143 of the Geography glossary’s terms, each with the part of the syllabus where you first meet it.
A shear seismic wave that moves rock at right angles to its direction of travel; it is slower than a P wave and passes only through solids.
A dam built across a valley on a volcano or mountain slope to trap the boulders and sediment carried by lahars and debris flows while letting water pass through.
Drinking water from an improved source that is on the premises, available when needed and free from contamination; the highest level of the WHO/UNICEF drinking-water ladder.
The Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale, which classifies hurricanes into categories 1 to 5 by maximum sustained wind speed, from 119–153 km/h (category 1) to 252 km/h or more (category 5).
The accumulation of soluble salts in soil, often caused by irrigation in hot, dry climates, which reduces fertility and can make land unusable for crops.
The concentration of dissolved salts in seawater, averaging about 35 g per kg; it rises with evaporation and sea-ice formation and falls with inputs of fresh water.
The physical weathering of rock by the growth and expansion of salt crystals in pores and cracks as salty water evaporates, which forces grains apart.
A transport process in which pebbles and sand grains are lifted by the flow and bounce along the bed in a series of hops.
An area of mudflats colonised by salt-tolerant plants in a sheltered, low-energy intertidal zone, such as behind a spit or in an estuary, where fine sediment settles.
The movement of seawater into a coastal freshwater aquifer, usually because over-pumping has lowered the water table and the pressure of fresh groundwater.
A visitor who does not stay overnight in the place visited, such as a day-tripper or a cruise passenger on a shore visit; also called an excursionist.
The selection of a manageable number of sites, people or items to measure, so that conclusions about a whole population or area can be drawn from them.
Penalties imposed by one or more states or international organisations on a country, organisation or individual, such as trade bans, asset freezes and travel bans, to pressure them to change their behaviour.
A mound or ridge of sand deposited by the wind; coastal dunes form behind wide beaches where onshore winds carry dry sand inland and vegetation traps it.
A flow diagram in which the width of each band is proportional to the quantity it represents, used to show how a total is split between, or made up of, different flows.
A planned area of high-technology and research-based firms located near a university or research institute to benefit from its research, staff and graduates.
Frozen seawater floating on the ocean surface; in the Arctic it grows each winter and shrinks each summer to a minimum in September.
The temperature of the top few metres of the ocean, measured by ships, buoys and satellites; departures from average (anomalies) are used to monitor ENSO and marine heatwaves.
A wall of concrete, stone or steel built along the coast to stop waves eroding or flooding the land behind it; a recurved sea wall has a curved top that deflects waves seaward.
An increase in the mean level of the sea surface, either globally (eustatic, from expanding or added water) or relative to the land at a particular place, including land rising or sinking.
The variation in tourist numbers and tourism activity through the year, caused by climate, school holidays and festivals, which makes many tourism jobs and incomes seasonal.
Information collected or published by someone else, such as census data, maps, river gauge records, reports or websites.
A hazard triggered by a primary hazard, such as a lahar, landslide, liquefaction or tsunami.
Economic activities that process raw materials into manufactured products, including construction and energy production.
Facilities and services created to serve or attract visitors, such as accommodation, restaurants, transport, ski lifts, theme parks, conference centres and marketing.
The process by which nomadic or semi-nomadic people settle permanently in one place, often encouraged by governments through boreholes, services or restrictions on movement.
A length of coastline, usually bounded by headlands or estuaries, within which sediment moves in a largely closed system of sources, transfers and sinks.
A long, narrow, sharp-crested dune lying parallel to the average of two seasonal wind directions, which can stretch for tens to hundreds of kilometres.
A section of an active fault that has not ruptured in a large earthquake for a long time, where stress is building and a future earthquake is likely.
Strengthening an existing building or structure so that it can better withstand earthquakes, for example by adding steel bracing, concrete jackets around columns or shear walls.
A dry environment, usually on desert margins, with an aridity index of 0.2–0.5 and typically 250–500 mm of rain in a short wet season, supporting grassland, scrub and rain-fed farming in good years.
A United Nations agreement adopted in Sendai, Japan, in 2015 that sets seven global targets and four priorities for reducing disaster deaths, people affected and losses between 2015 and 2030.
