Cultural Patterns and Cultural Diffusion

Ms. Barrett-Miller (United States of America)
Vocabulary from the DRC unit for sixth grade Social Studies.
16 words 128 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. place
    a point located with respect to surface features of a region
    The word "place" has a unique (special) meaning in geography. This means not only where a location exists, but also what it is like. Location is your address, the exact place that you are. Place describes a site.
  2. culture
    a particular society at a particular time and place
    In our unit, we will define culture as the learned behavior of people, which includes their belief systems, and languages, their social relationships, their institutions and organizations, and their material goods--food, clothing, buildings, tools, and machines.

    "The learned way of doing."
  3. site
    physical place in relation to the surroundings
    In geography, site is used to describe the actual location of a settlement on the earth and includes the physical characteristics of the landscape. Site factors include landforms, for example mountains or deserts; climate, plant types, water, soil, and even wildlife.

    For example, Dover is located in Kent County, near the center of the state, close to beaches and with rich soil for farming. (site)
  4. situation
    physical position in relation to the surroundings
    In geography, situation is used to describe the location of a place relative to its surroundings and other places. This includes what surrounds the place, how near other places are, and how that affects the place.

    For example, Dover is located near Wilmington, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C.; making it an easy commute for work and travel. (situation)
  5. hearth
    a built-in space in a wall where a fire can be built
    In seven places known today, ancient people "invented" cultures, and these cultures still influence the way people live today. The seven original cultural hearths are located in: Mesopotamia, Nile Valley and the Indus Valley, Wei-Huang Valley, Ganges Valley, Mesoamerica, West Africa and Andean America. Later in history, some other cultural hearths developed. They were influential, but they built on cultures that had developed before. The Greco-Roman cultural hearth is an example of this.
    In our unit, we will define "cultural hearth" as the place where a culture burns the hottest, where it is most concentrated. For example, this would be the center of the bull's eye, and the rings around it are the periphery, or more diluted and less concentrated.
  6. diffusion
    the act of dispersing something
    In our unit, we will define cultural diffusion as the way cultures spread to other areas and around the world. We will be using the example of the Silk Road to demonstrate cultural diffusion through trade.
    In our unit, we will add "cultural diffusion" to our vocabulary as the way that cultures spread in an area and around the world. In many cases, cultural diffusion occurs through trade, with modern technology, cultural diffusion often occurs through exchange of information on the internet.
  7. push
    press, drive, or impel to action or completion of an action
    In our unit, we will define push factor as reasons why it seems better to move away from the place you are established. For example, if a person decided to leave his home in Vietnam because he could not find work would be a push factor to leave.
  8. pull
    cause to move in a certain direction by exerting a force upon, either physically or in an abstract sense
    In our unit, we will define pull factors as reasons why it seems beneficial to settle in a specific location or place. For example, if a person heard there was work in Singapore where new factories are opening , the possibility of finding factory employment would be a pull factor.
  9. core
    the center of an object
    In the Social Studies unit Reasons for Regions, core was introduced as the area where an economic activity was most concentrated. In this unit, we will define core as the part of the region where the cultural traits are most concentrated or found most often. Using the example of a bull's eye, this would be in the center, the red circle.
  10. periphery
    the outside boundary or surface of something
    In this unit, we will define periphery as the area around the core of a cultural trait, that has been influenced by it. Periphery is the part of the region where cultural traits are found less frequently. Using the example of a bull's eye, the periphery would be the rings outside of the center.
  11. region
    a large indefinite location on the surface of the Earth
    In the Social Studies unit Reasons for Regions, three types of regions were defined: formal, functional, and perceptual regions. In this unit, we will define "cultural regions" as functional regions based on one or more aspects of human culture. Cultural regions are based on activities of people living in the area. Religion and language are two common cultural characteristics used to determine cultural regions. Boundaries of cultural regions may change over time.
  12. trade
    the commercial exchange of goods and services
    In this unit, we will examine trade as the vehicle of cultural diffusion. Cultures spread through the exchange of goods and services across regional boundaries.

    For example, during and after the Revolutionary War, Americans began trading with China which influenced our culture. Object like "china" or porcelain dishes, tea, silk fabric and other decorative items became common place in many homes.

    Trade in China during ancient times occurred on the Silk Road.
  13. Silk Road
    an ancient trade route between China and the Mediterranean
    In this unit, we will study the Silk Road to examine how cultures spread through trade(cultural diffusion). The Silk Road was a series of ancient trade routes, not one road, extending 4000 miles, between China and the Mediterranean region. It began around 200 CE and continued for hundreds of years and ended near the end of the 14th century. Along with goods, for example silk cloth, spices and tools; languages, cuisine (the way food is prepared), and even religions were spread. The effects
  14. immigration
    movement of people into a country or area
  15. immigrant
    a person who comes to a country in order to settle there
  16. emigrant
    someone who leaves one country to settle in another
Created on Sun Jan 05 14:35:40 EST 2014 (updated Tue Jan 21 17:21:33 EST 2014)

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