Chapter: 1

Concepts of Economic Geography

1.1 Definition of Geography

Since the beginning of humankind, the study of geography has captured the
imagination of the people. In ancient times, geography books extolled tales of
distant lands and dreams of treasures. The ancient Greeks created the word
"geography" from the roots "geo" for earth and "grapho", where ‘Geo’ means
earth and ‘Graphos’ means description. So, ‘Geography’ means description of
the earth. So, the word ‘Geography’ is emerged from the science that studies
the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. A literal translation
would be "to describe or write about the Earth". It also includes the responses
and adaptations of people to topography, climate, soil and vegetation is
defined as Geography. Mr. Bowerman's definition of geography is : ‘The
study of the world, its people and the interactions between the two.’
The first person to use the word "geography" was Eratosthenes (276-194 BC).
Four historical traditions in geographical research are :
• Spatial Analysis of natural and human phenomena (geography as a
study of distribution),
• Area Studies (places and regions),
• Study of man-land relationship, and
• Research in earth sciences.
Nonetheless, modern geography seeks to understand the Earth and all of its
human and natural complexities—not merely where objects are, but how they
have changed and come to be. Geography has been called "the world
discipline" and "the bridge between the human and the physical science".

1.2 Themes of Geography

In Geography there are five themes:
Location
• Relative Location
• Absolute Location
Place
• Human Characteristics
• Physical Characteristics

Page 2 Economic Geography

Human-Environmental
Interactions
• Humans adapt to the
environment
• Humans modify the
environment
• Humans depend on
the environment
Movement
• People
• Goods
• Ideas
Regions Figure 1.1: Five Themes of Geograpy
• Formal
• Functional
• Vernacular (perceptual)
1.2.1 Location
"Where are we?" is the question that the theme Location answers. Location
describes our position or placement. Location may be absolute or it may be
relative. These locations, whether relative or absolute, may be of people or
places.
Absolute (or mathematical) Location
Thisdescribes an exact position or point on the earth’s surface as defined by a
set of mapped coordinates obtained from a superimposed grid or
measurement system. The use of latitude and longitude, e.g.: Dhaka - latitude
23° 43' 23N , longitude 90° 24' 31E
Relative Location
This refers to the relational characteristics of a location as described in
generalized terms or with respect to other areas or reference points on the
earth. It is described by landmarks, time, direction or distance from one place
to another and it may associate a particular place with another Measuring: N,
S, E and W; km/ml; in Asia, etc.
1.2.2 Place
What kind of place is it? What do you think of when you imagine China?
Japan? Russia? Saudi Arabia? Differences might be defined in terms of
climate, physical features, or the people who live there and their traditions.
Places have both human and physical characteristics:
Physical characteristics
These include mountains, rivers, soil, beaches, wildlife.

Department of Economics, AIUB Page 3

Human characteristics
These are derived from the ideas and actions of people that result in changes
to the environment, such as buildings, roads, clothing, and food habits.
So, the image people have of a place is based on their experiences, both
intellectual and emotional. People's descriptions of a place reveal their values,
attitudes, and perceptions. How is your hometown connected to other places?
What are the human and physical characteristics of Florence? How do these
shape our lives?
1.2.3 Human-environmental Interactions
The relationship between human and enviornment is known as human and
environment interation. How do humans and the environment affect each
other? We change the environment and then sometime Mother Nature
changes it back. For example, floods in the mid-West, Hurricane Emily
(Hatteras), and earthquakes and mudslides in California.
There are three key concepts to human-environmental interactions:
• Humans adapt the environment
• Humans modify the environment
• Humans depend to the environment
Few examples are given below:
• We depend on the river for our water and transportation.
• People modify our environment by heating and cooling buildings for
comfort.
• People adapt to the environment by wearing clothing that is suitable
for summer and winter; rain and shine.
1.2.4 Movement
The movement includes
movement of people, the import
and export of goods and mass
communication. All these have
played major roles in shaping
our world. People is habituated
to interact with each other
everywhere. They travel from
place to place and they Figure 1.2: Themes of Movements
communicate. People interact
with each other through movement. Humans occupy places unevenly on
Earth not only because of the environment but also because we are social
beings. We interact with each other through travelling, trade, information
flows (e-mail) and political events. Not only do humans move but also ideas
move; fashions move; fads move, information moves.

