Influences of Geographic Environment: On the Basis of Ratzel's System of Anthropo-GeographySemple, Ellen Churchill
History
Influences of Geographic Environment: On the Basis of Ratzel's System of Anthropo-Geography
Semple, Ellen Churchill
Human beings -- Effect of environment on; Human geography
Every country whose history we examine proves the recipient of
successive streams of humanity. Even sea-girt England has received
various intruding peoples from the Roman occupation to the recent influx
of Russian Jews. In prehistoric times it combined several elements in
its population, as the discovery of the "long barrow" men and "round
barrow" men by archaeologists, and the identification of a surviving
Iberian or Mediterranean strain by ethnologists go to prove.[126] Egypt,
Mesopotamia, and India tell the same story, whether in their recorded or
unrecorded history. Tropical Africa lacks a history; but all that has
been pieced together by ethnologists and anthropologists, in an effort
to reconstruct its past, shows incessant movement,--growth, expansion
and short-lived conquest, followed by shrinkage, expulsion or absorption
by another invader.[127] To this constant shifting of races and peoples
the name of historical movement has been given, because it underlies
most of written history, and constitutes the major part of unwritten
history, especially that of savage and nomadic tribes. Two things are
vital in the history of every people, its ethnic composition and the
wars it wages in defense or extension of its boundaries. Both rest upon
historical movements,--intrusions, whether peaceful or hostile, into its
own land, and encroachments upon neighboring territory necessitated by
growth. Back of all such movements is natural increase of population
beyond local means of subsistence, and the development of the war spirit
in the effort to secure more abundant subsistence either by raid or
conquest of territory.
[Sidenote: Evolution of the Historical Movement.]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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