80 of the Geography glossary’s terms, each with the part of the syllabus where you first meet it.
Material that emits ionising radiation, produced by nuclear power, fuel reprocessing, weapons and medicine, which must be isolated from people and the environment.
The reduction of precipitation on the leeward side of a mountain range, because moist air loses its water as it rises over the windward side and then descends, warms and dries.
The degree to which annual rainfall at a place differs from its long-term average from year to year; high variability means low reliability and is usually greatest where rainfall is lowest.
The collection and storage of rainwater, from roofs or the land surface, for later use or to recharge groundwater.
A former beach, now above present high tide level, left behind when the land rose relative to the sea; usually a flat terrace backed by a relict cliff.
An international treaty signed at Ramsar, Iran, in 1971, under which countries commit to the conservation and wise use of wetlands and designate Wetlands of International Importance.
A wetland designated as being of international importance under the Ramsar Convention, which its country commits to conserve.
A sampling method in which every member of a population or every point in an area has an equal chance of being chosen, usually using random numbers.
The maximum distance people are prepared to travel to use a particular service or facility.
A measure of spread equal to the difference between the largest and smallest values in a data set.
A change in the geographical area where a species lives, usually towards the poles or to higher altitudes as the climate warms.
A rule stating that in a country's urban system the population of the city ranked n is one nth of the population of the largest city.
Malicious software that encrypts or locks a victim’s files or systems and demands a payment, usually in cryptocurrency, to restore access.
An increase in the maximum sustained wind speed of a tropical cyclone of at least 55 km/h (30 knots) within 24 hours.
The return of production or services by a TNC from an overseas location to its home country, usually to reduce supply-chain risk, gain government incentives or use automation.
The downward movement of water from the surface into an aquifer, replenishing groundwater; it may come from rainfall, rivers or irrigation.
The long-term phase of post-event management, lasting months to years, in which buildings, infrastructure and the economy are rebuilt, ideally to a safer standard than before.
An activity undertaken voluntarily in leisure time for enjoyment, relaxation or refreshment, usually at or near home or in the local area.
The average time between floods of at least a given size, calculated from a long record of annual peak discharges; a 1-in-100-year flood has a 1% chance of happening in any year.
The reprocessing of waste materials such as paper, glass, metals and plastics into new products or raw materials, reducing the need to extract new resources.
The inclusion of spare or duplicate capacity in a system, such as back-up power or alternative routes, so that it keeps functioning if one part fails.
Active intervention to help a damaged coral reef recover, for example by growing coral fragments in nurseries and transplanting them or stabilising rubble so corals can settle.
A person who has crossed an international border because of a well-founded fear of persecution, as defined by the 1951 Refugee Convention, or, under wider regional and UNHCR definitions, to escape armed conflict.
The long-term improvement of a declining urban area through investment in its economy, buildings, infrastructure, environment and community.
The phase of post-event management, lasting weeks to months, in which temporary housing is provided and basic services, infrastructure and livelihoods are restored.
In Butler's model, a renewed growth in visitor numbers after stagnation, brought about by new attractions, investment, re-branding or new markets.
A condition in which a person’s income or resources are well below the average of the society they live in, usually below 50% or 60% of median household income.
The change in the level of the sea compared with the land at a particular place, the combined result of eustatic and isostatic change.
The degree to which a method gives consistent results when repeated in the same conditions, by the same or a different investigator.
A former sea cliff no longer reached by the waves, because the land has risen or the coast has advanced, and now shaped by subaerial processes.
The emergency provision of food, water, shelter, medical care and other essentials to people affected by a disaster, mainly during the rescue phase.
Diffusion in which a phenomenon is carried to a new area by people who migrate or travel, so that it may leave or weaken in its place of origin.
Money or goods sent by a migrant to family or friends in their home country, usually as small, regular transfers.
The distance, in space, time or cost, between a place and the main centres of population, markets, services and political power, which raises transport and labour costs and isolates residents.
Energy from sources naturally replenished on a human timescale, such as sunlight, wind, flowing water, geothermal heat and biomass.
The difference between the rent a property earns in its current, run-down state and the much higher rent it could earn if renovated, which makes gentrification profitable.
The total fertility rate at which a population exactly replaces itself from one generation to the next without migration, about 2.1 children per woman where child mortality is low.
The first phase of post-event management, lasting hours to days, in which survivors are found and freed, the injured are treated and urgent needs for shelter, water and food are met.
An artificial lake formed behind a dam, in which water is stored for later use.
The settling of sediment in the still water of a reservoir, which reduces its storage capacity and starves the river downstream of sediment.
