Human Geography (GEOG 1101)
Chapter 5: Cultural Geographies
● Culture makes people understand both collective and individual identities => cultures
not only reflect but also create value or ideals for a society
● Culture and cultural geographies influence people's behaviors
● Culture help us perceive other individuals/groups
● Culture is the ongoing process of producing a shared set of meanings and practices,
while geography is the dynamic context within which groups operate to shape those
meanings and practices and in the process form an identity and act.
What is "culture"?
Definition
● "learned collective human behavior (sth that is taught between people,
generations, groups of people; not sth that people were born with), as opposed to
instinctive, or inborn, behavior." (Jordan-Bychkov et al. p2)
+ Human geographers see social culture as a social creation/construct; tied to both places
and people.
+ In simple, culture is a simple way of life for a particular group of people, activities they
engage in, traits, practices, arts that groups of people might be interested in
+ Culture is associated with a group of people.
+ Culture is not static, it's always changing and dynamic => people adopt and adapt
(change and contest) culture
● "A shared set of meanings that is lived through the materials and symbolic
practices of everyday life." (Knox and Marston, p.154)
+ Values, belief, practices, ideas are components of culture and related to place and space
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
● Culture can be big, well-known, prominent places or constructions
Ex: The Taj Mahal - a mausoleum, an aspect culture of India
● Culture can be an aspect of arts => are perpetuated by cultural interests - the way
cultures are created, maintained, taught, and shared
Ex: ballet, theater, orchestras
● Culture can be important artists in a particular culture who come define important of
arts or artifacts that are made
Ex: Mona Lisa, pieces of jewelry
● Culture can be different kinds of practices or performances
Ex: rituals, performances, traditions
● Culture can be associated with particular places
, Ex: busy cities, urban culture in San Francisco, North Georgia Mountain, Saturday football
tailgating in UGA
Material and Non-Material Culture
● Material Culture: "all object or things made and used by members of a cultural
group" (Jordan-Bychkov)
=> stuffs help to constitute, define, and reproduce a culture. Ex: buildings, clothes, furniture,
different forms of technology
=> material stuff that is our window into ancient cultures that are no longer with us to tell
about past culture and present-day culture (smartphone, computer, cars). Ex: artifacts of
jewelry, ceramics, weaponry (past)
● Non-material Culture (symbolic): "wide range of beliefs, values, myths, and
symbolic meanings transmitted across generations." (Jordan-Bychkov)
=> the ideas/stories/norms of what we should or shouldn't do, how we should conduct
ourselves, how we value the environment, how we think about morality and immorality, how
we value kinds of jobs,…
Folk Culture and Popular Culture
● Folk Culture: Traditional practices of small group, especially rural people who
typically have relatively homogeneous and stable beliefs and values (Knox and
Marston)
=> considered old-fashioned
=> people shared the same cultural practices and beliefs and transmitted from generation to
generation over long time periods
=> involves the way you dress or gender roles, lifestyles
=> often have a lot of order and structure. In many cases, even hierarchy between people
● Popular Culture: Produced by large, relatively heterogeneous groups of people,
closely connected to consumerism and/or urban lifestyles. Change frequently,
dynamic based on preferences.
=> can be trends in clothes, music, food, technology
=> day-to-day pop cultures
Some key terms
● Cultural Trait: A single aspect of the complex of routine practices that constitute a
particular group
Ex: handshake, plain cornhole in the South, dressing up for SEC football games, parade
● Rite of passage: Acts, customs, practices, or procedures that recognize key
transitions in life.
Ex: a quinceanera for a girl's 15th birthday, funerals, weddings, ceremony
● Cultural Complex: The combination of traits and characteristics of a particular
group.
● Cultural region is an area where certain cultural practices, beliefs, or values are
more or less practiced by the majority of the inhabitants. Cul- tural regions should be
Chapter 5: Cultural Geographies
● Culture makes people understand both collective and individual identities => cultures
not only reflect but also create value or ideals for a society
● Culture and cultural geographies influence people's behaviors
● Culture help us perceive other individuals/groups
● Culture is the ongoing process of producing a shared set of meanings and practices,
while geography is the dynamic context within which groups operate to shape those
meanings and practices and in the process form an identity and act.
What is "culture"?
Definition
● "learned collective human behavior (sth that is taught between people,
generations, groups of people; not sth that people were born with), as opposed to
instinctive, or inborn, behavior." (Jordan-Bychkov et al. p2)
+ Human geographers see social culture as a social creation/construct; tied to both places
and people.
+ In simple, culture is a simple way of life for a particular group of people, activities they
engage in, traits, practices, arts that groups of people might be interested in
+ Culture is associated with a group of people.
+ Culture is not static, it's always changing and dynamic => people adopt and adapt
(change and contest) culture
● "A shared set of meanings that is lived through the materials and symbolic
practices of everyday life." (Knox and Marston, p.154)
+ Values, belief, practices, ideas are components of culture and related to place and space
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
● Culture can be big, well-known, prominent places or constructions
Ex: The Taj Mahal - a mausoleum, an aspect culture of India
● Culture can be an aspect of arts => are perpetuated by cultural interests - the way
cultures are created, maintained, taught, and shared
Ex: ballet, theater, orchestras
● Culture can be important artists in a particular culture who come define important of
arts or artifacts that are made
Ex: Mona Lisa, pieces of jewelry
● Culture can be different kinds of practices or performances
Ex: rituals, performances, traditions
● Culture can be associated with particular places
, Ex: busy cities, urban culture in San Francisco, North Georgia Mountain, Saturday football
tailgating in UGA
Material and Non-Material Culture
● Material Culture: "all object or things made and used by members of a cultural
group" (Jordan-Bychkov)
=> stuffs help to constitute, define, and reproduce a culture. Ex: buildings, clothes, furniture,
different forms of technology
=> material stuff that is our window into ancient cultures that are no longer with us to tell
about past culture and present-day culture (smartphone, computer, cars). Ex: artifacts of
jewelry, ceramics, weaponry (past)
● Non-material Culture (symbolic): "wide range of beliefs, values, myths, and
symbolic meanings transmitted across generations." (Jordan-Bychkov)
=> the ideas/stories/norms of what we should or shouldn't do, how we should conduct
ourselves, how we value the environment, how we think about morality and immorality, how
we value kinds of jobs,…
Folk Culture and Popular Culture
● Folk Culture: Traditional practices of small group, especially rural people who
typically have relatively homogeneous and stable beliefs and values (Knox and
Marston)
=> considered old-fashioned
=> people shared the same cultural practices and beliefs and transmitted from generation to
generation over long time periods
=> involves the way you dress or gender roles, lifestyles
=> often have a lot of order and structure. In many cases, even hierarchy between people
● Popular Culture: Produced by large, relatively heterogeneous groups of people,
closely connected to consumerism and/or urban lifestyles. Change frequently,
dynamic based on preferences.
=> can be trends in clothes, music, food, technology
=> day-to-day pop cultures
Some key terms
● Cultural Trait: A single aspect of the complex of routine practices that constitute a
particular group
Ex: handshake, plain cornhole in the South, dressing up for SEC football games, parade
● Rite of passage: Acts, customs, practices, or procedures that recognize key
transitions in life.
Ex: a quinceanera for a girl's 15th birthday, funerals, weddings, ceremony
● Cultural Complex: The combination of traits and characteristics of a particular
group.
● Cultural region is an area where certain cultural practices, beliefs, or values are
more or less practiced by the majority of the inhabitants. Cul- tural regions should be
