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Chapter 6 – Religion
AP Human Geography – Reading Guide
Big Ideas: The languages, religions, and ethnicities of people vary tremendously. The regional
patterns exhibited by these elements of culture are part of human geography. Geographers study
conflict, cooperation, cultural exchange, and cultural evolution. In recent years, gender and the
cultural role it plays in the spatial distribution of human activities has become a greater area of
study.

Key Issue 1 – Where Are the World’s Religions Distributed?

Rubenstein 12e, pgs. 183-195

1. What are the four largest religious groups in the world today? How many adherents (followers)
are with each?

2. What percentage of the world’s population adhere to Judaism?

3. Define atheism:

4. Examine figure 6-5: What is the scale of the map? Thus, what limitations does the map have?

5. What regions make up the most diverse religious composition?

6. In what way is the distribution of religion and language families similar? (hint: think about Arabic
and Latin origins in relation to Islam and Christianity.)

7. Define agnosticism:

8. Define universalizing religion:

9. Define ethnic religion:

10. Define congregation:

Example:

11. Define denomination:

Example:
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12. Define branch:

Example:
13. Give the percentage of the world’s Christian population belonging to each of Christianity’s THREE
major branches.

14. What percentage of Latin Americans are Roman Catholic? _____ Protestant? _____

15. What percentage of North Americans are Roman Catholic? _____ Protestant? ______

16. Based on what you see in Table 6-1, what are some of the largest Christian denominations in
the United States that do not have highly clustered distributions show in figure 6-7?

17. Half of the world’s Muslims live in North Africa & the Middle East. The other half live in 4
countries outside the Middle East. Identify them:

18. Give the percentage of each of Islam’s 2 greatest branches: Sunni & Shiite (Shia).

19. Only in 6 countries do Shiite Muslims number more than Sunni. What are they?

20. Why does France have such a high percentage of Muslims?

21. The United States has a Muslim population of 1-5 million that mostly originated in
_______________and other Southeast Asian countries.

22. Complete this chart dividing Buddhism into its 3 main branches.
% of Global
Branch Regions of Predominance
Buddhist Population

Mahayana

Theravada

Vajrayana
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23. Why are Buddhists difficult to count?

24. What is the main difference between universalizing religions and ethnic religions?

25. Where are Hindus concentrated? What percent of all Hindus live there?

26. Where are other Hindus located?

27. Define syncretism:

Make a note or two about each of the following religions: What is it? Where? Main belief?
28. Confucianism:

29. Taoism (Daoism):

30. Animism:

31. Sikhism:

32. Juchte:

33. Spiritism:

34. Judaism:

35. What is the main function of Bahá’i?

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Key Issue 2 – Why Do Religions Have Distinctive Distributions?

Pgs. 196-205
36. Complete the chart below describing the origins and branches of the major universalizing religions.
Christianity Islam Buddhism
Year of Origin

Founder

Major Branches &

Main Belief of Each
Branch

37. Buddhism is built around the “Four Noble Truths” as taught by the Buddha. Summarize them.


38. Use the text to complete this chart about the different beliefs of Buddhist branches:
Branch of Buddhism Main Ideas/Beliefs

Mahayana

Theravada
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Vajrayana

39. How is Hinduism’s origin different than other universalizing religions?

40. When did Hinduism originate?

41. Where did Hinduism originate?

42. What 2 ancient peoples beliefs blended to form Hinduism?

43. Give 3 explanations for the diffusion of Christianity.



44. Give 3 explanations for the diffusion of Islam.



45. Give 2 reasons for the diffusion of Buddhism.




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46. Create a pie chart showing the religious makeup of immigrants

coming to the United States 

47. Why does the United States & Canada have a Protestant
majority?

48. How is the worldwide distribution of Judaism very different from other ethnic religions?

49. What was the diaspora?

50. How were most Jews treated as they lived among other nationalities?

51. What is the origin of the term ghetto?

Key Issue 3 – Why Do Religions Organize Space in Distinctive Patterns?

Pgs. 206-217

52. How is Christianity portrayed on the cultural landscape?

53. How is a Muslim mosque viewed differently than a Christian church?

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54. Identify 4 specific, visible features of a typical mosque.

55. What is unique about the placement of Bahá’í Houses of Worship?

56. What is the religious purpose of a Buddhist pagoda?

57. Formal worship in a Buddhist pagoda is not typical. Where does it usually take place?

58. What is the religious purpose of a Hindu Temple?

59. Complete the chart below with brief notes on the religious settlements indicated. What? Where?
Why there?

Utopian Settlements

Salt Lake City, Utah

Puritans

60. How can religion influence toponyms? Give an example from our community and state.

61. Define hierarchical religion:

62. List the Roman Catholic hierarchy, indicating geographic region and leader who heads it.
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63. Why are parishes in Latin America so much larger than in Europe?

64. Describe an autonomous religion:

65. In the absence of a hierarchy, what is the only formal organization of territory in Islam?

66. What holds Islam together?

67. Complete the chart below to categorize other religions and denominations.
Autonomous Religions Hierarchical Religions

68. What is a pilgrimage?

69. Read the section Sacred Space in Universalizing Religions (pgs. 212-214) and make notes on 3 case
studies: Buddhism, Islam, & Hinduism.
Holy Sites

Buddhism

Islam

Hinduism
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70. Define cosmogony:

71. Christians practice burial of the dead. Summarize the history of this practice.

72. What form of burial is suggested in China? Why?

73. Complete the chart below with brief notes on the disposal of the dead in ways other than burial.
Group How do they dispose of their dead?

Hindus

Zoroastrians
(Parsis)

Micronesia

74. Complete the chart below regarding religious calendars.

What is the most prominent feature of the What is the principle purpose of the
calendar in an ethnic religion? calendar in a universalizing religion?

75. Both the Jewish and the Muslims use a lunar calendar, yet in a different way and with very
different results. Explain.

76. Why do different Christian branches celebrate Easter on different days?

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77. How is this similar to Buddhism’s major holidays?

78. How is the Jewish calendar typical of the ethnic use of the calendar?

79. What is the solstice?

Key Issue 4 – Why Do Territorial Conflicts Arise Among Religious Groups?

Pgs. 218-225

80. What aspect of Hinduism has clashed with Western/modern ideas?

81. What western groups criticized this aspect? Why?

82. How has the Indian government responded to this issue?

83. In Russia/Soviet Union, how did Communism attempt to limit the influence of religion, specifically
the Eastern Orthodox Church?

84. What happened, and is continuing to happen, in each of the following regions of the Russian
Empire/Soviet Union since the fall of Communism in the 1990s? Complete the chart below by
adding THREE more countries to each category and then describing what is going on at the
present time in that region.
Historically Catholic Regions Historically Muslim Regions
Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, …
Lithuania, …

Currently… Currently…

85. Define fundamentalism:

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86. Fundamentalism is increasing in the world today and its growth contributes to conflicts. Why is it
increasing?

87. In what ways did the Taliban government of Afghanistan raise conflicts with Western/modern
ideas after it took control of the country in 1996?

88. What 3 religions are in constant conflict over the land in the Middle East?

89. Why is Jerusalem so heavily contested between Jews, Christians, and Muslims?

90. What was the military campaign by the Christians to recapture their Holy Land from the Muslims?

91. Summarize the conflict between Israel and its neighbors:

92. Complete the chart below regarding the Conflicting Israeli and Palestinian Perspectives.
Palestinian Perspective Israeli Perspective

93. Why is the Western Wall important in Judaism?

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94. Why is the Dome of the Rock important in Islam?