Geography of Religions and Ethnicities Flashcards
Diffusion
process by which feature spreads across space from one place to another over time
hearth
place from which innovation originates
Relocation diffusion
spread of an idea through physical movement of people from one place to another
Example of relocation diffusion
1) people speaking Spanish, English, French in South America because Europeans came hundreds of years ago bringing those languages
2) introduction of common currency BUT with different looking coins (Euro)
Expansion diffusion
spread of feature from one place to another in additive process
Caused by:
1) Hierarchical diffusion
2) contagious diffusion
3) stimulus diffusion
Hierarchical Diffusion
1) spread of an idea from persons/nodes of authority to other persons or places
2) innovation starts in city (place of power) and diffuses to rural areas on periphery
3) mainly caused by modern methods of communication, computers, texting, tweeting
Contagious diffusion
1) rapid, widespread diffusion of characteristic throughout population (like a disease)
2) MISSIONARIES
3) spreads without regard for hierarchy or permanent relocation of people
4) ex= memes on internet
Stimulus Diffusion
1) Spread of underlying principle EVEN THOUGH characteristic itself fails to diffuse
2) ex = innovative features of iPhone/iPad used by competitors
4 largest religions
1) Christianity
2) Islam
3) Hinduism
4) Buddhism
Ethnic vs universalizing religions
1) Ethnic = appeal primarily to one ethnic or cultural group
2) universalizing = attempt to be global, not just for one location
Global distribution of religions
1) Christianity = dominant in western hemisphere + Europe + subsaharan Africa
2) Islam = North Africa, Southwest + Central Asia
Regional Diversity of religions
1) 90% Latin Americans + 70% of Europeans/North Americans Christian
2) 90% of people in Central Asia + Southwest Asia + North Africa Muslim
3) India = 80% Hindu
4) Pakistan/Bangladesh = 90% Muslim
diffusion of Buddhishm
1) Spread because of Ashoka
2) Merchants along trading routes introduced Buddhism to China + many receptive to its ideas
3) Spread to Korea and Japan BUT lost support in India
Diffusion of Islam
1) Muhammad’s successors spread it across Africa, Asia, Europe through military conquest
2) At height controlled Palestine, Persian Empire, India, Spain
Diffusion of Christianity
1) relocation diffusion = missionaries moved throughout Roman empire
2) Hierarchical = Spread of Christianity promoted by Roman Empire’s elite
3) Contagious = Spread quickly bc of missionaries, migration, conquest
Conflict between religions
1) Jews, Christians, Muslims stem same heritage –> Abraham + Jerusalem
2) Holy for Jews = major Judaism events took place there + David established Kingdom of Israel, with Jerusalem as capital
3) Romans + Christians took control, renamed it Palestine, expelled most of Jews, consider Jerusalem holy bc Jesus’ resurrection happened there
4) Muslims then took over + consider it holy because Muhammad ascended to heaven in Jerusalem
5) continual conflict between Romans + Muslims over Jerusalem + eventually Ottoman Empire (muslims) won BUT british took over after WWI + then withdrew after WWII
Arab-Israeli Wars
Numerous wars over conflict for control of Israel
1) 1948-49: Israel declared independence + was attacked the day after + lost West Bank, Old City, Gaza Strip
2) Suez War = Israel, France, UK attacked Egypt to get Suez reopened BUT Egypt still had control of Suez
3) Six-Day = Israel launched surprise attack + captured lots of territory including Golan Heights, Gaza Strip, Old City
4) Yom-Kippur = surprise attack on Israel, ended with no change
Segregation Wall
Built as a barrier to protect Jews from Palestinian suicide bombers
Pro:
1) reduced suicide attacks + Israel made adjustments in response to humanitarian concerns
Anti:
1) increases Israel control over Palestine
2) prevents some Palestinians from reaching workplaces
Jerusalem
1) Considered holy because of Church of Holy Sepulchre, Dome of Rock, and Jewish Wailing Wall
2) Problem = temple mount has both al-Aqsa Mosque and Western Wall –> both sacred for Jews + Muslims
Religious fundamentalism
1) strict and intense adherence to what fundamentalists define as basic principles of religion
2) oftentimes, changing cultural values conflict with traditional religious values
India Hinduism + social equality
1) Dispute over caste systems
2) started off with brahmans, kshatriyas, vaisyas, shudras (farmer), dalits (untouchable)
3) castes split into thousands of subcastes
4) caste system has relaxed BUT consciousness of it exists –> govt plan to give untouchables more places in universities generated strong opposition
Conflict between China + Buddhists
1) China wanted to destroy monasteries + make Buddhists nomads
2) Attempt to find next Dalai Lama BUT Chinese say he will be in Xizang (what they call Tibet) + accused Buddhist leaders of plotting to restore Tibet as independent country
Ethnicity vs race vs nationality
1) Ethnicity = identity with a group of people who share cultural traditions of particular homeland or hearth (CULTURAL HERITAGE)
2) race = identity with group of people who share physiological trait, like skin color (SKIN COLOR)
3) nationality = identity with group of people who share legal attachment to a specific country (COUNTRY OF CITIZENSHIP)
racism
belief that race is primary determinant of human traits and capacities + racial differences produce inherent superiority over other races
Nationality vs ethnicity problems
1) Hispanic Americans –> America considers Hispanic a ethnicity so they can pick any race
2) Asian Americans = very few consider themselves Asian American, just identify with their country of origin for ethnicity
Brazil
1) Classify people by skin color like brancos (whites), pardos (brown), pretos (blacks)
2) Brancos in South, Pardo in North, Pardos in northeast
Conflict over nationality
1) UK = is it British or is it English, Welsh, Scots, Irish?
