Aborigine

• An area’s original inhabitants.

Absolute Location

• The exact position of a place on the earth’s surface.

Acid Rain

• Precipitation carrying large amounts of dissolved acids which damages buildings, forests, and crops, and kills wildlife.

1908 1968

Aerial Photographs

• Taking photos of the ground from an elevated position on a plane or satelite.

Archipelago

• A group or chain of islands.

Atheism

• The belief that there is no God.

GODX

Atmosphere

• A layer of gases that surrounds the earth.

AU (African Union)• A union consisting of 53 African States

whose objectives are to:– Accelerate the political and socio-economic

integration of the continent.– Promote and defend African common

positions on issues of interest to the continent and its peoples.

– Achieve peace and security in Africa– Promote democratic institutions, good

governance and human rights.

Autocracy

• Government in which a single individual possesses the power and authority to rule.

Biome

• A similar climatic condition on the Earth such as communities or plants, animals, and soil organisms.

Biosphere

• The part of the earth where life exists.

Birthrate• The number of births per

year for every 1,000 people.

Bubonic Plague

• A disease circulating mainly among small rodents and their fleas. Without treatment, the plague kills about two out of three infected humans within 4 days.

Buddhism

• A religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs, and practices based on Siddhartha Gautama known as the Buddha.

CAFTA (Central American Free Trade Agreement)

• A free trade agreement between the United States, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and later the Dominican Republic in 2004.

Capital

• A factor of production that is not wanted for itself, but for its ability to help in producing other goods.

Capitalism

• An economic system in which the means of production are privately owned and operated for profit.

Christianity

• A monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in the Bible.

Civil War

• A war between organized groups within the same nation-state or republic.

Clan

• Tribal community or large group of people related to one another.

Climate

• Weather patterns typical for an area over a long period of time.

Cohesiveness

• The force of bringing group members closer together.

Collective Farm

• Under communism, a large, state-owned farm on which farmers received wages plus a share of products and profits; also called a kolkhoz.

Columbian Exchange• A widespread exchange of animals,

plants, culture, human populations, diseases, and ideas between the Eastern and Western Hemisphere.

Command Economy

• Economic system in which economic decisions about production and distribution are made by some central authority.

Commercial Agriculture• The production of crops for sale, crops

intended for widespread distribution to wholesaler or retail outlets.

Commercial Industry

• Buying and selling, and the manufacture of goods to buy and sell (anything that makes money)

Commodity

• Goods produced for sale.

Communism

• Society based on equality in which workers would control industrial production.

Connectivity

Continent

• One of seven large

landmasses on the earth.

Continental Drift

• The theory that the continents were once joined and then slowly drifted apart.

Cottage Industry (market-oriented agriculture)

• A business that employs workers in their homes.

Customs

• The frequent repetition of an act, to the extent that it becomes characteristic of the group of people performing the act.

Cultural Convergence

• Trends of different cultures to integrate and at the same time retain their unique characteristics

Cultural Divergence

• The restriction of a culture from outside influences

Culture• Way of life of a group of people who share

beliefs and similar customs.

Cultural Hearth

• A center where cultures developed and from which ideas and traditions spread outward.