Topic: Cultural Geography• Aim: In what ways can we examine cultural elements of geography?

• Do Now: How would you define culture? Is there such a thing as ‘American Culture”? If so, define it…

A Homemade Culture???

•As we read the following passage from Human Geography: Landscapes of Human Activity (Fellman, Getis, Getis, 10th ed.) listen carefully and describe the authors thesis about so-called “American Culture”….

Culture is…• Learned, not biological

• Transmitted within a society to next generations by imitation, tradition, instruction and example

• Provides a “general framework” as each individual learns & adheres to roles and general rules and conventions

Material and Nonmaterial Culture:

Material CultureThe things a group of

people construct, such as art, houses, clothing, sports, dance, and food.

Nonmaterial CultureThe beliefs, practices,

aesthetics, and values of a group of people. Examples-religion, language, traditions & customs

Little Sweden, USA (Lindsborg, Kansas): Is the Swedish Dala horse part of material or nonmaterial culture?

What is culture?

• Material objects (artifacts)

• Interpersonal relations (sociofacts)

• Ideas and beliefs (mentifacts)

• Each element has a spatial distribution

Cultural Systems:• What we eat, when we eat and how we eat is an example of cultural differences– Some Asian cultures eat with the right hand, East Asian cultures use chopsticks, Western cultures use knife, fork and a spoon.

– Certain foods are considered delicacies by some cultures, unclean and unfit for consumption by others. E.g. shrimp, snails, worms, insects, etc.

• Voice-tone and level are very culturally specific.

• Body gestures-Japanese bowing, ‘slurping’ of food, Western shaking hands, tipping of the hat, etc.

• Various marriage customs-intermarriage is accepted in some societies, but not others

Cultural Landscape:

• The imprint of people on the land-how humans use, alter and manipulate the landscape to express their identity.

• Examples;– Architecture of buildings

– Methods of tilling the soil

– Means of transportation– Clothing and adornment– Sights, sounds and smells of a place

“The cultural landscape is fashioned from a natural landscape by a cultural group. Culture is the agent, the natural area the medium, the cultural landscape is the result. Under the influence of a given culture, itself changing through time, the landscape undergoes development, passing through phases, and probably reaching ultimately the end of its cycle of development. With the introduction of a different-that-is alien culture, a rejuvenation of the cultural landscape sets in, or a new landscape is superimposed on remnants of an older one.” ---Carl Sauer, 1925

• Custom – frequent repetition of an act until it becomes characteristic of a group of people..

• Taboo – a restriction on behavior imposed by social custom.

• Habit – repetitive act performed by an individual.

Left-an Apache girl nears the end of her Sunrise Ceremony

which is a coming of age ceremony for

young girls reaching puberty. The sacred

pollen on her face invests her with healing

powers. A good example of a cultural

trait.

Right-festival in Tarabuco, Bolivia. The revelers wear wool hats

that mimic the steel helmets that were worn

by the Spanish conquistadors of the

16th century

Cultural Complex:

• Individual cultural traits which are functionally interrelated. Such complexes are universal

• For the Masai (left) keeping cattle was a cultural trait. Related traits included measurement of personal wealth by number of cattle owned, a diet containing milk and the blood of the cattle, and disdain for labor unrelated to herding. All these together form a cultural complex

• Examples in the U.S.???The Masai of

Kenya

Cultural Realm:• A set of cultural regions showing related cultural complexes and landscapes, having assumed fundamental uniformity in its cultural characteristics and showing significant differences from surrounding realms

Environmental influence

• Old: environmental determinism–Physical environment shapes everything

–Prone to racist conclusions• New: possibilism–People are the driving force–But environment shapes cultural activity

Architecture

• Building materials based on environment –Wood in forested areas–Brick in hot, dry places–Grass or sod on prairies–Skins for nomads

Syria

Dominican RepublicNewfoundla

nd

Nebraska

Architecture

• House shape may depend on environment–Interior courtyards for privacy–Open plan for letting in air–Tall, narrow to maximize land–Steep roofs in snowy areas

Amsterdam

Massachusetts

China

Architecture

• House form and orientation as sociofacts–Front porches, front stoops–Sacred direction, sacred wall–Sleeping orientation

Brooklyn

Guyana

Poland

Yemen

Korea

Clothing:

