Vocabulary for Describing Human Geography and Demography

Human Geography: A branch of geography concerned with the study of human activities, populations, and the built environment.
Demography: The statistical study of human populations, including their size, growth, age, gender, migration patterns, and distribution.
Population: The number of individuals living in a specific area.
Migration: The movement of individuals or groups of people from one place to another.
Urbanization: The growth of cities and the movement of populations from rural areas to urban areas.
Settlement: A place where people live, including cities, towns, and rural communities.
Density: The number of individuals living in a specific area, often expressed as the number of people per square mile.
Age Structure: The distribution of individuals within a population by age group.
Gender: The social and cultural attributes associated with being male or female.
Diversity: The presence of different cultural, ethnic, and demographic groups within a population.
Ethnicity: A shared cultural identity, often based on shared language, traditions, and ancestry.
Suburbanization: The growth of suburban areas and the movement of populations from urban to suburban areas.
Rural: Areas that are outside of cities and towns, typically characterized by a low population density.
Megacity: A city with a population of over 10 million people.
Slum: A densely populated, impoverished urban area characterized by substandard housing and inadequate access to basic services such as clean water and sanitation.
Gentrification: The process of renovating and improving a working-class or deteriorated urban neighborhood, often resulting in displacement of the original residents.
Shantytown: An informal settlement or slum typically characterized by makeshift housing and poverty.
Fertility Rate: The average number of children born to a woman over her lifetime.
Mortality Rate: The number of deaths in a population, often expressed as a rate per 1,000 or 100,000 individuals.
Life Expectancy: The average number of years an individual can expect to live.
Literacy Rate: The proportion of a population that can read and write.
Gross Domestic Product (GDP): The total value of goods and services produced by a country in a given period, often used as a measure of a country’s economic growth.
Human Development Index (HDI): A composite statistic used to rank countries based on their levels of economic development, education, and health.
Gross National Product (GNP): The total value of goods and services produced by a country’s residents, including those living abroad.
Income Inequality: The unequal distribution of income or wealth within a population.
Depopulation: The decline in a population’s size, often due to migration or declining birth rates.
Brain Drain: The emigration of highly skilled and educated individuals from their home country to other countries in search of better opportunities.
Regional Disparities: Differences in economic, social, and political development between different regions within a country.
Aging Population: A population in which the proportion of older individuals is increasing, often due to declining birth rates and improved life expectancy.
Biodemography: The study of the biological and demographic factors that influence the size and structure of populations.
Demographic Transition: The shift from high birth rates and high death rates to low birth rates and low death rates in a population.
Overpopulation: A condition in which the number of people in a given area exceeds the available resources to sustain them.
Carrying Capacity: The maximum number of individuals that can be supported by a given environment.
Immigration: The movement of individuals or groups of people into a new country or area.
Emigration: The movement of individuals or groups of people out of a country or area.
Population Growth: The increase in the size of a population over time.
Population Pyramid: A graphical representation of a population’s age structure, showing the distribution of individuals by age and gender.
Population Density: The number of individuals living in a specific area, often expressed as the number of people per square mile or kilometer.
Dual-Income Household: A household in which both partners work and contribute to the household’s income.
Household Structure: The composition of a household, including the number of individuals living together and their relationships.
Extended Family: A family unit that includes grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins in addition to parents and children.
Nuclear Family: A family unit consisting of a married couple and their children.
Single-Parent Household: A household headed by a single parent, usually the mother.
Zero Population Growth (ZPG): A population that is not growing because the birth rate and death rate are equal.
Total Fertility Rate (TFR): The average number of children born to a woman over her lifetime, often used to estimate a population’s future growth.
Dependency Ratio: The ratio of individuals who are not of working age (under 15 or over 64) to those who are of working age (15-64).
Infant Mortality Rate: The number of deaths of infants under one year of age per 1,000 live births.
Maternal Mortality Rate: The number of deaths of women during pregnancy and childbirth per 100,000 live births.
Age Dependency Ratio: The ratio of individuals who are under 15 or over 65 to those who are of working age (15-64).
Health Expectancy: The number of years an individual can expect to live in good health, taking into account both longevity and health status.
Migration: The movement of individuals or groups of people from one place to another, either within a country or between countries.
International Migration: The movement of individuals or groups of people from one country to another.
Internal Migration: The movement of individuals or groups of people within a country.
Net Migration: The difference between the number of individuals entering and leaving an area.
Push Factors: The reasons that drive individuals or groups of people to leave an area, such as poverty, lack of job opportunities, or political instability.
Pull Factors: The reasons that attract individuals or groups of people to a new area, such as job opportunities, higher standards of living, or better education.
Rural-Urban Migration: The movement of individuals or groups of people from rural areas to urban areas.
Urbanization: The growth of urban areas and the increase in the proportion of a population living in urban areas.
Urban Sprawl: The spread of urban development into surrounding rural areas, often characterized by low-density development and suburban-style housing.
Urban Renewal: The process of renovating and revitalizing urban areas, often through the demolition of outdated buildings and the construction of new developments.
Suburbanization: The process of population growth and urbanization in suburban areas, often driven by the desire for larger homes and more open space.
Diaspora: A dispersed population of individuals or groups of people who share a common cultural heritage and are spread across different countries or regions.

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