Five themes of geography

Every point on Earth has a location. Location can be described in two different ways:

• Absolute location, a location as described by its latitude and longitude on the Earth. For example, the coordinates of Albany, New York are 42.6525° N, 73.7572° W.
• Relative location, a location as described by where it is compared to something else. For example, Albany, New York is roughly 140 miles north of New York City.

Every site on Earth has a unique absolute location, which can be identified with a reference grid (such as latitude and longitude). Maps and globes can be used to find location and can also be used to convey other types of geographical information. Map projections are used to represent the three-dimensional Earth on a two-dimensional map. The earth's position relative to the sun affects climate, seasons, and time zones.[1]

A place is an area that is defined by everything in it. Places have physical characteristics, such as landforms and plant and animal life, as well as human characteristics, such as economic activities and languages.[1] All places have features that give them personality and distinguish them from other places.

• Toponym: a place name, especially one derived from a topographical feature.
• Site: an area of ground on which a town, building, or monument is constructed.
• Situation: the location and surroundings of a place.
• Population: the number of people that live in the area.

This theme describes how people interact with the environment, and how the environment responds, with three key concepts:[5]

• Dependency: Humans depend on the environment.
• Adaptation: Humans adapt to the environment.
• Modification: Humans modify the environment.

Sub-themes include "the earth as an environmental system" (including the role and problems of technology, environmental hazards and limits, and adaptation) and "ethics and values" (differing cultural values and the trade-off between economic development and environmental protection).[1]

Movement is the travel of people, goods, and ideas from one location to another. Examples of movement include the United States' westward expansion, the Information Revolution, and immigration. New devices such as the airplane and the Internet allow physical and ideological goods to be transferred long distances in short time intervals. A person's travel from place to place, and the actions they perform there are also considered movement.

Places are connected by movement:[1]

• Methods of transportation (transportation geography) – public transportation, private transportation, freight transportation
• Movement in everyday life
• History of movement
• Economic factors influencing movement
• Energy or mass induced movement – the water cycle, tectonic plates, movements within ecosystems, etc.
• Global interdependence
• Models of human interaction, including gravity models and central place theory

Regions are areas with distinctive characteristics: human characteristics, such as demographics or politics, and physical characteristics, such as climate and vegetation. For example, the US is a political region because it shares one governmental system.

Regions may have clear, well-defined borders or vague boundaries.[1]

• Uniform region – "defined by some uniform cultural or physical characteristic", such as the Bible Belt or New England[1]
• Functional region – space organized around a focal point, such as a metropolitan area[1]
• Cultural diversity – regions are a way to understand human diversity.[1]