Cultural Hearths and Their Origin - Research Paper Example

Social Processes, Geographic Patterns and Contact Zones Introduction Cultural changes and development are spontaneous processes that occur via local inventions and the adoption of ideas, objects and practices from different cultural groups. Cultural diffusion has been made possible by factors like war, migration, mass communication, personal contact, and trades. Diffusion is aids in understanding historical changes and offers an insightful guided for future estimations. It pushes both cultural changes and geographic change in the globe. The diffused changes influence the formation of landscapes and region. It influences the sense of identity that is held by a specific group of people. Diffusion can lead to changes in cultural practices, which will eventually influence spatial distribution. Cultural Hearths and Their Origin Cultural is the accepted way of life within a particular group of people. It includes food, clothing, practices and beliefs. Currently, the world is full of many different cultures. However, the dominant cultures trace their origins in cultural hearths. Seven locations have been identified as the point of origin for the dominant cultures in the world (Blij et al, 2011). These locations include the Nile River Valley, Indus River valley, Wei-Huang Valley, Ganges River Valley, Andean, Mesopotamia, and West Africa. The Wei-Huang Valley It is the cradle of Chinese civilization. The valley is where the earliest Chinese irrigation works started. The capital of Chinese major dynasties like Qin, Zhou, Tang and Han were found along this valley. Trade in the valley began in the form of barter trade, which eventually developed as innovation gained ground. It is believed that the Wei River is the ancient Jiang River, which is associated with the early development of agriculture (Pitzl, 2004). The Nile River Valley The Nile is a critical component of both ancient and modern Egypt. The Nile River is the longest river in the world; it flows from the mountains to the Mediterranean. The river has been responsible for supporting many lives for thousands of years. It has shaped many cultures in the region. The earliest forms of civilization in Egypt are associated with the Nile. The river made agriculture possible, which is the reason ancient Egypt was able to make strides in civilization. The Nile River valley is where the Egyptian culture flourished. West Africa It is responsible for the development of Kingdoms of West Africa. Agricultural breakthroughs were made by these kingdoms. The development in this area was influenced by the breakthroughs experienced by the people Southeast Asia and the Nile valley. Mesopotamia It had agricultural communities its northern part by 8,000 B.C (Pitzl, 2004). The northern part of Mesopotamia is the most Fertile Crescent. Agricultural communities are believed to have settled here in the sixth millennium. Cities emerged along the Mesopotamia around 3,000 BC. The area is crucial for the cultural development of Egypt, Syria and among other Arab cultures. The Indus River Valley The Harappa culture was along the Indus River valley. It was located in the present-day Pakistan. The Harappa culture later disappeared, but its influence on world cultures can still be felt. The twin cities of Harappa and Mohenjo-Dara were known for attractive urban planning and indoor plumbing. They traded with Mesopotamia, S. India, and Afghanistan. The model of irrigation used was similar to Mesopotamia irrigation system. Andean It was the cultural hearth for the Inca Empire, which was made of different Andean cultures. The cultures existed in the Andean highlands. The Inca Empire achieved a high level of organization by fusing different cultures to work together and make up the empire. The influence of Inca culture can still be seen in different cultures of the world. They have achieved a high system of governance and artistic representation. The Ganges River Valley It is the cradle of the Indian culture. The valley holds cultural and religion significance to the Indian culture. Indian civilization can trace to this river. It has supported life for thousands of years. The importance of the river is evidenced by the fact that the river is edified in the Indian culture. Cultural Diffusion It refers to the spread of cultural practices and civilization from the cultural hearths to other areas. There are many types of diffusion, which include relocation diffusion, contagious diffusion, and Hierarchical and reverse-hierarchical diffusion. Relocation diffusion is characterized by the movement of a group from a given culture relocates to a new region. These people are likely to teach the people at the new location about their cultural practices. For example, Italian immigrants who came to New York taught Americans how to make pizza. Contagious diffusion is characterized by the rapid spread of a practice within the population (Blij et al, 2011). Typically, the practice would start with an individual and spread to everyone in the population. In most cases, the idea would start from populated areas and spread to the low populated areas. For example, the spread a given agricultural practice would start from the hearth and spread to other parts of the globe. Hierarchical diffusion starts from a point of authority and trickles down. It can start from the dominant city and spread to the smaller cities (Blij et al, 2011). It could also start with leaders and spread to the entire population. The reverse-hierarchical diffusion works in the opposite. The spread of architecture, artistic representations and music have spread this way. Roles of Distance and Barrier Distance and barriers play a significant role in the extent of cultural diffusion. First, it is obvious that cultural diffusion decreases with distance. Geographers have established this fact already. Therefore, there is a high chance of cultural diffusion happening between places that are close to the origin of the idea than far places. This kind of relationship that exists between the spatial distribution and the physical distance is called the law of distance decay. Physical distance presents a problem to diffusion because of the effort required to travel to far places. The presence of mountains and rivers would make traveling much harder. The theory of time-space convergence has been advanced to explain why distance is no longer a barrier to diffusion. The theory states that the increase in communication and transport systems has made it possible for people to travel and converse with so much ease. However, it should be noted that the distance is still a factor because human effort and costs have to be incurred for one to travel. Social distance also can affect the rate of cultural diffusion. It deals with frequency of interaction between groups of different cultural backgrounds. The level of interaction can be measured by the number of things that the two groups have in common. For example, groups that have different language, religious beliefs, and social class backgrounds are less likely to interact than the opposite case. A community will be resistant to adapt an idea from a group that shares very little things in common with it. In this situation, human barrier is at the center. Human barriers can be absorbing or permeable. An absorbing human barrier has the ability to stop the diffusion process completely. A good example of such barriers is the way the government of China is working to sieve cultural ideas that reach the people. On the other hand, a permeable barrier allows a part of the cultural idea to diffuse. Therefore, it gives small lifeline to the innovation. Consequences of Diffusion in the 21st Century Technological advancements in telecommunications and transport have turned the world into a global village (Pitzl, 2004). It has become easy to travel across continents with ease. In effect, the rate of acculturation has increased (Murray & Overton, 2015). Mass communication has made the adoption of ideas from surrounding cultures fast and easy. The interaction of cultures has given birth to globalization. Globalization is the next level of cultural experience that the world is yet to experience in its entirety. The diffusion of ideas has become much faster because of the internet and mass communication. Practices from different parts of the world are being shared on the internet, films, and documentaries. References Blij, H. J., & al, e. (2011). The world today: concepts and regions in geography. New York: Wiley. Murray, W. E., & Overton, J. (2015). Geographies of Globalization. New York: Routledge. Pitzl, G. R. (2004). Encyclopaedia of Human Geography. Westport; London: Greenwood Pub. Cop. Read More