Geography as a Discipline

GEOGRAPHY AS A DISCIPLINE

This unit deals with

• Geography as an integrating discipline; as a science of spatialattributes

• Branches of geography; importance of physical geography

UNIT

I

You have studied geography as one of thecomponents of your social studies courseupto the secondary stage. You are

already aware of some of the phenomena ofgeographical nature in the world and itsdifferent parts. Now, you will study ‘Geography’as an independent subject and learn about thephysical environment of the earth, humanactivities and their interactive relationships.Therefore, a pertinent question you can ask atthis stage is — Why should we studygeography? We live on the surface of the earth.Our lives are affected by our surroundings inmany ways. We depend on the resources tosustain ourselves in the surrounding areas.Primitive societies subsisted on ‘natural meansof subsistence’, i.e. edible plants and animals.With the passage of time, we developedtechnologies and started producing our foodusing natural resources such as land, soil andwater. We adjusted our food habits andclothing according to the prevailing weatherconditions. There are variations in the naturalresource base, technological development,adaptation with and modification of physicalenvironment, social organisations and culturaldevelopment. As a student of geography, youshould be curious to know about all thephenomena which vary over space. You learnabout the diverse lands and people. Youshould also be interested in understanding thechanges which have taken place over time.Geography equips you to appreciate diversityand investigate into the causes responsible forcreating such variations over time and space.You will develop skills to understand the globeconverted into maps and have a visual sense

of the earth’s surface. The understanding andthe skills obtained in modern scientifictechniques such as GIS and computercartography equip you to meaningfullycontribute to the national endeavour fordevelopment.

Now the next question which you may liketo ask is — What is geography? You know thatearth is our home. It is also the home of manyother creatures, big and small, which live onthe earth and sustain. The earth’s surface isnot uniform. It has variations in its physicalfeatures. There are mountains, hills, valleys,plains, plateaus, oceans, lakes, deserts andwilderness. There are variations in its socialand cultural features too. There are villages,cities, roads, railways, ports, markets andmany other elements created by human beingsacross the entire period of their culturaldevelopment.

This variation provides a clue to theunderstanding of the relationship between thephysical environment and social/culturalfeatures. The physical environment hasprovided the stage, on which human societiesenacted the drama of their creative skills withthe tools and techniques which they inventedand evolved in the process of their culturaldevelopment. Now, you should be able toattempt the answer of the question posedearlier as to “What is geography”? In verysimple words, it can be said that geographyis the description of the earth. The termgeography was first coined by Eratosthenese,a Greek scholar (276-194 BC.). The word hasbeen derived from two roots from Greeklanguage geo (earth) and graphos (description).

GEOGRAPHY AS A DISCIPLINE

C H A P T E R

GEOGRAPHY AS A DISCIPLINE 3

Put together, they mean description of the earth.The earth has always been seen as the abodeof human beings and thus, scholars definedgeography as, “the description of the earth asthe abode of human beings”. You are aware ofthe fact that reality is always multifaceted andthe ‘earth’ is also multi-dimensional, that iswhy many disciplines from natural sciencessuch as geology, pedology, oceanography,botany, zoology and meteorology and anumber of sister disciplines in social sciencessuch as economics, history, sociology, politicalscience, anthropology, etc. study differentaspects of the earth’s surface. Geography isdifferent from other sciences in its subjectmatter and methodology but at the same time,it is closely related to other disciplines.Geography derives its data base from all thenatural and social sciences and attempts theirsynthesis.

We have noted that there exist variationsover the surface of the earth in its physical aswell as cultural environment. A number ofphenomena are similar and many are dissimilar.It was, therefore, logical to perceive geographyas the study of areal differentiation. Thus,geography was perceived to study all thosephenomena which vary over space.Geographers do not study only the variationsin the phenomena over the earth’s surface(space) but also study the associations withthe other factors which cause these variations.For example, cropping patterns differ fromregion to region but this variation in croppingpattern, as a phenomenon, is related tovariations in soils, climates, demands in themarket, capacity of the farmer to invest andtechnological inputs available to her/him.Thus, the concern of geography is to find outthe causal relationship between any twophenomena or between more than onephenomenon.

A geographer explains the phenomena ina frame of cause and effect relationship, as itdoes not only help in interpretation but alsoforesees the phenomena in future.

