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CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION

1.1 Geography: Definition, Scope and Themes
Objectives
At the end of this chapter, you will be able to:
• Comprehend the meaning and scope of Geography

• Explain the themes of Geography

• Explicate the implications of location, shape and size of Ethiopia

and the Horn

• Acquire basic skills of map reading

Geography of Ethiopia and The Horn (GeES1011)

Presented by: Inst. Befikadu N

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Activity 1.1 1.1.1. Meaning of Geography

It is difficult to forward a definition acceptable to all geographers at

1. Define Geography all times and places because of the dynamic nature of the
discipline.
2. Mention the major themes of Geography

3. Do you know where the Horn of Africa is located? However, the following may be accepted as a working definition:

1. What are the member states of the Horn of Africa? • Geography is the scientific study of the Earth that describes and
analyses spatial and temporal variations of physical, biological
4. Distinguish between astronomical and relative locations? and human phenomena, and their interrelationships and
dynamism over the surface of the Earth.

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1.1.2. The Scope, Approaches and Themes of Geography Geography can be approached considering two continuums:
• Geography is the science that explains:
• the arrangements of various natural and cultural features on 1)Human-physical continuum:
the Earth surface. - concerned with the associations within regions of all or some of the
• Geography is a holistic and interdisciplinary field of study elements and their interrelationships.
contributing to the understanding of the changing spatial structures q For example, it takes a phenomenon such as climate, land forms or culture, and
from the past to the future. treats the distribution of the selected element over a country, continent or the world at
large.
• The scope of Geography is the surface of the Earth, which includes:
2)Topical-regional continuum (systematic):
ü atmosphere, hydrosphere and lithosphere which come
together to form habitat zone for all living things, biosphere. - view particular categories of physical or human phenomena as
distributed over the Earth.
Atmosphere Biosphere:
Habitat zone in q The region studied could be a subcontinent, continent or a number of
which we able to countries that share a common geographic factor.
live. Which of the following correspond to Human-Physical and Topical-Regional Approach?
• Geography of hunger Geography of Africa, Asia, or Oceania, etc
Lithosphere Hydrosphere • Geography of climate Geography of sub-Sahara
• Geography of agriculture Geography of the Middle East
• Geography of population Geography of the Balkans
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Geography has five basic themes: Location, Place, Human-environment Basic themes of Geography …
Interaction, Movement and Region 3) Human-environment Interaction: humans ceaselessly interact with
1) Location: a particular place or position. their physical environment, with profound effect on environment.
• Most studies begin mentioning it. • Human Environment interaction involves three distinct aspects:
è Location can be of two types: absolute and relative a) dependency: how humans are dependent on nature for a living,
a) absolute (astronomical or mathematical): b) adaptation: how humans modify: themselves, lifestyle, behavior to
• - expressed by use of latitude or longitude or exact address live in a new environment with new challenges, and
b) relative: expressed in relation to adjacent countries, landmass, water c) modification: allowed humans to “conquer” world for comfortable
bodies, etc living
2) Place: refers to the physical and human aspects of a location. 4) Movement: entails to the translocation of: people, goods, and ideas
- The them, place is associated with: from one end of the planet to another. It allowed humans to inhabit on all
a) toponym (the name of a place), continents and islands of the world
b) site (the description of the features of the place), and 5) Region: is geographic area having distinctive characteristics that
c) situation (the environmental conditions of the place). distinguishes itself from adjacent unit(s) of space. It could be either:
• Each place in the world has its unique characteristics expressed in Ø formal region that is characterized by homogeneity in terms of a certain
terms of landforms, hydrology, biogeography, pedology… phenomenon (soil, temperature, rainfall…) Or
• The concept of “place” aids geographers to compare and contrast Ø functional or nodal region characterized by functional interrelationships in a
two places on Earth. 7 spatial system defined by the linkages binding particular phenomena. 8

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1.2. Location, Shape and Size of Ethiopia and the Horn 1.2.1. Location of Ethiopia
The Horn of Africa: Ø Ethiopia is a landlocked country,
- a region of eastern Africa (easternmost extension of African land), q astronomically located between:
- a narrow tip that protrudes into the northern Indian Ocean, separating l 3°N (Moyale) to 15°N (Bademe) - the N latitudes &

it from the Gulf of Aden. l 33°E (Akobo) to 48°E (Ogaden in the E) longitudes.

