times of year

25. Fig. 4-6: Annual hog production is influenced by religious taboos against pork consumption in Islam and other religions. The highest production is in China, which is largely Buddhist.

26.  Find 1 American food taboo  Find 1 American food attraction  Find 1 LDC food taboo (pick a particular group from an LDC)  Find 1 LDC food attraction (from that same group)  Find 1 other MDC food taboo  Find 1 other MDC food attraction  Be able to cite your resources

27.  The environment helps influence housing in folk cultures more than in mainstream societies  They use building supplies at hand and often build the same types of dwellings as their ancestors  The building supplies, construction, and house site are all influenced  The placement of doors, windows, etc… might be influenced by religion

28.  The two most common building materials are brick and wood, but stone, clay, sod, ice, hides, leaves, straw, cloth, metal, etc… are also used in different areas  In wooded areas, wood is preferred like in the eastern US and much of Europe  In hot, dry climates, like the US southwest, Mexico, northern China, and parts of the Middle East, bricks are made by baking clay or mud in the sun

29.  MDCs are much more likely and able to import goods needed  People in LDCs are more likely to use what they have on hand  Many of the same materials are used around the world, but often the shape and form they take varies widely  A family in the US and a family in Asia may build a home from wood, but it may look very different

30.  Religious values often influence houses  Some houses may have sacred walls or corners  The east wall of the house is sacred in Fiji- the northwest portion in China  Fung shui from China is a common term now- it is the art and science of arranging and balancing a space for health and prosperity

31.  In Laos, the housing custom of northern Laos is the arrange beds perpendicular to the center ridgepole of the house- the heads of people in one house are opposite to the heads of the people in another house (except for children to their parents, showing subservience)  Their houses are also in straight lines with their neighbors

32.  The people of Thailand sleep with their heads pointing east (Buddhist tradition)  They also do not arrange their houses in a straight line because evil spirits are believed to move in straight lines

33. Fig. 4-7: Houses and sleeping positions are oriented according to local customs among the Lao in northern Laos (left) and the Yuan and Shan in northern Thailand (right).

34.  China is a large and diverse country in beliefs and housing  Different areas are more likely to have specific types of houses  It varies because of religion, geography, materials, and social customs

35. Fig. 4-8: Four communities in western China all have distinctive house types.

36. Kashgar houses have second floor open-air patios

37. Turpan is located in a deep valley with little open land. Second stories are avoided because of strong winds

38. Dunhuang houses have walled central courtyards, covered with an open air grape arbor.

39. Yinchuan houses are built around large open courtyards which provide seclusion from ousi Liz Lewis: …from outsiders Liz Lewis: …from outsiders

40.  Influenced by groups first to settle in the colonies  Three major hearths- New England, Middle Atlantic, and Lower Chesapeake housing  Migrants brought other ideas  You can study a place by the houses- they tell history of the area

41.  Very diverse today  Not as regionally specific  Results from migration- time-space convergence, availability of resources, pop culture, social norms  In addition, many houses are mass produced

42. Fig. 4-9: Distinct house types originated in three main source areas in the U.S. and then diffused into the interior as migrants moved west.

43. Fig. 4-10: Four main New England house types of the 18th & 19th centuries diffused westward as settlers migrated.

44.  Middle Atlantic Style: originated as one- room log cabin with a stone chimney and fireplace at one end, later, additional rooms were added, often with a porch and second floor http://www.craftsmanperspective.com/images/thumbnails/pitt_thumbs.gif

45.  In the south, they were generally a modest size, one story (heat rises- hotter in the south) with a smaller attic room, and a porch, in flood regions, built on raised stone foundations, often with a raised platform to reduce interior heat- air flow underneath http://0.tqn.com/d/architecture/1/0/J/ P/tidewater-2270422.jpg http://images.builderhouseplans.com/ common/plans/images/SLA0/SLA125/S LA125-FR-PE-BL-SM.GIF

46.  US houses are very diverse  More than just the “big 3”  Influenced by geography to this day  Adobe in the southwest for example  Outside influences