Regions and Diffusion
through popular culture
Basics of diffusion
Sports: from folk to popular
The blues: from Mali to Memphis
Regions
Regions
An area of earth distinguished by one or
more unique characteristics
Formal regions- homogeneous, everyone
shares one or more distinct characteristic
Functional Regions – (Nodal Regions)
begins at core and moves outward.
Vernacular Regions – a place that people
believe exists as part of their cultural
identity. Geographers refer to culture here
Formal Region
Functional Region/
Nodal Washington Post
distribution area
hearth
Vernacular Region
The regional approach…
Defining regions: The meta-geography of
space and place (at local to global scales)
Core concepts:
Formal region - political identity
Functional region - connected by common
themes or activities
Vernacular region - defined by local identities
Regionalizing places close to home
Political regions
(states, counties,
metropolitan areas)
Environmental or
physical regions
(landforms, climate
zones, eco-regions)
Economic regions
(I-88 Tech Corridor,
Silicon Valley, Silicon
Hills, Silicon Forest)
Cultural regions
(based on religions,
dialects, ethnicity or
race of residents)
How to regionalize the U.S.??
A few examples…
Emerging metro regions?
More on spatial thinking
(or ‘we all see the world differently’)
Mental maps
Perception
Sense of place
Examples of mental maps?
Measuring your mental maps of the U.S.?
BR: Look at Ch. 1.9 in the white
book- p. 21 Look at the 5 types of
Diffusion. What type of diffusion
does the spread of Walmart
represent?
Definitions
Diffusion: the process by which some
characteristic spreads over space
• Concepts or ideas
• Practices or activities
• Material objects, diseases
Hearth: where a characteristic
originates
Relocation diffusion
Spread through physical movement of
people
Languages to Western Hemisphere
Islam to North Africa, Spain
Foods to and from New World
Expansion diffusion
“Snowball” method of diffusion
Spread from person to person in place
Diseases through Western Hemisphere
Democracy from U.S. to France
Christianity in Roman Empire
Contagious diffusion
Person-to-person contact
Distance-decay effect
S-shaped adoption curve
Hierarchical diffusion
Among levels of a hierarchy
Usually top-down
Based on cities or organizations
Diffusion of folk vs. popular culture
Folk culture
Anonymous or multiple hearths
Relocation, not expansion
Popular culture
Deliberate innovation, advanced
economies
Mass production
Expansion (hierarchical or contagious)
Diffusion and sports: soccer
English, Scots, Vikings, Romans, Greeks,
Egyptians, Assyrians, Persians, Chinese,
Japanese, Toltecs, Native Americans
Folk origin: 11th century England
Village-wide contests
Banned between late 1300s and 1600
Diffusion and sports: soccer
Transition to popular culture
Industrial Revolution: more time, income
Professional soccer leagues (1863)
Standardized rules
Distinguished from rugby
Diffusion and sports: soccer
Spread by contagious diffusion
Exchange students from Netherlands
English engineers to Spain
Expatriates throughout British Empire
Rugby modified in U.S.: American football
Rapid spread through television
Diffusion and sports: baseball
Based on British “rounders”
1846: first game with U.S. rules: leisure
game for wealthy
Contagious diffusion via Union Army
1871: first professional league
1903: first “World” Series
Diffusion and sports: baseball
Relocation diffusion
Via military: Japan, Caribbean
Via elite students: Latin America
Shifting center of population
New leagues; real World Series?
Diffusion and music: the blues
Folk music of African-Americans
Based on slavery, religion
Call-and-response
Hidden messages
Subject matter
Diffusion and music: the blues
Hearth: Mississippi Delta
Relocation diffusion: Memphis, Chicago, Texas,
St. Louis, Detroit, Piedmont
Contagious diffusion: radio, TV
Popular culture: jazz, rock-and-roll, hip-hop
Diffusion and music: the blues
Original hearth: Africa?
Similar sounds, rhythms
Griot or traveling storyteller/musician
Banjo/guitar, percussion