The geographical phenomena, both thephysical and human, are not static but highlydynamic. They change over time as a result ofthe interactive processes between ever

changing earth and untiring and ever-activehuman beings. Primitive human societies weredirectly dependent on their immediateenvironment. Geography, thus, is concernedwith the study of Nature and Humaninteractions as an integrated whole. ‘Human’is an integral part of ‘nature’ and ‘nature’ hasthe imprints of ‘human’. ‘Nature’ has influenceddifferent aspects of human life. Its imprints canbe noticed on food, clothing, shelter andoccupation. Human beings have come to termswith nature through adaptation andmodification. As you already know, the presentsociety has passed the stage of primitivesocieties, which were directly dependent ontheir immediate physical environment forsustenance. Present societies have modifiedtheir natural environment by inventing andusing technology and thus, have expanded thehorizon of their operation by appropriating andutilising the resources provided by nature. Withthe gradual development of technology, humanbeings were able to loosen the shackles of theirphysical environment. Technology helped inreducing the harshness of labour, increasedlabour efficiency and provided leisure tohuman beings to attend to the higher needs oflife. It also increased the scale of productionand the mobility of labour.

The interaction between the physicalenvironment and human beings has been verysuccinctly described by a poet in the followingdialogue between ‘human’ and ‘nature’ (God).You created the soil, I created the cup, youcreated night, I created the lamp. You createdwilderness, hilly terrains and deserts; Icreated flower beds and gardens. Humanbeings have claimed their contribution usingnatural resources. With the help of technology,human beings moved from the stage ofnecessity to a stage of freedom. They have puttheir imprints everywhere and created newpossibilities in collaboration with nature. Thus,we now find humanised nature andnaturalised human beings and geographystudies this interactive relationship. The spacegot organised with the help of the means oftransportation and communication network.The links (routes) and nodes (settlements of alltypes and hierarchies) integrated the space and

FUNDAMENTALS OF PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY4

gradually, it got organised. As a social sciencediscipline, geography studies the ‘spatialorganisation’ and ‘spatial integration’.

Geography as a discipline is concerned withthree sets of questions:

(i) Some questions are related to theidentification of the patterns of naturaland cultural features as found over thesurface of the earth. These are thequestions about what?

(ii) Some questions are related to thedistribution of the natural and human/cultural features over the surface of theearth. These are the questions aboutwhere?

Taken together, both these questions takecare of distributional and locational aspects ofthe natural and cultural features. Thesequestions provided inventorised information ofwhat features and where located. It was a verypopular approach during the colonial period.These two questions did not make geographya scientific discipline till the third question wasadded. The third question is related to theexplanation or the causal relationshipsbetween features and the processes andphenomena. This aspect of geography is relatedto the question, why?

Geography as a discipline is related tospace and takes note of spatial characteristicsand attributes. It studies the patterns ofdistribution, location and concentration ofphenomena over space and interprets themproviding explanations for these patterns. Ittakes note of the associations and inter-relationships between the phenomena overspace and interprets them providingexplanations for these patterns. It also takesnote of the associations and inter-relationshipsbetween the phenomena resulting from thedynamic interaction between human beingsand their physical environment.

GEOGRAPHY AS AN INTEGRATING DISCIPLINE

Geography is a discipline of synthesis. Itattempts spatial synthesis, and historyattempts temporal synthesis. Its approach isholistic in nature. It recognises the fact thatthe world is a system of interdependencies. The

present world is being perceived as a globalvillage. The distances have been reduced bybetter means of transportation increasingaccessibility. The audio-visual media andinformation technology have enriched the database. Technology has provided better chancesof monitoring natural phenomena as well asthe economic and social parameters.Geography as an integrating discipline hasinterface with numerous natural and socialsciences. All the sciences, whether natural orsocial, have one basic objective, ofunderstanding the reality. Geographyattempts to comprehend the associations ofphenomena as related in sections of reality.Figure 1.1 shows the relationship of geographywith other sciences. Every discipline, concernedwith scientific knowledge is linked withgeography as many of their elements vary overspace. Geography helps in understanding thereality in totality in its spatial perspective.Geography, thus, not only takes note of thedifferences in the phenomena from place toplace but integrates them holistically whichmay be different at other places. A geographeris required to have a broad understanding ofall the related fields, to be able to logicallyintegrate them. This integration can beunderstood with some examples. Geographyinfluences historical events. Spatial distanceitself has been a very potent factor to alter thecourse of history of the world. Spatial depthprovided defence to many countries,particularly in the last century. In traditionalwarfare, countries with large size in area, gaintime at the cost of space. The defence providedby oceanic expanse around the countries ofthe new world has protected them from warsbeing imposed on their soil. If we look at thehistorical events world over, each one of themcan be interpreted geographically.

