Terms Assigned and Definitions (2016-2017)
absolute
location
The position of a place on the earth’s surface.
alluvial plain
Flood plain on which flooding rivers have deposited rich
soil.
apartheid
The policy of strict separation of the races adopted in South
Africa in the 1940s.
arable land
Land suitable for growing crops.
archipelago
Islands clustered together.
artesian water
Underground water supply that is under enough pressure to
rise into wells without being pumped.
atoll
A coral reef enclosing a lagoon.
avalanche
A mass of ice, snow, or rock that slides down a
mountainside.
axis
Referring to the earth, an imaginary line that runs through
its center between the North Pole and the South Pole.
basin
A large or small depression in the surface of the land or in
the ocean floor.
bay
An area of ocean, sea, or lake that extends into the land.
bedouin
A member of the nomadic desert peoples of North Africa
and Southwest Asia.
bight
A crescent-shaped indentation of a coastline, usually wider
and more open than a bay.
bluff
A high, steep face of rock or earth.
bycatch
Unwanted fish, marine mammals, and birds caught by
fishing trawlers and thrown away.
canal
A narrow waterway built for transportation or irrigation.
canopy
The top layer of a rain forest, where the tops of tall trees
come together.
cape
A point of land that extends into water.
cash crop
A farm crop grown to be sold or traded rather than used by
the farm family.
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caste system
In traditional South Asian society, the division of society
into rigid groups, based mainly on occupation, that
determined social standing, marriage choice, and other
actions.
cataract
A large waterfall.
cereal
Any grain, such as barley, oats, or wheat, grown for food.
channel
A broad passage of water connecting two larger bodies of
water.
chaparral
Type of vegetation made up of dense forests of shrubs and
short trees, common in Mediterranean climates.
chernozem
Rich black topsoil found in the North European Plain,
especially in Russia and Ukraine.
chinampas
Floating artificial farming islands made by the Aztec.
chinook
Seasonal warm wind that blows down the Rocky
Mountains in late winter and early spring.
city-state
In ancient Greece, an independent community consisting of
a city and the surrounding lands, where democracy first
developed.
clan
A tribal community or large group of people related to one
another.
climate
The pattern of weather a place has in a typical year.
compass rose
A directional marker on a map.
contiguous
touching
continental
divide
A line or ridge that separates rivers flowing toward
opposite sides of a continent.
continental
shelf
The shallow ocean area near the coast of a continent.
contour lines
On a map, lines that connect points of land at the same
elevation.
copra
The dried meat of a coconut.
coral
Tiny marine animals and the rock-like structures (islands,
reefs) formed by the skeletons of coral colonies.
crevasse
A huge, deep crack that forms in thick ice or snow.
Crusades
Series of religious wars (c. 1100-1300) in which European
Christians tried to retake Palestine from Muslim rule.
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delta
A triangle-shaped area of land at the mouth of a river.
desert
Dry land with few plants.
dune
A hill of sand piled up by the wind.
equator
An imaginary line that circles Earth halfway between the
poles.
fault
A crack or break in the earth's crust, usually caused by
intense folding.
fauna
The animal life of a region.
flood plain
The flat land that is near the edges of a river and is formed
by the silt deposited by floods.
flora
fjord
The plant life of a region.
A
long,formed
narrowbyarm
of the
sea bordered by steep cliffs:
usually
glacial
erosion.
gulf
An area of an ocean or sea partly surrounded by land.
highland
A large area of mountains or elevated land.
island
Land completely surrounded by water.
isthmus
A narrow strip of land connecting two larger areas of land.
jute
Plant fiber used to make string and cloth.
lagoon
A body of shallow water.
Lapland
A region in Northern Norway, Northern Sweden, Northern
Finland, and the Kola Peninsula above the Arctic Circle.
leeward
Facing away from the direction from which the wind is
blowing.
marsh
Lowland with moist soil and tall grasses.
mesa
A flat-topped hill with steep slopes.
Middle
America
The land and islands between the United States and South
America.
mistral
A strong southerly wind from the Alps that can bring cold
air to southern France.
monsoon
The pattern of seasonal winds in Asia. The summer
monsoon is wet, and the winter monsoon is dry.
moraine
A ridge made of rock of various sizes deposited by a
glacier.
mosque
In Islam, a house of public worship.
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mountain
Land that rises higher than hills above the surrounding
area.
natural
resource
An element or substance from the earth that is not made by
people but can be used by them, such as minerals.
North Pole
The northernmost point of the earth.
oasis
An area of water and fertile land with desert on all sides.
oral history
Legends and stories passed on by word of mouth from
generation to generation.
pampas
Grassy, treeless plains of southern South America, used for
growing grain and grazing animals.
peat
Vegetable matter, mainly mosses, usually found in
swamps; sometimes cut and burned as fuel in parts of
western Europe.
peninsula
An area of land that is almost surrounded by water.
per capita
income
The total income of a country or region divided by the
number of people; income per person.
permafrost
Permanently frozen layer of soil beneath the surface of the
ground.
petrochemical
Chemical product derived from petroleum or natural gas.
plain
Flat land.
plateau
Flat landmass higher than the surrounding land, with at
least one steep side, called a cliff.
playa
A dry lake bed in a desert.
poaching
The illegal hunting of protected animals.
polder
The low-lying area of the Netherlands from which seawater
has been drained to create new farmland.
polluted
Contaminated by harmful or impure substances.
population
density
The measure of how crowded a country is, given in people
per square mile or people per square kilometer.
population
distribution
The pattern of population-where people live-in a country, a
continent, or the world.
prairie
Flat or rolling land with few trees but covered with grasses.
prehistory
The time in a people’s past before written records were
kept.
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prevailing
wind
Wind in a region that blows in a fairly constant directional
pattern, such as the trade winds that blow toward the
Equator in low latitudes.
primate city
A city that dominates a country’s economy, culture, and
government and in which population is concentrated;
usually the capital.
prime
meridian
An imaginary line that helps divide the earth into eastern
and western halves. The 0 degree line for measuring
longitude.
province
A political division similar to a state.
relative
location
Where a place is located in relation to other places.
river
A large stream of water that flows across the land.
rural
Belonging to the countryside, as opposed to towns and
cities.
savanna
A large area of grassland containing scattered trees.
scale
The relationship between distance on a map and actual
distance on Earth's surface.
sea
A body of salt water. A division of an ocean.
steppe
A large area that experiences very hot and very cold
temperatures and little precipitation, but supports hardy
grasses and other plants.
strait
A narrow channel of water connecting two larger bodies of
water.
summit
The highest point on a hill or mountain.
territory
Land under the rule of a distant government.
tributary
A stream or river that empties into a larger river.
tropics
The warm middle zone of the earth lying between 23 1/2
degrees north (Tropic of Cancer) and 23 1/2 degrees south
(Tropic of Capricorn).
tundra
A treeless plain close to or above the Arctic Circle. Some
vegetation grows in the topsoil when it thaws.
tsunami
Unusually large waves created by Earthquakes.
typhoon
A hurricane (cyclone), or violent tropical storm, that forms
in the Pacific Ocean, usually in late summer.
urban
Consisting of towns or cities.
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valley
The low land between hills or mountains.
wadi
In the desert, a streambed that is dry except during a heavy
rain.
wetland
Land where water is often at or near the surface, such as
bogs, marshes, and swamps.
windward
Facing toward the direction from which the wind is
blowing.
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