The pursuit by a group, usually based in a particular region, of political independence or much greater self-government from the state of which it is part.
A line a set distance inland from the shoreline, seaward of which new building is not permitted, so that development is kept out of areas likely to erode or flood.
The ranking of settlements in a region or country by population size or by the number and order of their services, from many small hamlets to a few very large cities.
The mean velocity below which a particle of a given size can no longer be carried by flowing water and is deposited.
The number of males per 100 females in a population or age group; the sex ratio at birth is the number of male births per 100 female births, naturally about 105.
Natural gas trapped in fine-grained shale rock, extracted by horizontal drilling and fracking; oil extracted in the same way is called tight oil.
The internal resistance of slope material to moving downslope, provided by friction, cohesion and plant roots.
The force acting down a slope that tends to move material downslope, mainly the downslope component of the material's weight.
A broad volcano with gentle slopes built from many flows of runny basaltic lava, such as Mauna Loa in Hawaii.
The dismantling of old ships to recover steel and other materials, carried out mainly on tidal beaches in South Asia, exposing workers and coasts to asbestos, oil and heavy metals.
A regularly used sea route between major ports, often channelled through straits and canals, along which ship traffic and the risk of collisions, spills and emissions are concentrated.
A long-term plan for a stretch of coast, usually based on a sediment cell, that sets a management policy for each section of shoreline over the next 100 years.
A tourist destination relatively close to the visitor's home, usually reached by a flight of up to about three hours or by land, often in the same world region.
Energy emitted by the Sun, mainly as visible light, ultraviolet and near-infrared radiation, received by the Earth as incoming solar radiation (insolation).
An urban area that has experienced a substantial and sustained loss of population, usually because of economic decline and out-migration.
The idea that the world has become effectively smaller because transport and communication technologies have reduced the time, cost and difficulty of moving people, goods and information between places.
The probability threshold, usually 0.05 (5%) or 0.01 (1%), set before a statistical test: the null hypothesis is rejected if a result as strong as the one found would arise by chance less often than this.
The economic activity generated by the needs and spending of people aged about 50 and over, including healthcare, care services, assistive technology, housing adaptation, leisure and travel.
A measure of how much a river channel bends, found by dividing the channel length between two points by the straight-line distance between them; values above about 1.5 indicate a meandering channel.
The physical characteristics of the land on which a settlement is built, such as relief, geology, water supply, drainage and protection from hazards.
The physical and human characteristics of the land where an event or settlement is located, such as space, relief, drainage, water supply, access and ownership.
The ability of a tourism site to absorb visitor pressure and recover from damage while keeping the qualities that attract visitors.
The location of a settlement in relation to its surroundings, such as other settlements, transport routes, resources and the wider region.
The force exerted by the weight of cold, dense lithosphere sinking into the mantle at a subduction zone, which drags the rest of the plate behind it.
Low-effort online support for a cause, such as liking or sharing a post, that makes participants feel involved but may have little effect on the issue itself.
The steep leeward side of a sand dune, standing at about 32–34°, down which sand avalanches after being blown over the crest.
Engineering and vegetation measures that increase the shear strength of a slope or reduce the shear stress on it, such as drainage, regrading, retaining walls, rock bolts and planting.
The demolition of informal or substandard housing in an urban area, with or without rehousing its residents, usually to redevelop the land or remove perceived health and safety risks.
One of a UN-recognised group of small island and low-lying coastal countries that share challenges such as remoteness, small populations and markets, narrow economies and high vulnerability to external shocks.
A city that uses digital technology, sensors and data analysis to manage its infrastructure and services, such as transport, energy, water and waste, more efficiently and improve residents’ quality of life.
An electricity network that uses digital communication, smart meters and automated control to balance supply and demand, integrate renewable sources and respond to faults.
The ability to combine hard power (coercion and payment) and soft power (attraction) into an effective strategy suited to each situation.
A graph of value added against the stages of a product’s value chain that is high at the research, design and brand ends and lowest at manufacturing and assembly, giving a U-shaped curve.
Coastal management that works with natural processes by adding or restoring beaches, dunes, saltmarshes or mangroves that absorb wave energy, rather than building artificial structures.
The ability of a country to influence others through attraction, such as its culture, values, image and diplomacy, rather than through military or economic force.
