We explain what geography is, what its object of study is and the characteristics of its branches. In addition, its auxiliary sciences.
What is Geography?
geography It is the social science in charge of the description and graphic representation of planet Earth. He is interested in its landscapes, territories, places, regions, populations and the ways in which all these elements are interrelated. Its name comes from Greek gea, “land”, and graphos“writing”.
Geography is one of the oldest social sciences. Born in Ancient Greece thanks to the work of Eratosthenes (276-194 BC) and the historian Herodotus (484-420 BC), who were particularly interested in the study of the different regions of the earth's surface known for their culture, as well as the populations that inhabited them.
From then until today, much has changed in the way we understand our planet, but there are still four main historical traditions of geographical research from ancient times:
- Spatial analysis which covers natural and human phenomena;
- area studies focused on places and regions;
- Relationships between humans and lands which requires no further explanation;
- Earth sciences focused solely on the dynamics of the planet.
Geography is often considered the “world discipline” and the “bridge” between the natural sciences and the human sciences.
Object of study of geography
Broadly speaking, geography studies the planet Earth. In this It encompasses an enormous set of processes, dynamics and elements, both natural and human. It has a rich multiplicity of perspectives, depending on the particular focus of the study.
Geography is a dynamic discipline that uses other social sciences in order to better understand the way in which today's world was built: both geologically and humanly. In that sense, geography tries to make a all of our planet.
Importance of geography
geography It is one of the social sciences with the greatest application in the different fields of development in the world. It is used both in the accumulation of knowledge to understand what dynamics are at work in the current world, and in the identification and resolution of specific problems between human beings and the planet they inhabit.
Besides, It is an important point of contact between the social sciences and the so-called exact sciences. That is to say, its field of knowledge incorporates tools and knowledge that no other social science even contemplates.
Branches of geography
Geography has an enormous diversity of branches, but broadly speaking it is divided into two main perspectives:
- General geography As its name indicates, it aspires to understand the planet as an organic whole, although from various specific perspectives. For this it is subdivided into:
- Human geography Dedicated to the study of human beings and their communities, cultures, economies and interactions with the environment. In turn, it covers population geography, rural geography, urban geography, economic geography, political geography, social geography, historical geography, cultural geography, etc.
- Physical geography Dedicated, on the contrary, to the study of natural processes and factors that occur in the world, whether in the atmosphere, the hydrosphere or the geosphere. It covers climatology, paleogeography, hydrology, hydrography, glaciology, etc.
- Regional geography It understands the planet from its subdivisions into countries, nations, states, regions, regions, etc., at different scales of detail and precision.
Auxiliary sciences of geography
As in other social sciences, geography incorporates methodological, theoretical or procedural tools from other areas of study for the enrichment of your perspectives. It often opens new lines of analysis.
Some of these auxiliary sciences are Political Sciences, Astronomy, Economics, History, Geology, Biology, Demography, Sociology or Geometry, to name just a few.
Continue with: Geographic space
References
- “Geography” on Wikipedia.
- “Geography” in Encyclopedia.us.
- “What is Geography?” in National Geographic.
- “What is Geography?” at Royal Geographical Society.
- “Geography” in The Encyclopaedia Britannica.
