Human Geography: Definition, Nature and Scope, Evolution and Approaches, Contemporary Relevance, Human Values and Ethics

Human geography is the study of the relationship between human societies and their physical environment. Human geography is a branch of science that examines the spatial distribution of human facts on the surface of the world as well as the regional functional interactions between various human groups and their environment. It is a broad discipline that encompasses a wide range of topics, including:

 

Population: The distribution, growth, and characteristics of human populations.

Place: The physical and cultural characteristics of places.

Movement: The patterns of human migration and mobility.

Economy: The spatial distribution of economic activities.

Culture: The diversity of human cultures and their spatial expression.

Environment: The interactions between human societies and the natural environment.

Illustration of Human Variation in the World (Source:iStock)

DEFINITION OF HUMAN GEOGRAPHY

It is always difficult to define a subject. The concept of a subject change over time as knowledge expands and society progress. Here are some definitions of human geography expressed by some of the Geographers.

Ratzel: “Human Geography is the synthetic study of the relationship between human societies and the earth's surface”

Ellen C. Semple: “Human geography is the study of the changing relationship between the unresting man and the unstable earth”

Vidal de la Blache: “Human geography offers a new conception of the interrelationships between earth and human beings”

E. Huntington: “Human Geography may be defined as the study of nature and distribution of the relationships between Geographical environment and human activities and qualities”

H. de Blij: “Human geography is the study of how people make places, how we organize space and society, how we interact with each other in places and across space, and how we can make sense of others and ourselves in our locality, region, and world”

Rubenstein: “Human Geography is the study of where and why people and human activities are located”

 

NATURE OF HUMAN GEOGRAPHY

Human geography studies the inter-relationship between the physical environment and the sociocultural environment created by human beings through mutual interaction with each other. Human geography is a dynamic discipline that is constantly evolving. Although having a strong association with social science disciplines, new technologies, such as remote sensing and GIS, are providing new ways to study spatial patterns of human geography. Therefore human geography has interdisciplinary nature. Here are some examples of how the multidisciplinary nature of human geography is used to study different topics

 

Sociology: The study of human social behavior and social institutions.

Anthropology: The study of human cultures and societies.

Economics: The study of the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services.

Demography: Geographers use insights from sociology and demography to study the distribution, growth, and characteristics of human populations

Political science: The study of political systems and political behavior.

Environmental science: The study of the natural environment and its interactions with human societies.

Remote sensing and GIS: The creation of maps to represent spatial patterns. The use of geographic information systems is to analyze spatial data.

Interdisciplinary Nature of Human Geography

SCOPE OF HUMAN GEOGRAPHY

The scope of human geography is vast. It encompasses the study of all aspects of human societies and their relationship to their physical environment. This includes the study of population, place, movement, economy, culture, and environment. Human geographers use a variety of methods to study spatial patterns, including mapping, remote sensing, GIS, and fieldwork.

Human geography is a valuable tool for understanding the world around us. It can help us to understand how human societies have evolved and how they interact with their physical environment. It can also help us to solve problems such as poverty, environmental degradation, and conflict.

Here are some of the subfields of human geography:

1. Urban Geography: The study of cities and urban areas.
2. Rural or Settlement Geography: The study of rural areas and rural populations.
3. Social Geography: The study of the spatial distribution of cultures and socio-cultural landscapes. Its have some sub-disciplines - Behavioural Geography, Geography of Social
4. Well-being, Geography of Leisure, Cultural Geography, Gender Geography, Medical Geography
5. Economic Geography: The study of the spatial distribution of economic activities and economic development. The sub-fields under human geography are Geography of Resources, Geography of Agriculture, Geography of Industries, Geography of Marketing, Geography of Tourism, etc.
6. Political Geography: The study of the spatial distribution of political power and political systems including electoral geography.
7. Population Geography: The study of the insights sociology and demography to understand the distribution, growth, and characteristics of human populations.

 

Hare some scope of the specific topics that are studied in human geography:

1. The distribution of population: Human geographers study how the population is distributed across the Earth's surface. They look at factors such as density, growth, and migration.
2. The nature of the place: Human geographers study the physical and cultural characteristics of places. They look at how places are shaped by their natural environment and by the people who live there.
3. The patterns of human movement: Human geographers study the patterns of human movements, such as migration, tourism, and commuting. They look at factors such as the reasons for movement, the routes taken, and the impact of movement.
4. The spatial distribution of economic activities: Human geographers study the spatial distribution of economic activities, such as agriculture, industry, and services. They look at factors such as the location of resources, the cost of transportation, and the availability of labor.
5. The diversity of human cultures: Human geographers study the diversity of human cultures and how they are expressed in the landscape. They look at factors such as language, religion, and customs.
6. The interactions between human societies and the natural environment: Human geographers study the interactions between human societies and the natural environment. They look at how humans use the environment, how the environment affects humans, and how humans are changing the environment.

Looking at the World in multiple ways (Source: Natgeo/DanielaPonce)

Human geography is a vast and complex field of study. It is a valuable tool for understanding the world around us and for solving complex problems.

