178. Geography

See also 133. EARTH ; 143. EQUATOR ; 235. LAND ; 257. MAPS .

anthropogeography

the scientific study of man’s geographical distribution and his relationship with his environment.

colatitude

the complement of latitude; the difference between any given latitude and 90°.

gazetteer

1 . a book of place names, sometimes with additional information, arranged alphabetically.

2 . an index to an atlas.

geography

1 . the science that studies and describes the surface of the earth and its physical, biological, political, economie, and demographic characteristics and the complex interrelations among them.

2 . the topographical features of a specific area.

3 . a book on this subject. — geographer, n. — geographic, geographical, adj.

geomorphology

the study of the characteristics, origins, and development of land forms. — geomorphologist, n. — geomorphologic, geomorphological, adj.

geopolitics

1 . the study or application of the effect of political or economic geography on the political structure, programs, or philosophy of a state.

2 . a policy or policies based on such factors.

3 . the complex of geographical and political factors affecting or determining the nature of a state or region.

4 . the study of the relationship between geography and politics, applied especially to the study of the doctrines and actions of Nazi Germany in the context of world domination. — geopolitician, n. — geopolitical, adj.

hypsography

the branch of geography that studies land areas above sea level to measure and map them. — hypsographic, hypsographical, adj.

islandology

the science or study of islands. — islandologist, n.

loxodrome

a rhumb line or curve on the surface of a sphere intersecting all meridians at the same angle; hence, the course of a ship or aircraft following a constant compass direction. — loxodromic, adj.

megameter

an instrument for determining longitude by observation of the stars.

meridian

1 . a great circle that passes through the earth’s poles and any other given point on the earth’s surface.

2 . half of such a circle.

3 . any line of longitude running north and south on a map. See also 25. ASTRONOMY . — meridian, meridional, adj.

orography

the branch of physical geography that studies mountains and mountain systems. — orographic, orographical, adj.

paleogeography, palaeogeography

the branch of geography that studies the features of the earth of past geologie times. — paleogeographer, palaeogeographer, n. — paleogeographic, palaeogeographic, paleogeographical, palaeogeographical, adj.

physiography

1 . physical geography.

2 . geomorphology. See also 83. CLASSIFICATION . — physiographer, n. — physiographic, physiographical, adj.

telmatology

a branch of physical geography that studies wet lands, as marshes or swamps.

thermogeography

the study of geographical variation and distribution of temperature. — thermogeographical, adj.

topography

1 . the art or technique of preparing charts or maps of a specified area.

2 . the physical features of an area. — topographic, topographical, adj.

topology

the study of the physical features of a specific place or area, usually accompanied by maps or charts showing relationships and elevations. — topologist, n. — topologic, topological, adj.