Page 4 Economic Geography

1.2.5 Region
A region is one of the basic units of study in Geography. A region is an area
that displays a coherent unity in terms of the government, language, or
possibly the landform or situation. Regions can be defined by a number of
characteristics including area, language, political divisions, religions, and
nature. Regions are human constructions that can be mapped and analyzed.
There are three basic types of regions.
Formal Regions
These are defined by governmental or administrative boundaries (i. e., United
States, Birmingham, Brazil). These regional boundaries are not open to
dispute, therefore physical regions fall under this category (i. e., The Rockies,
the Great Lakes States).
Functional Regions
These are defined by a function (i. e., TVA, United Airlines Service area or a
newspaper service area). If the function ceases to exist, the region no longer exists.
Vernacular Regions
These are loosely defined by people's perception (i. e., The South, The Middle
East).

1.3 Elements of Geography

Any phenomenon whose distribution differs from place to place is termed a
spatial variable and qualifies as an element of geography.There are many
phenomena that can be a focus of geographers, e.g. natural resources, humans,
political systems, economic activities, travel patterns, etc.

Figure 1.3: Major Sub-disciplines of Physical and Human Geography

The above graphic model indicates that the study of Geography can also
involve a holistic synthesis. Holistic synthesis connects knowledge from a
variety of academic fields in both human and physical geography.
For example: The study of the enhancement of the earth's greenhouse effect and
the resulting global warming requires a multidisciplinary approach to complete
Department of Economics, AIUB Page 5
understanding. The fields of Climatology and Meteorology are required to
understand the physical effects of adding addition greenhouse gases to the
atmosphere's radiation balance. The field of economic geography provides
information on how various forms of human economic activity contribute to the
emission of greenhouse gases through fossil fuel burning and land-use change.
Combination of the knowledge of both of these academic areas gives us a more
comprehensive understanding of why this serious environmental problem occurs.

1.4 Types of Geography

These elements determine the type of Geography in focus. Geography broadly
is divided into physical geography and cultural/human geography.

Figure 1.4: Types of Geography

So, we discovered that Geography consists of at least two different sub-fields

of knowledge with similar methodology: Physical Geographyand Human
Geography. The following table also helps to make the differences between
these two types of geography more apparent.
Table 1.1: Major Sub-disciplines of Physical and Human Geography

Physical Geography Human Geography

Rocks and Minerals Population
Landforms Settlements
Soil Economic Activities
Animals Transportation
Plants Recreational Activities
Water Religion
Atmosphere Political Systems
Rivers and Other Water Bodies Social Traditions
Environment Human Migration
Climate and Weather Agricultural Systems
Oceans Urban Systems

Table 1.1 describes some of the phenomena or elements studied by each of

these sub-fields of knowledge. Knowing what kinds of things are studied by
geographers provides us with a better understanding of the differences
between physical and human geography.

Page 6 Economic Geography

1.4.1 Physical Geography
Physical Geography basically examines and investigates natural phenomena.
It studies the spatial patterns of weather and climate, soil, vegetation, animals,
water in all its forms and landforms. Physical Geography also examines the
interrelationships of these phenomena to human activities.
Physical Geography includes the following fields:
• Geomorphology studies the various landforms on the Earth's surface
• Biogeography is the science that investigates the spatial relationship of
plants and animals
• Hydrology is interested in the study of water in all its forms
• Meteorology studies the circulation of the atmosphere over short time
spans
• Climatology studies the effects of weather on life and examines the
circulation of the atmosphere over longer time spans
• Geology studies the form of the Earth's surface and subsurface, and
the processes that create and modify it
• Ecology is the scientific study of the interactions between organisms
and their environment
• Oceanography the science that examines the biology, chemistry,
physics, and geology of oceans
1.4.2 Human/cultural Geography
Human Geography is one of the two major branches of geography and is often
called cultural geography. Human Geography is the study of the many
cultural aspects found throughout the world and how they relate to the spaces
and places where they originate and then travel as people continually move
across various areas. Some of the main cultural phenomena studied in human
geography include language, religion, different economic and governmental
structures, art, music, and other cultural aspects that explain how and/or why
people function as they do in the areas in which they live.
It includes the following sub-disciplines:
• Economic geography: study of the location, distribution and spatial
organization of economic activities across the earth.
• Political geography is concerned with the study of both the spatially
uneven outcomes of political processes and the ways in which
political processes are themselves affected by spatial structure.
• Military geography is used by military, academics and politicians to
understand the geopolitical sphere through the military lenses
• Ethnography is aimed to learn and understand cultural phenomena
which reflect the knowledge and system of meaning guiding the life of
a cultural group

Department of Economics, AIUB Page 7

 • Historical geography is concerned with the geographies of the past
and with the influence of the past in shaping the geographies of the
present and future
• Linguistic geography: deals with regional linguistic variations within
languages.
1.5 Definition of Economic Geography
Economic geography is the subfield of human geography which studies
economic activity. It can also be considered a subfield or method in
economics. Economic Geography is the study of the spatial variation on the
earth’s surface of economic activities related to producing, exchanging and
consuming goods and services.
Economic geography has taken to many different subject matters, including
the location of industries, economies of agglomeration (also known as
"linkages"), transportation, international trade and development, real estate,
gendered economies, core-periphery theory, the economics of urban form, the
relationship between the environment and the economy and globalization.

