POPULATION DISTRIBUTION

POPULATION DISTRIBUTION

• The way people are spread out across the earth

FACTORS INFLUENCING POPULATION DISTRIBUTION

• Physical conditions of place

• Level of development of people

POPULATION DENSITY OF THE WORLD

Greenland

Amazon Forest

Sahara Desert Ganges Valley

Western Europe

The world is UNEVENLY DISTRIBUTED.

Densely populated (> 100 persons per sq km)

Moderately populate

Sparsely populated (< 10 persons per sq km)

Population density

• Number of people living in a square kilometres of land (unit area of land)

• Total Population Total Area

• Will help to determine how crowded a place is.

Would you like to live in such an environment? Why?

The Saigon Delta

Why is this place so densely populated?

Would you like to live here? Why?

AmazonRiver

Would YOU like to live here?

Factors affecting population density

• Relief

• Climate

• Soils

• Mineral and energy resources

• Vegetation cover

• Accessibility

Factors affecting population density

• Densely populated areas

Relief

Low-lying, flat land – good for growing crops, build houses, roads, etc

Example: Nile Delta, Ganges Delta (India)

• Sparsely populated areas

• Relief• High mountainous –

poor – difficult for agriculture and housing

• Example: Mt Everest (Himalayas)

Factors affecting population density

• Densely populated areas

• Climate• Temperate –

sufficient temperature and rainfall – allow crops to grow

• Eg Western Europe, most parts of Asia

• Sparsely populated areas

• Climate• Harsh conditions eg

too hot (like desert)• Too cold (like

Antarctica)• Does not allow

cultivation

Factors affecting population density

• Densely populated areas

• Soils• Fertile, well-drained

soils – good for crops• Eg in deltas of • Chang Jiang (China)• Huanghe (China)• Ganges (India)

• Sparsely populated areas

• Soils• Poor, frozen soil;

cannot grow crops

Eg Tundra regions

Factors affecting population density

• Densely populated areas

• Vegetation cover• Less dense forest –

easier to clear for agriculture

• Sparsely populated areas

• Vegetation cover• Thick forest eg

Amazon Basin• Difficult to clear

Factors affecting population density

• Densely populated areas

• Mineral resources• Eg coal in Western

Europe• Eg oil in Brunei

• Sparsely populated areas

• Mineral resources• Lack of minerals /

energy resources

Factors affecting population density

• Densely populated areas

• Accessibility• Good transport

system • Encourages trade,

tourism, settlement, etc

• Sparsely populated areas

• Accessibility• High mountains, thick

forest hinders accessibility

Factors affecting population density

• Level of development

• Low level – few people

eg poor farming methods; few factories

• High level – more people

eg offices, high-tech factories … generate more jobs … more people

Other factors affecting population density

• Government decisions

Examples?