What is Geography

You’ve had geography as your subject. But do you know what is geography? What is the geography of India? And what is Cartography? Let’s find out more about it.

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Introduction to Geography

The word geography has originated from the Greek word geographia which literally means the description of the earth. The word geographia was first used by Eratosthenes in Greek.

Geography is the study of land and the earth. It is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, the features, the inhabitants, and the phenomena of Earth. The four historical traditions in geographical research are spatial analyses of natural and the human phenomena, area studies of places and regions, studies of human-land relationships, and the Earth sciences.

Geography of India

India is in southern Asia. It is situated north of the equator between 8°44′ to 37°6′ north latitude and 68°7′ to 97°25′ east longitude. India is the seventh largest country in the world and has a total area of 3,287,263 square kilometers. It measures 3,214 km (1,997 mi) from north to south and 2,933 km (1,822 mi) from east to west. India has a land frontier of 15,200 km (9,445 mi) and a coastline of 7,516.6 km (4,671 mi). It lies on the Indian plate.

River Ganga is the longest river here. Kanchenjunga of Sikkim is the highest point, is the highest point in India at 8,611 m (28,251 ft) and it is also the world’s 3rd highest peak. India has 29 states and 7 union territories. Rajasthan is the largest state and Goa is the smallest state.

India has eight neighbouring countries i.e. Pakistan, Nepal, China, Burma (Myanmar), Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Sri Lanka.

Cartography

The word Cartography is derived from the Greek word papyrus which means a sheet of paper or a map and the word graphein which means to write. Cartography is the science, study or practice of drawing maps. Cartography combines science, aesthetics, and technique and builds on the premise that reality can be modeled in ways that communicate spatial information effectively.

Questions For You

Q1. The Teesta treaty has become a bone of contention between India and _____.

1. India
2. Bangladesh
3. Nepal
4. Bhutan

Sol: The correct answer is the option ”b”. The Teesta river originates in Sikkim and flows through West Bengal as well as Bangladesh. India claims a share of 55 percent of the river’s water. Bangladesh wants a higher share than it gets now. Currently, its share is lower than that of India’s.

Negotiations on how to share the water have been going on since 1983. A 2011 interim deal – that was supposed to last 15 years – gave India 42.5 percent of the Teesta’s waters and gave Bangladesh 37.5 percent.

Q2. “Each day is more or less the same, the morning is clear and bright with a sea breeze; as the Sun climbs high in the sky, heat mounts up, dark clouds form the rain comes with thunder and lightning, but rain is soon over .” Which of the following regions is described in the above passage?

1. Savannah
2. Equatorial
3. Middle East
4. Mediterranean

Sol: The correct answer is the option ”b”. The Equatorial region is described in the passage shown above.