Welcome to the pilot entry of PanGeographic.
For the first entry of PanGeographic, there will be an explanation of what geography is.
Obviously, by the title of this blog, this is going to be a blog about geography. However, with the first entry of this blog, one important question needs to be answered: What is geography?
Well, there have been quite a few misconceptions about geography. For one, geography is often thought of as memorizing state capitals. This is only a small part about the subject of geography. Geography is such a broad subject, that it is impossible to make an abridged version of the subject.
For starters, there is more than one form of geography. You have two forms of geography. Human Geography and Physical Geography.
Human Geography is a sub-field of geography that deals with the study of the people who live on this earth, cultures, and communities. It is very human-based. Underneath human geography, there are other areas of study. These are not limited to, but include:
Cultural geography - the study of cultures and how norms vary from culture to culture, how languages, religion, economy, and other aspects of human life vary from place to place
Economic geography - this looks at the relationship between geography and how it plays a role in the economy of a place.
Historical geography - this takes a look at how geography has changed throughout history, how regions have changed over time.
Political geography - this study is about how geographic distribution of political outcomes, and how geography can affect politcs.
Urban geography - this study of geography deals with the urban areas, how cities grow, the social and physical aspects of cities, and economic activities.
The other sub-field of geography is Physical Geography. This is considered a branch of natural science that deals with natural aspect of the earth instead of the human aspect of the earth. Such subjects include weather, geology, and the hydrosphere. Underneath the sub-field of physical geography are other fields, which include, but not limited to:
Geomorphology - a study of how the earth's surface is shaped and changed by past and present phenomena, such as wind and water.
Hydrology - the study of water processes, water quality, lakes, rivers, and even glaciers. Mainly, the hydrological cycle is a big part of this study.
Meteorology - study of the earth's atmosphere and the weather.
Climatology - study of the earth's climate
Oceanography - the study of the seas and oceans, and its ecosystems.
There is going to be more involved with geography than memorizing places on a map. That is only a small part of what geography is about. Geography is about understanding the physical and human processes of this earth.
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