1.6 Types of Economic Activities

In the world, people engage in different activities; the production, exchange
(or distribution) and consumption of goods and services. Anything people
buy, barter or work to produce, consume or exchange is an economic item.
1.6.1 Production
It’s an economic process of converting inputs into outputs. Production uses
resources to create a good or service that is suitable for use. A production process
can be defined as any activity that increases the similarity between the pattern of
demand for goods and services, and the quantity, form, shape, size, length and
distribution of these goods and services available to the market place.
Primary Production
This includes activities such as harvesting commodities from nature, hunting
animals, extracting minerals from earth’s crust fishing from river, lakes and
oceans and the harvesting of trees.
Secondary Production
This increases the value of an existing item by changing its form. Such
activities include manufacturing and commercial agriculture. For example, the
farmer applies hybrid seeds, fertilizer and modern technology in the form of
cultivating and harvesting equipment to increase the yield of crops.
• Purposeful tending of crops and livestock (commercial agriculture)
• Increasing the value of commodities by changing their form
(manufacturing)
Tertiary Production
This involves the service sector rather than tangible goods. It refers to a range of

Page 8 Economic Geography

personal and business services involving a rapidly growing share of labor
force in the areas such as financial, health, entertainment, education,
information, and data-processing services; middle-management
administrative services; government bureaucrats.
Quaternary Production
This represents a special type of service work focusing on high-level
managerial and executive administrative positions (public and private).
1.6.2 Exchange
Exchange is simply an intermediate phase between production and
distribution. Goods and services are produced through the production
process. People are engaged in the exchange of items whether it involves
handling freight, wholesaling, storage, telecommunications or passengers’
movement. Most such exchange increases the value of an item.
Transportation and distribution services
• Increasing the value of commodities by changing their location
(freight transportation)
• Satisfying the needs of people by changing their location (Passenger
transportation)
Telecommunications
• Exchanging services and ideas by telecommunication or face-to-face
contact
Trade
• Warehousing and distribution function
• Wholesale trade
• Retail trade
An item, for example, a television is worth more when it leaves a distributor
than when it leaves the manufacturer, and its value continues to increase as it
passes from distributor to retailer and from retailer to consumer. This value is
increased at each level of exchange including promotion, financing and
merchandizing of the product.
1.6.3 Consumption
Third aspect of all economic activities involves the consumption of goods and
services.
The term consumption refers to the final or direct use of goods and services to
satisfy the wants and needs of people. People of an economy consume durable
goods, such as automobiles, furniture’s and nondurable goods, such as food,
clothes and services such as doctor visit, haircut, and education. Still other
forms of consumption are there such as tourism and travel. Occasionally,
consumption may increase the appeal of an object, as in enjoying an antique
table or a Rembrandt painting.
Department of Economics, AIUB Page 9
1.7 Importance of Studying Economic Geography
Economic geography is the study of the location, distribution and organization of
economic activities across the world. Economic geographers study not only
highly developed areas such as USA. Canada but also developing areas and
centrally planned economies. The growing interdependence among activities in
all these areas has been intensified recent years. Therefore, economic geography
provides the student with a conceptual understanding of the changing fortunes of
the world economy. The economic geographer can explain patterns of economic
activities using a locational analysis that incorporates relevant theories and
generalizations. In turn these theories account for the variable levels of economic
development in various world regions.

Economists and economic geographers differ in their methods in approaching

spatial-economic problems in several ways. An economic geographer will
often take a more holistic approach to the analysis of economic phenomena,
which is to conceptualize a problem in terms of space, place, and scale as well
as the overt economic problem that is being examined. The economist
approach, according to some economic geographers, has the main drawback
of homogenizing the economic world in ways economic geographers try to
avoid.

Probable Questions
1. Discuss the role of economic geography in the global socioeconomic
context.
2. Explain in detail the five themes of economic geography.
3. Distinguish among the different types of economic activities.
4. What are the major features of physical and cultural geography?

Page 10 Economic Geography