Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and exercises for Geography for Secondary education

Rural Settlement

Types of Rural Settlement:

• Dispersed Settlement: Population lives in houses, farms, hamlets, and villages scattered around the field.
• Concentrated Settlement: The houses are grouped together, forming villages with amenities like shops and schools.
• Settlement Interlayer: Intermediate between the foregoing, presents isolated buildings, including town centers.

Dispersed Settlement Classes: Buildings

• House or Farm: Building isolated where people do farming activities.
• Farmhouse: Very small group of houses, accompanied by auxiliary constructions.
• Village: Small unit of population, less than a town, comprising houses and other auxiliary buildings.

Rural Communities

Rural communities are the basic units of settlement in rural areas. They can...

The Revolution of Transportation

Navigation:

1. Warships with steam engines (Fulton)
2. Iron vessels and propeller propulsion
3. Refrigeration
4. New infrastructure such as the Suez Canal (1869)

Railways:

Stephenson: 1830 - 1st steam locomotive passenger line between Liverpool and Manchester.

Implications:

1. Specialization in the global economy
2. Growth of trade
3. Diversification of diet
4. Facilitation of national and international migration
5. Integration and broader knowledge of the world

New Energy and Industry

1. New energy sources: electricity and oil
2. Key sectors: Steel, electricity, and chemicals
3. New transportation: automobile and aircraft
4. United States and Germany as new industrial powers

New Business Practices

1. New business structures: creation of the SA (Société Anonyme) and

Europe and the European Union

Europe's Physical Geography

The European Territory

Europe, a continent of relatively small extension, is located in the Northern Hemisphere between 35° and 72° north latitude. It is characterized by a prevalence of plains.

Key topographical features include:

• Old Mountains: These reliefs are heavily eroded, forming hilly or flat shapes. Examples include the French Massif Central, the Vosges, and parts of the Alps.
• Plains: Extensive plains stretch from France eastward to the Ural Mountains.
• Young Mountains: These ranges feature high altitudes. Notable examples are the Alps, the Apennines, and the Carpathians.

European Natural Environments

Europe exhibits a diverse range of natural environments:

• Tundra: Characterized by a

Major River Basins of Spain

Miño River

Born in Miño Province, the Miño River empties into the Atlantic Ocean near Tui, Lugo, serving as a border with Portugal. It is one of Spain's largest rivers.

Duero River

The Duero River boasts the largest basin in the Iberian Peninsula. It collects water from the Cantabrian, Iberian, and Central mountain ranges, originating in the Picos de Urbión.

Tagus River

The Tagus River runs through the southern sub-plateau, situated between the Central and Toledo mountains. As the longest river in the Peninsula, it originates in the Sierra de Albarracín and concludes its journey in Lisbon, Portugal.

Guadiana River

Also located in the southern sub-plateau, the Guadiana River lies between Sierra Morena and the Montes...

Aragon's Recovery and Economic Reforms

The Crown of Aragon embarked on a slow but significant recovery. A primary objective was to quell peasant unrest in Catalonia, addressed by the Arbitral Sentence of Guadalupe (1486). This decree aimed to resolve disputes over certain feudal rights, specifically the oppressive practices known as malos usos (evil customs).

In Catalonia, laws were also enacted to promote trade, shipping, and manufacturing. For instance, the import of wool was taxed with tariffs to protect local industries.

Castilian Economy: Wool and American Wealth

During the reign of the Catholic Monarchs, the Spanish economy continued to be heavily reliant on sheep farming. Castilian wool remained the primary export product, shipped to Flanders...

Rockies

• Location: North America, extending from Alaska to Mexico
• Economic Activity: Significant gold and oil reserves. Includes Yellowstone and Yosemite National Parks.
• Population: Diverse ethnic backgrounds. Major cities include Albuquerque, New Mexico, and Denver, Colorado.

Andes

• Location: From the Caribbean to Patagonia, forming the world's longest mountain range.
• Economic Activity: Agriculture, including potato tuber farming, as well as cultivation of chili, corn, squash, beans, and fruit.
• Population: Inhabitants often reside at high altitudes. Major cities include Lima, Quito, and La Paz.

Alps

• Location: Stretching across France, Italy, Switzerland, and other countries near the Mediterranean.
• Economic Activity: Industry, energy production, and logging.

Estuary

Landforms produced at the mouth of a river when its amplitude penetrates inland. They are usually good places for communication, due to the mixture of currents.

Common Agricultural Policy (CAP)

The Common Agricultural Policy, or CAP, was created in 1961 (Spain joined in 1986) in order to ensure the living standards of farmers, market stability, and reasonable prices in supplies to consumers.

Vegetative Growth

Vegetative growth data is used in demographic studies to express the difference between birth and death rates. It can be positive (population increases) or negative (population falls).

Black Economy

The black economy encompasses economic activities taking place outside the established legal channels, therefore, without paying taxes, Social...

The Visigothic Kingdom of Toledo: History and Legacy

Historical Development of the Kingdom

The historical development of the Visigothic Kingdom of Toledo can be divided into two distinct phases:

First Period (507–585 AD)

During this phase, the Visigoths conquered the Suebic Kingdom and established dominance over the northern regions (Cantabria and Asturias). Integration between the Hispano-Romans and the Visigoths was challenging because the invaders used a different language, a distinct legal code, and practiced a different religion: Arianism.

Second Period (585–711 AD)

The Byzantines were expelled, completing the Visigothic occupation of the Iberian Peninsula. This era was marked by crucial steps toward unification:

• The conversion of the Visigoths

The Urbanization Process

The urbanization process consists of concentrating population and the most dynamic economic and cultural activities within cities.

Antiquity

In Europe, the urbanization process began around the third millennium BC with the creation of cities in the Eastern Mediterranean by trading civilizations like Crete. However, the definitive push toward urbanization came in the 8th century BC, first with the Greeks and then with Roman rule, which spread cities all across the empire.

In Spain, the first cities (Cádiz and Ampurias) emerged in the 8th century BC thanks to colonization by Mediterranean peoples (Phoenicians and Greeks). The number of cities increased during the period of Roman rule, when numerous cities were founded, such...

Feudalism in Europe