Should Ethnicities declare national independence?
Yes:
1) if independent –> they can protect themselves from being dominated by others
2) their govt would support their interests more
3) people’s desire to organize with same ethnicity should be respected
NO:
1) ethnic groups intermingle in space so not realistic to separate them
2) peace requires ethnic groups to interact/cooperate
3) ethnic group espousing hatred could use power of state to inflict harm
Ethnic Cleansing
1) purposeful policy designed by one ethnicity or religious group to remove by violent and terror inspiring means the civilian population of another ethnic or religious group
Genocide
mass killing of group of people in attempt to eliminate the entire group from existence
Significance of ethnic cleansing + genocide
1) changes spatial distribution of ethnicities + often through force/violence
Genocide in WWII
1) Nazis deported + exterminated around 17 million people, ~6 million Jews, ~1 million kids
2) many ethnic Germans, Poles, Russians forced to migrate
Rohingya Genocide
1) Predominantly Sunni muslims who were attacked by Myanmar government
2) Myanmar launched massive ethnic cleansing operation –> more than 1 million ethnically cleansed
WWI ethnic cleansing
1) Formation of Yugoslavia to unite several Balkan ethnicities that spoke similar languages
2) problem = rivalries between ethnicities –> led to breakup of Yugoslavia into smaller countries
Geographic evidence of ethnic cleansing
1) often have military equipment and personnel into village with no strategic value
2) round up all women in village, segregating men from women, kids, old people
3) men placed in detention camps or killed
4) force rest of people out of village + destroy vacated
Effect of ethnic cleansing in Bosnia + Herzegovina
1) led to homogenous candidates in both Bosnia + Serbia
2) Creation of one continuous area of Serb domination
Balkinzation vs Balkanized
1) Balkanized = small geographic area that could not successfully be organized into stable countries because it was inhabited by many ethnicities with complex, long standing antagonisms
2) Balkanization = process by which state breaks down through conflicts among its ethnicities
effects of racism
1) feel anxious + scared of doing things
2) make people feel like they don’t belong or that they cannot be themselves
Systemic Racism
1) Redlining = dividing cities into sections that are desirable or not for investment
2) generally blocked off entire black neighborhoods for investment –> blacks were not able to get loans or investment
3) for every $100 whites have blacks only have $5
4) implicit bias = prejudice people have that they are not aware of (white sounding names –> have 2X more calls for resumes)
problem with systemic racism
1) no single person/entity responsible for it
2) important to understand your own biases + accept that legacy of slavery + Jim Crow still negatively affects people of color
Colorblind racism
1) belief that racism no longer exists and that we all have equal opportunities
2) claim that they do not see color of people’s skin –> BUT colorblindness stops us from seeing historical evidence for racial inequality
When did colorblind racism come into play
1) in 60s + 70s
2) problem = racism is not biologically based, like there are many more differences within racial groups than between them
Classical vs systemic vs colorblind racism
Classical racism is overt and based on the belief in racial hierarchy.
Systematic racism is about the policies and practices that perpetuate racial inequality, even if unintentionally.
Color-blind racism downplays or ignores the significance of race and the impact of historical and current racial disparities.
(acknowledgement: CHATGPT)
Cultural Racism
1) Same ethnicity, nationality, race in country so when others came into country –> big racist reaction
2) not based on race, but on differing cultures
3) criticizing religions, like hating on Muslims or Jews