Earthquakes triggered by the filling of a large reservoir, where the water's weight and raised pore pressure along faults allow them to slip.
The spatial separation of different social groups, such as ethnic, religious or income groups, into different residential areas of a city.
The capacity of people, places or systems to absorb a hazardous event, recover from it, and adapt so that they are better able to cope in future.
A global network of cities, successor to the Rockefeller Foundation’s 100 Resilient Cities programme (2013–2019), that shares methods for planning urban resilience to shocks and stresses.
A separate booklet issued with an examination paper that contains the maps, graphs, photographs and other stimulus material the questions refer to.
The use of natural resources such as water, land, food, energy and materials by individuals, countries or the world, including use of the environment’s capacity to absorb waste.
The tendency of some countries with abundant natural resources, especially oil and minerals, to experience slower economic growth, weaker institutions or more conflict than countries with fewer resources.
The assertion by a state of greater control over the natural resources in its territory, through state companies, ownership limits, taxes, royalties or bans, so that more of the benefit stays in the country.
The careful and responsible management of resources by individuals, businesses, communities and governments so that they are used efficiently, conserved and passed on in good condition to future generations.
A wall built at the foot of or across a slope to hold back soil or rock and prevent it from sliding, often with drains to let water out from behind it.
Adding new technology, materials or design features to existing buildings, infrastructure or urban areas to improve their performance, such as smart sensors, insulation or flood protection.
The movement of migrants back to their country or place of origin, temporarily or permanently, after living elsewhere.
The growth of population and investment in the central and inner areas of a city after a period of decline, often through redevelopment, conversion of older buildings and gentrification.
A desalination method in which seawater or brackish water is pumped at high pressure through a semi-permeable membrane that lets water pass but holds back dissolved salts.
A sloping structure of concrete, stone, timber or rock placed at the foot of a cliff or back of a beach, on which waves run up and lose energy.
A drowned river valley formed when a rise in sea level flooded an unglaciated valley, becoming wider and deeper towards the sea.
A long, narrow lake that fills an over-deepened rock basin on the floor of a glacial trough.
The force that pushes plates away from a mid-ocean ridge as elevated new lithosphere slides down the gentle slope from the ridge crest.
The process in which the lithosphere is stretched and thinned by rising heat until it cracks along faults, forming a rift valley and sometimes a new ocean.
A country through which a river flows or which borders a river or lake, and which therefore has a stake in how its water is used.
The part of a storm hydrograph that shows discharge increasing from its pre-storm level to the peak, as storm water reaches the channel.
The potential for harm to people, assets or ecosystems, resulting from the interaction of a hazard with the exposure and vulnerability of those it could affect.
A written review of the hazards of a fieldwork site and method, how likely and serious each is, and the steps taken to reduce the risk to people.
The way individuals or groups judge the likelihood and seriousness of a hazard, shaped by experience, knowledge, culture and trust, which influences how they respond to it.
A steep bank on the outside of a meander bend, formed by lateral erosion where flow is fastest and deepest; also called a cut bank.
The pattern of variation in a river's discharge through an average year, shown on an annual hydrograph of mean monthly discharge.
Charging vehicles directly for using roads, often varying by place and time of day, to reduce congestion and raise revenue, as in congestion charges and Singapore’s Electronic Road Pricing.
Large boulders piled at the foot of a cliff or sea wall so that waves break on them and lose energy before reaching the land.
A steel rod drilled and fixed deep into a rock face or slope to tie loose surface rock or soil to stable material underneath; a soil nail does the same in soil.
An isolated rock with a narrow, undercut base and a wider cap, formed mainly by wind abrasion concentrated near the ground, helped by weathering at the base.
In the PAR model, the deep economic, demographic and political processes, such as poverty and limited access to power, that make people vulnerable.
Travel by members of a diaspora to the places their ancestors came from, to explore their family history, heritage and identity.
A circular graph with petals pointing in compass directions, each petal's length proportional to the frequency of that direction, used for wind directions or landform orientation.
A mass movement in which material slides along a curved, spoon-shaped surface, so the moving block tilts backwards as it moves.
A payment made by a mining company to the owner of the mineral rights, usually the state, for each unit of resource extracted or as a share of its value or profit.
A hydroelectric project that uses the natural flow of a river with little or no reservoir storage, so that flow downstream stays close to natural.
The zone at the edge of a built-up area where urban and rural land uses meet and mix, such as farmland, retail parks, housing estates, airports and waste sites.
The movement of people from rural areas to towns and cities, usually in search of work, higher incomes and better services.
The region of the north-eastern and Great Lakes United States, including Detroit, Cleveland and Pittsburgh, that has suffered deindustrialisation and population decline since the mid-20th century.