Understanding human geographies

Goodwin, Mark, Dombroski, Kelly, Qian, Junxi and Williams, Andrew ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8030-4829 2024. Understanding human geographies. Dombroski, Kelly, Goodwin, Mark, Qian, Junxi, Williams, Andrew and Cloke, Paul, eds. Introducing Human Geographies, Routledge, pp. 1-14. (10.4324/9780429265853-2)

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Abstract

In the Preface we used the idea that this book can be seen as a ‘travel guide’ to the subject of human geography. In this opening chapter we set out the broad terrain the guide covers by introducing you to the contents of the subject and to its evolution. As you will have noticed, especially if you are reading (and carrying around…) the hard copy of the book, this fourth edition of Introducing Human Geographies has a lot in it. Its contents are diverse. But that is because the academic subject of human geography is itself diverse. We contend that this diversity and breadth is one of the attractions, and indeed one of the strengths, of the subject. How did this come to be the case, and how did human geography come to be the subject that it is today? Answering these questions lies at the core of this chapter, which does two main things. First, we focus on what unites this variety by addressing head on the question ‘What is human geography?’. Second, we expand on the kinds of approaches and styles of thought that have shaped the subject as it has evolved across the years. Putting these two elements together should give you an understanding not just of what human geography is but also of how it is a subject that is actively made and shaped by those who practice and study it. We want to get away from the notion that there is a neat, delineated body of knowledge that is called human geography, which can be learnt by successive generations of students, and introduce the idea that human geography is constantly shaped and reshaped by new waves of ideas and knowledges, which are built on what has gone before. This is why this is the fourth edition of this book, and why each edition is different from the one before. This is also why human geography is such an exciting subject to study.

Item Type:	Book Section
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Schools > Geography and Planning (GEOPL)
Publisher:	Routledge
ISBN:	9780367211769
Last Modified:	21 Oct 2025 15:43
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/163752

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