In India, Himalayas have acted as greatbarriers and provided protection but thepasses provided routes to the migrants andinvaders from Central Asia. The sea coast hasencouraged contact with people from East andSoutheast Asia, Europe and Africa. Navigationtechnology helped European countries tocolonise a number of countries of Asia andAfrica, including India as they got accessibility


through oceans. The geographical factors havemodified the course of history in different partsof the world.

Every geographical phenomenon undergoeschange through time and can be explainedtemporally. The changes in landforms, climate,vegetation, economic activities occupations andcultural developments have followed a definitehistorical course. Many geographical featuresresult from the decision making process bydifferent institutions at a particular point oftime. It is possible to convert time in terms ofspace and space in terms of time. For example,it can be said that place A is 1,500 km fromplace B or alternately, it can also be said thatplace A is two hours away (if one travels byplane) or seventeen hours away (if one travelsby a fast moving train). It is for this reason,time is an integral part of geographical studiesas the fourth dimension. Please mention otherthree dimensions?

Figure1.1 amply depicts the linkages ofgeography with different natural and socialsciences. This linkage can be put under twosegments.

Physical Geography and Natural Sciences

All the branches of physical geography, asshown in Figure 1.1, have interface with naturalsciences. The traditional physical geographyis linked with geology, meteorology, hydrologyand pedology, and thus, geomorphology,climatology, oceanography and soil geographyrespectively have very close link with thenatural sciences as these derive their data fromthese sciences. Bio-Geography is closely relatedto botany, zoology as well as ecology as humanbeings are located in different locational niche.

A geographer should have some proficiencyin mathematics and art, particularly in drawingmaps. Geography is very much linked with thestudy of astronomical locations and deals withlatitudes and longitudes. The shape of the earthis Geoid but the basic tool of a geographer is amap which is two dimensional representationof the earth. The problem of converting geoidsinto two dimensions can be tackled byprojections constructed graphically ormathematically. The cartographic andquantitative techniques require sufficientproficiency in mathematics, statistics and

econometrics. Maps are prepared throughartistic imagination. Making sketches, mentalmaps and cartographic work requireproficiency in arts.

Geography and Social Sciences

Each social science sketched in Figure 1.1hasinterface with one branch of geography. Therelationships between geography and historyhave already been outlined in detail. Everydiscipline has a philosophy which is the raisond’etre for that discipline. Philosophy providesroots to a discipline and in the process of itsevolution, it also experiences distinct historicalprocesses. Thus, the history of geographicalthought as mother branch of geography isincluded universally in its curricula. All thesocial science disciplines, viz. sociology,political science, economics and demographystudy different aspects of social reality. Thebranches of geography, viz. social, political,economic and population and settlements areclosely linked with these disciplines as eachone of them has spatial attributes. The coreconcern of political science is territory, peopleand sovereignty while political geography isalso interested in the study of the state as aspatial unit as well as people and their politicalbehaviour. Economics deals with basicattributes of the economy such as production,distribution, exchange and consumption. Eachof these attributes also has spatial aspects andhere comes the role of economic geography tostudy the spatial aspects of production,distribution, exchange and consumption.Likewise, population geography is closelylinked with the discipline of demography.

The above discussion shows thatgeography has strong interface with naturaland social sciences. It follows its ownmethodology of study which makes it distinctfrom others. It has osmotic relationship withother disciplines. While all the disciplines havetheir own individual scope, this individualitydoes not obstruct the flow of information as incase of all cells in the body that have individualidentity separated by membranes but the flowof blood is not obstructed. Geographers usedata obtained from sister disciplines and


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attempt synthesis over space. Maps are veryeffective tools of geographers in which thetabular data is converted into visual form tobring out the spatial pattern.

BRANCHES OF GEOGRAPHY

Please study Figure 1.1 for recapitulation. It hasvery clearly brought out that geography is aninterdisciplinary subject of study. The study ofevery subject is done according to someapproach. The major approaches to studygeography have been (i) Systematic and(ii) Regional. The systematic geography approachis the same as that of general geography. Thisapproach was introduced by Alexander VonHumboldt, a German geographer (1769-1859)while regional geography approach wasdeveloped by another German geographer and acontemporary of Humboldt, Karl Ritter(1779-1859).

In systematic approach (Figure 1.2), aphenomenon is studied world over as a whole,and then the identification of typologies orspatial patterns is done. For example, if one isinterested in studying natural vegetation, thestudy will be done at the world level as a firststep. The typologies such as equatorial rainforests or softwood conical forests or monsoonforests, etc. will be identified, discussed anddelimited. In the regional approach, the worldis divided into regions at different hierarchicallevels and then all the geographical phenomenain a particular region are studied. Theseregions may be natural, political or designatedregion. The phenomena in a region are studiedin a holistic manner searching for unity indiversity.