The very slow downslope movement of soil particles, typically millimetres a year, caused by repeated wetting and drying or freezing and thawing.
The removal of soil, especially fertile topsoil, by water, wind or ice faster than it forms, often increased by heavy rain, drought, deforestation and poor farming practices.
Electricity or heat generated from the energy of sunlight, either by photovoltaic panels or by concentrating sunlight to heat a fluid.
Proposed methods of cooling the Earth by reflecting more incoming sunlight back to space, such as injecting aerosols into the stratosphere or brightening marine clouds.
A microcredit method in which borrowers form small groups that meet regularly and support each other’s repayments, so that peer pressure replaces collateral.
The slow downslope flow of saturated soil, especially of the thawed active layer over impermeable permafrost, forming lobes and terraces.
The physical transfer of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to the deep ocean, as it dissolves in cold high-latitude surface water that then sinks with the thermohaline circulation.
An erosion process in which rock minerals, especially calcium carbonate in limestone and chalk, are dissolved by weakly acidic water; also called corrosion. Dissolved material carried away is the solution load.
A model that traces pollution from where it is released (source), along the route by which it travels (pathway), to the people, ecosystems or property it harms (receptor).
An index of the difference in sea-level air pressure between Tahiti and Darwin; sustained negative values indicate El Niño and sustained positive values indicate La Niña.
The supreme and independent authority of a state over its territory, including its land, internal waters, territorial sea and the airspace above them.
How accurately the location of a future hazard event can be known in advance, for example along a mapped fault, on the flanks of a known volcano or on a slope with a landslide history.
A statistic from −1 to +1 measuring the strength and direction of the relationship between the ranks of two sets of paired data.
A designated area in which a government applies different, usually more liberal, economic rules, such as lower taxes and fewer trade restrictions, to attract investment and promote exports.
A sport whose events attract large audiences who watch in person or through broadcasting, as well as or rather than taking part.
The time between the first signs of a hazard event and its peak impact, from seconds for a rockfall to years for soil creep.
The area from which a facility, such as a park, stadium or national park, draws its users or visitors; also called its catchment area.
A long, narrow ridge of sand or shingle joined to the land at one end and extending across a bay or estuary, built by longshore drift where the coast changes direction.
A city designed, as in China’s national programme from 2015, to absorb, store, clean and reuse rainwater through green spaces, wetlands, permeable surfaces and green roofs instead of draining it rapidly away.
The unplanned expansion of a settlement as buildings and streets are added gradually by individuals and businesses, without an overall design.
A physical activity governed by rules or customs, often competitive, undertaken for enjoyment, health or as a profession, by participants or watched by spectators.
A term used by critics for the use of sport, such as hosting events, sponsoring teams or owning clubs, by a government or organisation to improve a reputation damaged by human rights abuses.
A point on a map marked with a dot and a number giving its exact height above sea level in metres.
A tide with the largest tidal range, occurring twice a month when the Sun, Moon and Earth are in line and their gravitational pulls combine.
An isolated pillar of rock standing in the sea off a headland, left when the roof of an arch collapses.
A performance, setting or experience arranged for tourists so that it appears to be genuine local life or tradition.
A model (van den Berg and others, 1982) of the sequence of urbanisation, suburbanisation, counter-urbanisation and reurbanisation that a city region may pass through.
Any person, group or organisation that has an interest in an issue or decision or is affected by it, such as a government, business, NGO, community or individual.
A large pyramidal dune with three or more radiating arms, each with a slip face, formed by winds from several directions; it grows upwards and moves little.
A person who is not considered a national by any state under its law, and so lacks the rights of citizenship such as a passport, legal work or public services.
Migration in a series of stages, for example from a village to a nearby town, then to a regional city and finally to a major city.
Negative attitudes and discrimination directed at a person or group because of a characteristic, such as an illness, which can stop people seeking prevention or treatment.
The map, graph, table, photograph, diagram or text on which an examination question is based, which answers are expected to use and quote.
A sudden and severe fall in a fish population, usually to a small fraction of its former size, from which it may recover only slowly or not at all.
A graph showing how the discharge of a river at one point changes over time in response to a period of rainfall, usually drawn with the rainfall as bars on the same time axis.
