Geography’s Contribution to Diversity

Geography’s Contribution to Diversity
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Human nature provides for survival, improvisation and adaptation to the environment. As such, humans have grown accustomed to the dry deserts, tall mountain chains, the freezing poles and obscure islands at the expense of the synchronous development of culture at different geographical conditions. Aspects of a society such as the economy, language, belief systems, politics and migrations are subject to a region’s geography to a significant extent (Peterson, 2017). Regional geography is culpable for the diversity witnessed across various cultures.
From a geographical perspective, waterbodies, climate, vegetation and topography all influence culture significantly. For instance, bodies of water that separated continents made for the curious indulgence of European explorers to experience cultures and indoctrinate their own to locals (Peterson, 2017). Topographies such as mountain ranges, deserts or islands limited contact between factions on either side of these features leading to increasingly rich and diverse cultures. People living in different climates took to different economic and settlement activities. Thick vegetation in the Amazon and Papua New Guinea has isolated numerous ‘untouched’ tribes that dot the impenetrable tropical forests (Peterson, 2017). The diversity in culture and language is rampant in these regions. Therefore, geography plays a significant role in establishing cultural diversity.
With a focus on New Guinea, the over 800 languages spoken within this relatively compact region are the result of the mountainous topography that alienates societies from one another (CIA, n.

d.; Peterson, 2017). This geographical manifestation limits communication amongst the various people that dot the region. This isolation allows for the persistence of individual languages of the various communities as they never chance upon each other; therefore, there had never been a need for common language or culture for coexistence.
In conclusion, geography plays an important role in creating diversity in culture. Adaptation to various geographical features or isolation as a result of them makes societies develop independently without altering their culture. As such, geography creates diversity.

References
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) (n.d.). The world factbook. Retrieved from https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/pp.html.
Peterson, J. (2017, April 25). The climate in the Jurassic era. Sciencing. Retrieved from https://sciencing.com/climate-jurassic-era-4932.html.