Dualism is one of the main characteristicsof geography which got introduced from thevery beginning. This dualism depended on theaspect emphasised in the study. Earlier scholarslaid emphasis on physical geography. Buthuman beings are an integral part of the earth’ssurface. They are part and parcel of nature. Theyalso have contributed through their culturaldevelopment. Thus developed humangeography with emphasis on human activities.

BRANCHES OF GEOGRAPHY (BASED ON

SYSTEMATIC APPROACH)

1. Physical Geography

(i) Geomorphology is devoted to the studyof landforms, their evolution and relatedprocesses.

(ii) Climatology encompasses the study ofstructure of atmosphere and elementsof weather and climates and climatictypes and regions.

(iii) Hydrology studies the realm of waterover the surface of the earth includingoceans, lakes, rivers and other waterbodies and its effect on different lifeforms including human life and theiractivities.

(iv) Soil Geography is devoted to study theprocesses of soil formation, soil types,their fertility status, distribution anduse.

2. Human Geography

(i) Social/Cultural Geography encom-passes the study of society and itsspatial dynamics as well as the culturalelements contributed by the society.

(ii) Population and Settlement Geography(Rural and Urban). It studies populationgrowth, distribution, density, sex ratio,migration and occupational structureetc. Settlement geography studies thecharacteristics of rural and urbansettlements.

(iii) Economic Geography studies economicactivities of the people includingagriculture, industry, tourism, trade,and transport, infrastructure andservices, etc.

(iv) Historical Geography studies thehistorical processes through which thespace gets organised. Every region hasundergone some historical experiencesbefore attaining the present day status.The geographical features alsoexperience temporal changes and theseform the concerns of historicalgeography.


Figure 1.2 : Branches of geography based on systematic approach

(v) Political Geography looks at the spacefrom the angle of political events andstudies boundaries, space relationsbetween neighbouring political units,delimitation of constituencies, electionscenario and develops theoreticalframework to understand the politicalbehaviour of the population.

3. Biogeography

The interface between physical geographyand human geography has lead to thedevelopment of Biogeography whichincludes:(i) Plant Geography which studies the

spatial pattern of natural vegetation intheir habitats.


(ii) Zoo Geography which studies thespatial patterns and geographiccharacteristics of animals and theirhabitats.

(iii) Ecology /Ecosystem deals with thescientific study of the habitatscharacteristic of species.

(iv) Environmental Geography concernsworld over leading to the realisation ofenvironmental problems such as landgradation, pollution and concerns forconservation has resulted in theintroduction of this new branch ingeography.

BRANCHES OF GEOGRAPHY BASED ON REGIONAL

APPROACH (FIGURE1.3)

1. Regional Studies/Area StudiesComprising Macro, Meso and MicroRegional Studies

2. Regional PlanningComprising Country/Rural and Town/Urban Planning

3. Regional Development4. Regional Analysis

There are two aspects which are commonto every discipline, these are:(i) Philosophy

(a) Geographical Thought(b) Land and Human Interaction/

Human Ecology(ii) Methods and Techniques

(a) Cartography including ComputerCartography

(b) Quantitative Techniques/StatisticalTechniques

(c) Field Survey Methods(d) Geo-informatics comprising

techniques such as RemoteSensing, GIS, GPS, etc.

The above classification gives acomprehensive format of the branches ofgeography. Generally geography curricula istaught and learnt in this format but thisformat is not static. Any discipline is boundto grow with new ideas, problems, methodsand techniques. For example, what was oncemanual cartography has now beentransformed into computer cartography.Technology has enabled scholars to handlelarge quantum of data. The internet providesextensive information. Thus, the capacity toattempt analysis has increased tremendously.GIS has further opened vistas of knowledge.GPS has become a handy tool to find out exactlocations. Technologies have enhanced thecapacity of attempting synthesis with soundtheoretical understanding.

You will learn some preliminary aspects ofthese techniques in your book, Practical workin Geography – Part I (NCERT, 2006). You willcontinue to improve upon your skills andlearn about their application.

PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY AND ITS IMPORTANCE

This chapter appears in the book entitledFundamentals of Physical Geography. Thecontents of the book clearly reflect its scope.It is therefore, appropriate to know theimportance of this branch of geography.

