AP Human Geography : Formation of Identity

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for AP Human Geography

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Example Questions

Example Question #1 : Cultural Landscapes & Identity

People of African-American ethnicity are most heavily concentrated in which American region?

Possible Answers:

Midwest

Northeast

Southeast

Northwest

Southwest

Correct answer:

Southeast

Explanation:

African-Americans are most heavily concentrated in the Southeastern region of the United States. The dominance of African-Americans largely stems from the region's historical slavery in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries, and the large amount of rural farm laborers into the twentieth century. After a large migration to Northern industrial cities in the mid-twentieth century, the South has seen an influx of young African-American professionals in the twenty-first century.

Example Question #1 : Cultural Landscapes & Identity

Which of the following events would not be a contributor to contemporary German national identity?

Possible Answers:

The German National Football Team

The Papal Bull of 1965

The Literature of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

The Oktoberfest Celebration

The Cold War Division Between East and West Germany

Correct answer:

The Papal Bull of 1965

Explanation:

Many different things can help shape national identity, including history, sports, literature, and national holidays. Papal Bulls are edicts issued by the Pope. The Papal Bull of 1965 urged Catholics to esteem a life of virtue and biblical study. While religious Germany is roughly divided evenly among Catholics and Protestants, neither represents a majority, so we cannot make a claim that the Pope forms anything as widely ubiquitous as Germany's "national identity." Further, in 1965 Germany was divided into the separate nations of East Germany (DDR) and West Germany (FRG), and Catholicism held very little sway in East Germany, a fact that holds true in the eastern part of the country to this day.

Example Question #1 : Cultural Patterns & Processes

Most of the world’s Jewish population lives in which of the following two countries?

Possible Answers:

Israel and the United States

Israel and Canada

Israel and Germany

Germany and Poland

The United States and the United Kingdom

Correct answer:

Israel and the United States

Explanation:

The global population of Jewish people is estimated at around thirteen to fourteen million. This is far less than one-percent of the total population of the world. Around six million people belonging to the Jewish population live in Israel and slightly more than five million live in the United States. The rest of the global Jewish population lives in countries affiliated with the European Union (i.e. France, the United Kingdom, and Germany).

Example Question #1 : Formation Of Identity

Ethnocentrism primarily involves __________.

Possible Answers:

protecting minority groups within a society through a series of legal and political machinations

forcibly spreading one’s culture to neighboring countries

judging a foreign culture by the standards of one’s own culture

ostracizing minority groups within a society through a series of legal and political machinations

None of these answers is correct.

Correct answer:

judging a foreign culture by the standards of one’s own culture

Explanation:

“Ethnocentrism” is based on the belief that one’s own culture is inherently superior and that other nations are backwards or underdeveloped because their culture is different. It primarily involves judging a foreign culture by the standards of one’s own culture. It can involve the forced spread of one’s own culture, but it does not have to, it is enough simply to judge another culture by the standards of your own.

Example Question #1 : Cultural Landscapes & Identity

The Treaty of Tordesillas remains significant to this day because it effectively split the continent of South America into two language groups. What are those two languages?

Possible Answers:

Spanish and Portuguese

French and Portuguese

Spanish and French

English and Portuguese

French and English

Correct answer:

Spanish and Portuguese

Explanation:

The Treaty of Tordesillas was signed shortly after Columbus' expedition to America. It was signed between the two major colonial powers of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries- Spain and Portugal. It carved a swathe through the continent of South America, all territory that fell on one side came under Spanish control, and all territory on the other side came under Portuguese control. The modern nation of Brazil represents the vast bulk of the territory originally obtained by Portugal in the Treaty of Tordesillas and Portuguese remains the official and primarily language of Brazil to this day. The rest of South America (countries such as Colombia, Argentina, Peru, and Chile) all speak Spanish to this day. It is interesting to note then that a mostly arbitrary line, drawn by two colonial powers more than five hundred years ago, continues to have such a dramatic impact on the cultural and linguistic experiences of so many people.

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