An abnormal rise in sea level generated by a storm, above the predicted tide, caused mainly by onshore winds piling water against the coast and partly by low pressure lifting the sea.
A movable barrier across an estuary or channel that is closed when a storm surge or exceptionally high tide is forecast, to stop the sea flooding the land upstream.
The importance of a place or area to a state's security, economy or power, for example because it controls a trade route, a choke point or resources.
A sampling method that divides a population or area into subgroups and samples each in proportion to its share of the whole, so that every subgroup is represented.
A package of IMF and World Bank loans, used widely in the 1980s and 1990s, that required borrowing countries to privatise, liberalise trade and reduce government spending.
Physical changes to a river or drainage basin that reduce flooding, such as dams, artificial levees, channel modification and afforestation.
An examination question divided into short parts of rising difficulty, usually based on a stimulus, in which each valid point or development earns one mark.
The concentration of student households in a residential area near a university, usually in converted shared rental housing, changing the area's population, services and character.
Low height for age in a child, more than two standard deviations below the median of the WHO Child Growth Standards; an indicator of chronic undernutrition.
Processes that act on the land surface above the reach of waves, mainly weathering and mass movement, which weaken cliffs and move material down them.
The process in which denser oceanic lithosphere sinks beneath another plate at a convergent boundary and descends into the mantle.
A fibre-optic cable laid on the sea floor between landing stations on different coasts, carrying most of the world’s international internet and telephone traffic.
A coastline where the sea has risen relative to the land, drowning former valleys to form features such as rias and fjords.
A company that is owned and controlled, wholly or by a majority of its shares, by another company (the parent company), often in a different country.
Farming in which most of the food produced is eaten by the farmer’s household, with little or no surplus left for sale.
The outward growth of an urban area and the movement of people and activities from the inner city to residential and commercial suburbs at its edge.
The gradual change in the plant communities of an area over time, as each stage alters conditions so that new species can establish, ending in a stable climax community.
A tax on sugar-sweetened drinks or high-sugar foods that aims to reduce sugar consumption and related diseases by raising prices and encouraging manufacturers to cut sugar content.
A state or union of states with a dominant position in the world, able to exert influence and project power globally through economic strength, military and diplomatic reach and cultural attraction.
The sequence of organisations, activities and places involved in producing a good or service and delivering it to the consumer, from raw materials to the final sale.
The possibility that a physical, economic, political, accidental or cyber event will disrupt the flow of materials, components or products along a supply chain, causing delays, shortages or higher costs.
The displacement of the ground surface where a fault breaks through to the surface during an earthquake.
A seismic wave that travels along the Earth's surface; Love and Rayleigh waves are the slowest seismic waves but have the largest amplitude and do most damage.
The systematic monitoring of people’s activities, communications or movements by governments, companies or other organisations, increasingly by collecting and analysing digital data.
A transport process in which fine particles such as silt and clay are carried within the body of the flowing water, held up by turbulence.
The use of resources and environments in ways that meet present needs without reducing their availability or quality for future generations, so that natural systems can continue to function indefinitely.
Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs (Brundtland Report, 1987), balancing economic, social and environmental goals.
Seventeen global goals with 169 targets, adopted by all UN member states in 2015 for achievement by 2030, which aim to end poverty and hunger, reduce inequality and protect the planet in all countries.
Increasing food production from existing farmland while reducing its environmental impacts, for example through better soil and water management, improved varieties and integrated pest management.
Tourism that takes full account of its current and future economic, social and environmental impacts, meeting the needs of visitors, the industry, the environment and host communities.
The rush of water up a beach after a wave breaks, carrying sediment in the direction in which the wave is travelling.
A factory or workshop in which employees work long hours for very low pay in poor or unsafe conditions, often making goods for export under contract to large brands.
The skill of linking ideas, evidence and concepts from different parts of the course, or different places and scales, into one coherent argument.
A sampling method in which samples are taken at regular intervals in space or time, such as every 50 m along a transect or every tenth passer-by.
A method of studying a farm or food chain as an open system of inputs, stores, transfers and outputs, so that flows of energy, water and materials can be measured and compared between places.
The level of tourism that residents of a destination can accept before their quality of life and their attitudes to visitors deteriorate.