When you position items into any spatial arrangement, you are creating a configuration, or specific shape. For example, scientists refer to the specific, bonded arrangement of atoms to make a molecule as a configuration.
The root of configuration presents pretty much the current meaning, with the Latin configūrāre meaning "to mold or shape." You can see the word figure in the middle, which presents the idea of a physical form that's being shaped. As an example: the specific configuration, or arrangement, of the genes in your DNA is what makes you the unique individual that you are.