Figure 1.3 : Branches of geography based on regional approach


Physical geography includes the study oflithosphere (landforms, drainage, relief andphysiography), atmosphere (its composition,structure, elements and controls of weatherand climate; temperature, pressure, winds,precipitation, climatic types, etc.), hydrosphere(oceans, seas, lakes and associated featureswith water realm) and biosphere ( life formsincluding human being and macro-organismand their sustaining mechanism, viz. foodchain, ecological parameters and ecologicalbalance). Soils are formed through the processof pedogenesis and depend upon the parentrocks, climate, biological activity and time.Time provides maturity to soils and helps inthe development of soil profiles. Each elementis important for human beings. Landformsprovide the base on which human activities arelocated. The plains are utilised for agriculture.Plateaus provide forests and minerals.Mountains provide pastures, forests, touristspots and are sources of rivers providing waterto lowlands. Climate influences our housetypes, clothing and food habits. The climatehas a profound effect on vegetation, croppingpattern, livestock farming and someindustries, etc. Human beings have developedtechnologies which modify climatic elementsin a restricted space such as air conditionersand coolers. Temperature and precipitationensure the density of forests and quality ofgrassland. In India, monsoonal rainfall sets theagriculture rhythm in motion. Precipitationrecharges the ground water aquifers whichlater provides water for agriculture anddomestic use. We study oceans which are thestore house of resources. Besides fish and other

sea-food, oceans are rich in mineral resources.India has developed the technology forcollecting manganese nodules from oceanicbed. Soils are renewable resources, whichinfluence a number of economic activities suchas agriculture. The fertility of the soil is bothnaturally determined and culturally induced.Soils also provide the basis for the biosphereaccommodating plants, animals and microorganisms.

The study of physical geography isemerging as a discipline of evaluating andmanaging natural resources. In order toachieve this objective, it is essential tounderstand the intricate relationship betweenphysical environment and human beings.Physical environment provides resources, andhuman beings utilise these resources andensure their economic and culturaldevelopment. Accelerated pace of resourceutilisation with the help of modern technologyhas created ecological imbalance in the world.Hence, a better understanding of physicalenvironment is absolutely essential forsustainable development.

What is Geography?

Geography is concerned with the descriptionand explanation of the areal differentiation ofthe earth’s surface.

Richard Hartshorne

Geography studies the differences ofphenomena usually related in different partsof the earth’s surface.

Hettner

EXERCISES

1. Multiple choice questions.

(i) Which one of the following scholars coined the term ‘Geography’?

(a) Herodotus (c) Galileo

(b) Erathosthenese (d) Aristotle

(ii) Which one of the following features can be termed as ‘physical feature’?

(a) Port (c) Plain

(b) Road (d) Water park


(iii) Make correct pairs from the following two columns and mark the correctoption.

1. Meteorology A. Population Geography

2. Demography B. Soil Geography

3. Sociology C. Climatology

4. Pedology D. Social Geography

(a) 1B,2C,3A,4D (c) 1D,2B,3C,4A

(b) 1A,2D,3B,4C (d) 1C,2A,3D,4B

(iv) Which one of the following questions is related to cause-effect relationship?

(a) Why (c) What

(b) Where (d) When

(v) Which one of the following disciplines attempts temporal synthesis?

(a) Sociology (c) Anthropology

(b) Geography (d) History

2. Answer the following questions in about 30 words.

(i) What important cultural features do you observe while going to school?Are they similar or dissimilar? Should they be included in the study ofgeography or not? If yes, why?

(ii) You have seen a tennis ball, a cricket ball, an orange and a pumpkin.Which one amongst these resembles the shape of the earth? Why haveyou chosen this particular item to describe the shape of the earth?

(iii) Do you celebrate Van Mahotsava in your school? Why do we plant so manytrees? How do the trees maintain ecological balance?

(iv) You have seen elephants, deer, earthworms, trees and grasses. Where dothey live or grow? What is the name given to this sphere? Can you describesome of the important features of this sphere?

(v) How much time do you take to reach your school from your house? Hadthe school been located across the road from your house, how much timewould you have taken to reach school? What is the effect of the distancebetween your residence and the school on the time taken in commuting?Can you convert time into space and vice versa?

3. Answer the following questions in about 150 words.

(i) You observe every day in your surroundings that there is variation innatural as well as cultural phenomena. All the trees are not of the samevariety. All the birds and animals you see, are different. All these differentelements are found on the earth. Can you now argue that geography isthe study of “areal differentiation”?

(ii) You have already studied geography, history, civics and economics asparts of social studies. Attempt an integration of these disciplineshighlighting their interface.


Project Work

Select forest as a natural resource.

(i) Prepare a map of India showing the distribution of different types of forests.

(ii) Write about the economic importance of forests for the country.

(iii) Prepare a historical account of conservation of forests in India with focuson Chipko movements in Rajasthan and Uttaranchal.

Geography as a Discipline

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