EVOLUTION AND CHANGING APPROACHES OF HUMAN GEOGRAPHY

The long-term development in human geography has kept speed with advancements made in the field as a whole. The concept guiding human geography research has undergone a tremendous amount of change since the Quantitative Revolution of the 1950s and 1960s. Behavioral geography, radical geography, and humanistic geography were all developed in the 1970s. These were succeeded by a shift to political economics, the emergence of feminist geography, and the advent of critical social theory backing the Cultural Revolution in the 1980s. Here's a detail of changing approaches and the evolution of human geography.

 

Period	Approaches	Important features
Early Colonial period	Exploration and description	Imperial and trade interests prompted the discovery and exploration of new areas. An encyclopedic description of the area formed an important aspect of the geographer’s account.
Later Colonial period	Regional analysis	An elaborate description of all aspects of a region was undertaken. The idea was that all the regions were part of a whole, i.e. (the earth); so, understanding the parts in totality would lead to an understanding of the whole.
The 1930s through the inter-War period	Areal differentiation	The focus was on identifying the uniqueness of any region and understanding how and why it was different from others.
From the late 1950s to the late 1960s	Spatial organization	Marked by the use of computers and sophisticated statistical tools. Laws of physics were often applied to map and analyze human phenomena. This phase was called the quantitative revolution. The main objective was to identify mappable patterns for different human activities.
1970s	The emergence of humanistic, radical, and behavioral schools	Discontentment with the quantitative revolution and its dehumanized manner of doing geography led to the emergence of three new schools of thought on human geography in the 1970s. Human geography was made more relevant to the socio-political reality by the emergence of these schools of thought. Consult the box below to know a little bit more about these schools of thought.
1990s	Post-modernism in geography	The grand generalizations and the applicability of universal theories to explain human conditions were questioned. The importance of understanding each local context in its own right was emphasized.

 

CONTEMPORARY RELEVANCE OF HUMAN GEOGRAPHY

Human geography is highly relevant in today's world. It can help us to understand a wide range of contemporary issues, including: 

1. Globalization: The increasing interconnectedness of the world economy and culture.
2. Climate change: The changes in the Earth's climate that are caused by human activities.
3. Urbanization: The growth of cities and the challenges that this poses for sustainability.
4. Migration: The movement of people from one place to another.
5. Conflict: The causes and consequences of conflict.

Human geographers use their knowledge of spatial patterns and human-environment interactions to help solve these problems. For example, they can help to develop strategies for reducing poverty in urban areas, mitigating the effects of climate change, and managing migration flows.

In addition to its practical applications, human geography also has a strong theoretical foundation. Human geographers draw on a variety of disciplines, including sociology, anthropology, economics, and political science, to understand the complex relationships between human societies and their physical environment. This theoretical foundation allows human geographers to make significant contributions to our understanding of the world.

The contemporary relevance of Human geography (Image source: iStock)

 Examples of Contemporary Challenges  

Here are some specific examples of how human geography is being used to address contemporary challenges:

Poverty Eradication: Human geographers are working with governments and businesses to develop strategies for reducing poverty in urban areas. They are using their knowledge of spatial patterns and human-environment interactions to identify the root causes of poverty and to develop interventions that are tailored to specific contexts.

Mitigate Climate Change: Human geographers are working with environmental scientists to develop strategies for mitigating the effects of climate change. They are using their knowledge of the spatial distribution of human populations and economic activities to identify the areas that are most vulnerable to climate change and to develop adaptation strategies.

Manage Migration and Conflicts: Human geographers are working with policymakers to manage migration flows. They are using their knowledge of the spatial distribution of human populations and the factors that drive migration to identify the causes of migration and to develop policies that can manage migration in a way that is beneficial to both sending and receiving countries.

These are just a few examples of how human geography is being used to address contemporary challenges. Human geography is a valuable tool for understanding the world around us and for solving problems. 

HUMAN VALUES AND ETHICS IN HUMAN GEOGRAPHY

Human geography is a discipline that is concerned with the study of human societies and their relationship to their physical environment. As such, it is important for human geographers to be aware of the ethical implications of their work.

1. Some of the key human values that are relevant to human geography include:
2. Respect for human rights: Human geographers should respect the rights of all people, regardless of their race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, or religious beliefs.
3. Social justice: Human geographers should strive to promote social justice and to reduce inequality.
4. Environmental sustainability: Human geographers should work to promote environmental sustainability and protect the natural environment.

 

Human geographers have a responsibility to be aware of the ethical implications of their work and to conduct their research in an ethical manner. By doing so, they can help to ensure that their research is both meaningful and beneficial to society. Here are some specific examples of how human geographers have addressed ethical issues in their research:

1. Informed consent: In a study of the spatial distribution of poverty in an urban area, human geographers obtained informed consent from all participants. This included providing participants with information about the nature of the research, the risks and benefits of participation, and their right to withdraw from the study at any time.
2. Confidentiality: In a study of the migration patterns of refugees, human geographers protected the confidentiality of their participants by using pseudonyms and by anonymizing the data.
3. Impact on communities: In a study of the impact of climate change on a rural community, human geographers worked with the community to develop a plan to mitigate the effects of climate change. This plan was based on the needs of the community and was designed to minimize any negative impact.

Conclusion: These are just a few examples of how human geographers have addressed ethical issues in their research. By being aware of the ethical implications of their work and by taking steps to address these issues, human geographers can help to ensure that their research is both meaningful and beneficial to society.