concept of region in regional planning that is part of geography hons\'s paper PDF

Preview

Summary

this is about the detailed concept of region. it is very important for a geography student to have knowlenge about the basic concepts of geography. region mainly study in the regional planning, that is a part of geography and also a important paper in academics...

Description

Discuss the concept of region and different types of regions. Give suitable examples. Geography is the study of places and the relationships between people and their environments. Geographers explore both the physical properties of Earth’s surface and the human societies spread across it. Geography is an all-encompassing discipline that seeks an understanding of Earth and its human and natural complexities not merely where objects are, but also how they have changed and come to be.

According to hettner (1907) geography is the study of regions which include the knowledge of areas of the earth as they differ from each other. He emphasizes the necessity to study the uniqueness of the spatial units compared to each other. In geography, regions are the areas that are broadly divided by its physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and the environment (environmental geography). Geographic regions and sub-regions are mostly described by their imprecisely defined, and sometimes transitory boundaries, except in human geography, where jurisdiction areas such as national borders are defined in law.

Harry W.Richardson wrote. “Defining regions precisely is such a nightmare that most regional economists prefer to shy away from the task, and are relieved when they work with administrative regions on the grounds that policy considerations require it or that data are not available for any other spatial units.” There has been a great deal of discussion of the regional concept, but this has not led to any firm agreement. Probably the most prevalent view is that there is no unambiguous method of defining an ideal region and that wherever possible spatial analysts should work with the more neutral concept of space.

Definition of region a region is a geographic or areal unit with certain limits and bounds. The unit may consist of a few villages or a number of countries. A region may, therefore, be thought of as an areal or spatial organization of varying dimensions.

The region is a device for selecting and studying areal groupings of the complex phenomena found on the earth. Any segment or portion of the earth surface is a region if it is homogen-eous in terms of such an areal grouping. Its homogeneity is determined by criteria formulated for the purpose of sorting from the whole range of earth phenomena the items required to express or illuminate a particular grouping, a really cohesive. So defined, a region is not an object, either selfdetermined or nature-given. It is an intellectual concept, an entity for the purposes of thought, created by the selection of certain features that are relevant to an areal interest or problem and by the disregard of all features that are considered irrelevant According to Taylor: “The Region is an area of the earth Surface.” Vidal-de-La-Blache defines a region as “A region is a domain where many dissimilar things are artificially brought together and have subsequently adopted themselves to a common existence.” Whittesey (1929) defined the region as “ differentiated segment of earth space” The generalization of the features of the earth's surface is to make the infinitely varying world around us understandable through spatial (regional) summaries. It is, however, difficult to divide the earth surface into neat regions of uniformity. In opinion of F. J. Monkhouse: “A region is an unit area of the earth surface differentiated by its specific characteristics” C. Aronovic defines a region as “The Region is a geographic Area or areas which given civilisation, standard of a people seems to require for the fulfillment of the aspiration through material resource.” According to Woolfgang & Joerg: “Any Surface over the earth's surface where physical conditions are homogenous is a region.” G. T. Ranner define it as “Regions are genuine entities, each of Which express both natural and cultural differentiation from its neighbours”

CHARACTERISTICS OF REGION 1. Homogeneity: Homogeneity in one or more geographical elements within the boundary. If only physical characteristics of the land such as landforms, climate, soil, vegetation, ctc. form the basis for delineation, we get physical geographic regions. When dominant economic activities are con-sidered as criteria, we arrive at economic regions. And when purely cultural factors like language, religion, etc., are considered as bases of classification we get socio-cultural regions. When all the factors are together

2.

3.

4. 5.

6.

7.

taken into account we get a "compage". All these regions are based on the concept of areal homogeneity. example the climate region of the world A region has dynamic character because its features where change during times ; whether it is physical or human elements, single or multiple feature elements or functional or planning regions; geographical features where dynamics; The present character of the region is partly derived from conditions that existed and events that occurred in past times-historical, archeological, and geological. Changes in physical, biotic, and societal features rarely occur without leaving traces significant for the study of succeeding regions. For example, Roman roads and Roman law imprinted the landscape of contemporary Western Europe. The pace and velo- city of change may also need to be taken into mere account, as well as the persistence of the evidence of change The region is unique in location from all other region in some category The region enfolds a three dimensional segment of each surface, e.g climate region it includes hydrosphere which penetrates below the earth surface also in the form of permafrost. The region incorporates an association of coherent features , both single features and multi features. E.g.regions will not be defined by vegetation. If information is lacking, help of other criteria can be taken. For e.g. polar climate may be mapped as coincidental with tundra, a vegetation type. The region occupies a fixed position in a hierarchy of regions of the same category, in which those of each successively higher rank consist of aggregation of regions of the next lower ranking E.g administrative regions.

