Major Geographical Terminology

Physical Geography is one of the two major branches of geography. It studies the natural features of earth, as well as earth's natural processes. Physical Geography includes the study of mountains, geology, weather and climate, and much more. It looks at how the physical formation of the earth affects other aspects of geography. It does not directly deal with humans and social constructs — that is cultural or human geography.

A formal region is an area with measurable characteristics in common. These could include political boundaries, such as nations or states, resources such coal or water, or production such corn or avocados grown.

The usage of a river or part of it to grow sea-based creatures and plant life is called aquaculture. It is used greatly in Japan.

When a government falls and anarchy results, the country becomes known as a failed state.

For a state or country to be landlocked, it would have no direct access to a major body of water. In the United States, many of the Midwestern states are considered landlocked. One such example is Kansas.

The term “idiographic” is used to describe or refer to a feature that is unique to a particular geographic region. It is distinct from “nomothetic” which means a feature or theory that is universally applicable across a multitude of regions.

The actual definition of regionalization, in geography terms, is the process of dividing up the earth into smaller regions or units or the tendency to form decentralized regions.

Absolute location defines the location of a place based on a fixed point. A street address is a fixed point that describes the location of a place, and so is an example of absolute location.

Relative position defines the location of a place relative to another place or the surroundings of a place. As a street address is a fixed point, this is not the correct answer to the question.

Situation, like relative position, describes the location of a place relative to its surroundings.

Prime position is not a real term used by geographers.

Climate change and global warming are environmental changes caused by human actions. The term used to describe this phenomenon is “anthropogenic.”

The "torrid zone" is another name for the tropics, which describes the areas between the Northern Hemisphere's Tropic of Cancer and the Southern Hemisphere's Tropic of Capricorn. These lines of latitude mark the points furthest from the Equator where the sun can still be directly overhead at any point during the year. The areas within the "torrid zone" are the warmest places on earth, featuring rainforests and other tropical environments.