Introduction to Geography:

Although, "Geography" is a modern discipline, in which scientists use space-age

research equipment, but its roots extend to the very down in ancient Greek era.
Greek scholar named Eratosthenes (Ca. 273 - Ca. 192 B.C) coined the term
"Geography" in the third century B.C. Actually he synthesis two words geo, meaning
earth; graphe/graphia, meaning description. To him, geography was the accurate
description of the earth, so volumes were written about rocks. rivers, oceans, places,
soils and plants. In short, geographical knowledge was to description.
But later on the mass of information about terrestrial geography became so large, that
the discipline changed its trend from descriptive to systematic. Today geography has
emerged as a scientific subject among physical as well as social sciences.
Definition of Geography :
Here are few definitions of the modern concept about geography:
i. "Geography is the science of places." (Vidal de la Blache) (Taylor)
ii. "Geography is the correlative science."
iii. "Geography tells, what is where, why and, what it is made of." (Bowman)
iv. "Geography is that discipline, that seeks to describe and interpret, the variable
character from place to place of the earth as the world of man." (Hartshorne)
If we analyze the modern concept about geography, we can define
"Geography is a scientific or systematic study of aerial variations and similarities
from place to place on the surface of the earth."
"Geography is the study of the physical features of the earth And its atmosphere and
of human activity as it affects and Is affected by these including the distribution of
populations And resources and political and economic activities."
Scope of Geography:
Geography is concerned with the patterns of phenomena and the processes that
created them. Therefore, there is no special or specific subject matter which it studies,
but rather its subject matter is the Earth, described and explained using the spatial
perspective. Geography integrally explores the physical dimensions of our planet as
well as the demography and the lands and its inhabitants. The prime objective of this
area of study is to develop a mutable relationship between the people and the lands
they live in, amongst other factors, which gives it an all-round interdisciplinary
approach. Some of the multidisciplinary crossovers of this subject include History,
Science, Environment, and Population Studies thus making Geography a diversified
area of study. It also additionally contains the study of culture, ethnicity, the earthy
characteristics of the planet, and economies of different regions.
Branches of Geography
Geography cuts across a wide variety of subject matter, almost any area of human
knowledge can be examined from a spatial perspective. Geography can be divided
into two main branches
 The Physical geography
 The Human geography
What is Physical geography?
Physical geography is concerned with the natural processes that make the surface of
the earth the way it is. Physical geography includes numerous sub-disciplines
Sub disciplines of Physical Geography
Climatology– it is the study of the condition of the atmosphere with respect to the
earth’s surface. A climatologist seeks to understand: The different climate patterns
found on earth, the processes that cause these different climate patterns to take place
in specific places, the places where these climates occur, how and why climates
change over time.
Meteorology– the study of atmospheric weather processes, a meteorologist want to
understand the different atmospheric processes that create our weather, where do
these weather phenomena occur, how and why does the planetary weather system
work the way it does.
Biogeography- it is the study of the distribution of species and ecosystem in a
geographic space. A biogeographer studies the geographic distribution of plants and
animals on the earth.
Geomorphology– is concerned with the origin and solution of topographic features
created by physical, chemical and biological processes operating at or near the earth
surface. A geomorphologist would ask questions such as: What are the different
landforms, where the different landforms are; why they are where they are and how
are they form in the first place.
Hydrology- this is the study of water resource, water cycle, movement and
distribution of quality water on earth and other planets.
Oceanography– the study of physical and biological aspects of the ocean,
oceanographer researches the coastal environments of the planet and find out how
humans, coastal life, and coastal physical features interact with each other.
What is Human geography?
Human geography is the major branch of geography that studies people and their
interaction with the earth and with their organization of space on the earth’s surface,
various sub- disciplines under human geography are listed as.
Sub Disciplines of Human Geography
Cultural geography– this is the study of cultural differences among people.
Medical geography– it is the study of distribution of spatial or seasonal incidences of
epidemic and endemic.
Economic geography– this is the science of distribution and spatial organization,
how man organizes his space.
Political geography– it studies the effects of geography on international politics and
relations.
Cartography– cartographyis the art and science of making maps and the oldest of the
geographic techniques.
Urban geography– it is concerned with land use pattern, planning of the cities and
regions that will constitute the geography and geographic.
Tourism geography– it is the study of travel and travel as an industry and as a social
and cultural activity.
Social geography– it is the study of relations of social phenomena and its spatial
components.
Geographic information system (GIS) – is the branch of geography that develops
databases of geographic information and systems to display geographic data in a map-
like format.
Remote Sensing– remote sensingutilizes satellites and sensors to examine features on
or near the earth’s surface from a distance. A geographer in remote sensing analyses
data from remote sources to develop information about a place where direct
observation is not possible or practical.
Quantitative Methods– this branch of geography uses mathematical techniques and
models to test hypothesis. Quantitative methods are often used in many other
branches of geography but some geographers specialize in quantitative methods
specifically.