1. Unit One Vocabulary

2. Region
Region – an area of Earth’s surface with one or more shared characteristic.

3. Location
Location – where something is. Absolute location defines the exact spot on Earth. Relative location describes the position of a place in relation to another place.

4. Place
Place – can be described both by its physical location and by its physical and human feature.

5. Movement
Movement – people and ideas moving from place to place (p 7)

6. Human Characteristics
Human Characteristics of land – changes to the land that were made by people

7. Physical Characteristics
Physical characteristics of land – describe the type of land in an area

8. Human-Environmental Interaction
Human-Environmental Interaction – how people and their surroundings affect each other (p 7)

9. Hemisphere
Hemisphere – halves of the globe. The equator divides the globe into 2 halves – northern and southern. The Prime Meridian and International Dateline divide the globe into 2 halves – eastern and western (p 5)

10. Latitude
Latitude - imaginary lines that circle the globe and run east to west. Also called parallels because they are parallel to the equator (p 4)

11. Longitude
Longitude – imaginary north-south lines that circle the globe and that pass through the north and south Poles (p 5)

12. Culture
the beliefs, customs, practices, and behaviors of a particular nation or group of people

13. Ethnic
a group of people who have the same language, culture, or religion

14. Cultural Diffusion
the spread of cultural traits from one culture to another

15. Unitary System
a central government makes all laws for the entire country.

16. Confederation
system where independent states join together and give limited powers to a common government

17. Federal System
system where power is divided among central, regional, and local governments

18. Autocracy
a form of government in which all the power is held by a single person

19. Oligarchy
Oligarchy – government ruled by a small group of people

20. Democracy
a form of government in which citizens hold political power. VOTING

21. Monarchy
a government headed by a king or queen