CLASSIFICATION OF REGIONS BASED ON NUMBER OF CRITERIA The regions are classified into different types based on the number of criteria: The regions conceived by geographers are of various types ranging from a single feature region to compage, depending upon the bases or the criteria used for delineation. 1.Single feature : a single criteria or individual phenomenon. 2. Multiple: combination or association of features.

A. association of intimately connected features which are highly by one kind of process. E.g. climate including temp, pressure and rainfall variables B. association of less intimately connected, produced by different kinds of processes. E.g economic region defined in terms of resource base and associated used C. association of features only very loosely connected, vegetable, terrain, soil, animal life. Cultural region based on economic, social and political variables. 3. The third theoretical type of region is differentiated in terms of the entire content of human occupation of the area based on Association of features only very loosely connected natural regions based on climate, veg, terrain, soil, animal life. Cultural regions based on economic, social and political variables.Such regions are called compage.

TYPES OF REGION regions are mainly three types, whether single or multi feature: 1. FORMAL REGION: A formal region, also known as a uniform or homogeneous region, is an area in which everyone shares in common one or more distinctive characteristics. This common characteristic could be a cultural value such as language, an economic activity such as production of a certain crop, or an environmental property such as climate and weather patterns. Whatever the common characteristic is, it is present throughout the selected region. In certain formal regions, the characteristic may be predominant rather than universal, such as the wheat belt in North America, it is an area in which the predominant crop is wheat, but other crops are grown here as well.

Formal region is further divided into: ● Single feature Region, ex. Physiographic regions of India, topography regions, vegetation regions ● Multiple Feature region ex. Resource Region or Planning region, census region in 1951 divided the country into five regions and fifteen sub regions for the purpose of statistical reporting on the basis of contiguity, physical climate or other natural and demographic characteristics. ● Compage region (ex. Agricultural region of the World,asansol durgapur industrial region in india and Ruhr industrial region in germany

2. FUNCTIONAL REGION : A functional region, also known as a nodal region, is a region organized around a node or focal point. The characteristic chosen to define a functional region dominates at a central focus or node and diminishes in importance outward. The region is tied to the central point by transportation, communication systems or by economic or functional associations. An example of a functional region is the circulation area of a newspaper. That area is centered around the city in which the newspaper is published. The farther away from the city of circulation, the less people that read the newspaper(this phenomenon is known as distance decay). Example of functional regions is metropolitan cities, the metropolitan area is based around the central hub or focal point of the region. The major city within a metropolitan area is where most commerce and activity takes place, being the most densely populated portion of the functional region. The city or central hub is connected to outlying portions of the region by transport routes, trade routes, and communication. People commute daily from the surrounding area to the city to carry out economic activities within the central club. The urban center that the metropolitan area surrounds may perform many different functions like education, employment, and entertainment. 3. Ad Hoc Region: A ad hoc region also known as Perceptual region or vernacular region , is a place where people exist as part of their cultural identity. Ad ad hoc region is a distinctive area where the inhabitants collectively consider themselves interconnected by a shared history, mutual interests, and a common identity. Such regions are "intellectual inventions'' and a form of shorthand to identify things, people, and places. Ad hoc regions reflect a "sense of place," but rarely coincide with established jurisdictional borders. These regions vary from person to person. They emerge from a person' s informal sense of place. An example of an ad hoc region would be the Cultural region or Transitional regions, depressed areas etc.

Planning regions Planning region is region unit most suitable for the purpose of region planning Regional planning suitable system of regionalization, spatial units to prepare plans for planning regions. It could be both formal & functional and generally transitional in nature. Taylor defined it as that unit of area which is distinguishable from another area by the display of some unifying force may be either natural like rival or man made like multifaceted linkage bet city and surrounding region like a metropolitan Example of planning region: THE NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION, INDIA The National Capital Region (NCR) is a central planning region centred upon the National Capital Territory in India. It encompasses the entire NCT of Delhi and several districts surrounding it from the states of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan. The NCR and the associated National Capital Region Planning Board were created in 1985 to plan the development of the region and to evolve harmonized policies for the control of land-uses and development of infrastructure in the region. Prominent cities of NCR include Delhi, Ghaziabad, Faridabad, Gurugram and Noida. Conclusion Reion is a regionalising space on the face of the earth serve s as a tool of spatial analysis for geographers and others. Whereas it would be impossible to effectively study the earth without any formal organizational structure, regions make it possible to organize information about the spatial realities of the earth into meaningful categories. Thus, regions may be based on climatic, political, economic, cultural, and a host of other defining characteristics. For example, Introductory geography of ten divides the world into climatic, political, cultural, or economic regions for the purpose of study. Furthermore, there are many other possible ways in which the concept of region may be used as a management tool for examining the spatial realities of the world. Consider, for example, the importance of border regions, indigeno us reservations, public lands, rural and urban regions, and medical regions....