• Based on climate–Warm or cold–Wet or dry

• May reflect occupation/status• Also reflect values, traditions

SamoaNetherlan

ds

ChinaGuatemala

Morocco

Food:

• Strong part of group identity• Demonstrates innovation, diffusion, acculturation, and assimilation

• Can be part of place identity• Back and forth between culture and place

• Preferences may depend on environment– Staple foods: rice, sorghum, maize, wheat

– Salted meats, fish– Fresh vegetables

• Or genetics (lactose intolerance)

American foodways:

• Colonial foods (Thanksgiving)• Foods diffused back to New World

– Potatoes to Ireland– Tomatoes to Italy– Chocolate to Spain– Peanut and sweet potato to Africa

• Mixing of foods (creole) Acculturation (or not)

• Southern cooking retains strong regional identity – African slaves cooked on plantations– Less urban influence– Anti-North attitudes discouraged

American foodways

• More immigrants mean more foods• Similar diffusion pattern to place names

• Anti-immigrant attitudes through dieticians– Chili power bad for stomach– Common pot unsanitary– Pickles unhealthy– Sushi during World War II

Vinegar

Tomato

Mustard

Food and place identity:

• Historical connections• Deliberate marketing• Tourism and place “consumption”–Pineapples and Hawaii–Lobster and Maine

• Wine appellations and terroir

Pineapples and Hawaii:

• Originally South American

• Plantations since 1800s• Dole’s national ad campaign in 1907: Hawaiian pineapple

• Cheaper to grow in Thailand, Philippines

• Hawaii focuses on fresh fruit for tourists

Lobsters and Maine:

• Originally food for poor, or fertilizer

• Wealthy New Englanders in 1860s–Summering in Maine–Imitating the locals–Only for wealthy vacationers

• Now negative symbol for locals

Wine geography:

• Production based on environmental factors–Temperate climate (hot summer, wet winter)

–Hillsides allow drainage, sunlight–Coarse, well-drained soil

• And social factors that determine consumption

Wine geography:

• Terroir: how environment shapes wine flavor–Soil, sunlight, slope, rainfall, etc.–Varies at the vineyard scale

• Appellation: place-of-origin label–Champagne, Bordeaux, Burgundy, etc.–Parmigiana Romano, Stilton, Camembert

Food Preferences & Taboos:

• Certain foods are consumed based on their perceived benefits or detriments (whether true or false)

• Abipone Indians eat jaguars and bulls to gain bravery and strength

• Some Mediterranean cultures eat the mandrake plant, thought to enhance sexual prowess

• Any restriction on consumption habits due to perceived negative effects is called a food taboo

Food Taboo’s

• Ainus in Japan don’t eat otters who are thought of as forgetful animals

• Europeans traditionally blamed the potato for social ills due to the way it was grown

• In Papua, New Guinea, couples cannot eat together before marriage, however premarital sex is considered socially acceptable

Food Taboos & Religion:

• Religion plays an active role in food taboos.

• Kosher Law, Halal Meat, Prohibition of cow meat for Hindus, Prohibition of pork for Muslims

• Some of the rationales have a basis in sanitation and environment, however they cannot be explained solely this way. Social values also play an important role

Food Taboos in U.S.

• Avoid eating insects, despite nutritional value

• Canned mushrooms and tomato paste contain insects (though not commonly acknowledged)

Deep fried giant water bugs are a snack in Thailand

Raise your hand if this is appetizing to you!

Do Asians Eat Weird Things?

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are needed to see this picture.

Mandrake Associated with becoming

a better lover

Food Attractions:

Other food taboos:

• Before becoming pregnant, Mbum Kpau women of Chad do not eat chicken or goat; during pregnancy do not keep meat from antelopes with twisted horns

• In the Trobriand Islands (near Papua New Guinea) couples are prohibited from eating meals together before marriage, but premarital sexual relations are accepted

Food Taboo Against Pork:

• Jews and Muslims• Jews: needed pigs for farming• Muslims: pigs unsuited for dry lands of Arabian Peninsula (would compete with humans for food without providing other benefits e.g. milk, wool, pulling plow)

Food Taboo Against Cows:• Sacred for Hindus • Environmental reason: cows are needed to pull plows

• Can only plow when monsoon rains arrive and need a large supply of oxen

• Religious sanctions keep a large cow supply

No Reservations - Quebec

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