It is home to the countries;

- Djibouti, Eritrea, l The east-west distance (15°) is longer than the north-south distance
- Ethiopia, and Somalia. (12°).
In terms of size:
- Ethiopia is the largest, while The latitudinal and longitudinal extensions are important for the in two
- Djibouti is the smallest. ways. i.e.
Ø Latitudinal extension: it experiences tropical climate and
q whose cultures have been linked throughout their long history.
q share many common features, there is also great diversity among
them, rendering each country unique in many respects. Ø Longitudinal extension: is a difference of 1 hour between the most
ü highlands of the Ethiopian Plateau, Ogaden desert, and Eritrean and easterly and westerly ends.
- Generally found in 3 hours-time zone.
Somali coasts washed by Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean
ü It has long been in contact with the Arabian Peninsula and
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Southwestern Asia.
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Location of Ethiopia…
• Relative location expresses the location of countries with
reference to the location of other countries (vicinal), landmasses or
water bodies.
• Relative location of ethiopia is indicated in the followinf table.
Table 1.1: The relative location of Ethiopia
Vicinal location /other In relation to water bodies &
countries land masses
• Sudan to the west and • In the Horn of Africa
northwest • Southwest of the Arabian
• South Sudan to southwest Peninsula
• Djibouti to the east • South of Europe
• Somalia to the east and • Northwest of the Indian Ocean
southeast • In the Nile Basin
• Eritrea to the north and
northeast
• Kenya to the south Figure 1.1.Ethiopia‟s location in relation to its neighboring countries
11 Source: Africa Map Library 12

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Location of Ethiopia…
1.2.2. Size of Ethiopia
The implications of the location of Ethiopia are: • Total area of ~ 1,106,000 Km2 • extends ~1,639 Km E-W, and
a) Climate:3°N and 15°N latitude (b/n the Equator and Tropic of Cancer) • 8th largest country in Africa 1,577 Km N-S.
• Which implies the country has a tropical climate, though modified by and • ~ 0.7% covered by water bodies.
its altitude. • 25th in the World.
• Location of Ethiopia relative to the Indian, Atlantic Ocean and the The size of Ethiopia also affects both the natural and human
African and Asian landmass has also various bearings on its climate. environment of the country.
b) Socio-cultural: among the earliest recipients of the major world
Table 1.2. Advantages and disadvantages of Ethiopia’s large size
religions. Ex. Christianity, Islam and Judaism
Advantages Disadvantages
- Due to influence of its location, Ethiopia shares linguistic and other
cultural relationships with its neighbors. Possess diverse agro ecological zones Demands greater capital to construct
infrastructural facilities
c) Political: considerably influenced by; Variety of natural resources Requires large army to protect its territory
- Geopolitical considerations of superpowers, Own extensive arable land Difficult for effective administration
- Adjacency to the Red Sea (a major global trade route) and Have larger population size Difficult for socio-economic integration
- The Middle East geopolitical paradigms.
Home for diverse cultures
• As a result, Ethiopia has been exposed for external invasions in a
Greater depth in defense external
number of times; though the country resisted foreign intervention and
invasion
remains free of external domination. 13 14

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1.2.3. The shape of Ethiopia and its Implication

Countries of the World have different kinds of shape that can

be divided into five main categories:
• Compact: distance from the geographic center to any boarder
does not vary greatly e.g. Ethiopia

• Fragmented: divided from their other parts by water, land or Figure 2.

other countries e.g. Philippines, Example of
shape of
• Elongated: geographically long and narrow e.g. Chile, countries
• Perforated: A country that completely surrounds another country
e.g. Republic of SA, and

• Protruded: one part is much more elongated than the rest of the
country e.g. Eritrea, Myanmar,…
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The Shape of Countries and its Implication… The Shape of Countries and its Implication…
There are various ways of measuring shape of countries. 3. The ratio of the area of the country to the circumference of the
• These measures are known as the indices of compactness which smallest inscribing circle: Area-Circumference ratio. It compares the
measure the deviation of the shape of a country from a circular shape, area of the country with the circumference of a circle that passes
which is the most compact shape. touching the extreme points on the boundary of the country. The
• There are four most commonly used measures of compactness. These higher the A/C ratio, the greater the degree of compactness.
are: 4. The ratio of the actual area of a country to the smallest possible
1. The ratio of area of country to its boundary length: Area-Boundary inscribing circle: Area- Area (A/A‟) ratio. The area of the inscribing
ratio. The higher the A/B ratio, the greater the degree of compactness. circle is the area of the smallest possible circle whose circumference
2. The ratio of boundary length of a country to the circumference of a passes through the extreme points on the boundary. Half- length of
circle having the same area as the country itself: Boundary- the longest distance between two extreme points gives radius of the
Circumference ratio. It measures how far the boundary of a country inscribing circle. The nearer the ratio to 1, the more compact the
approximates the circumference of a circle of its own size. Therefore, country is.
the nearer the ratio to 1 the more compact the country is.
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The Shape of Countries and its Implication… 1.3. Basic Skills of Map Reading
What is a Map?
Table 1.3: Ethiopia's shape compared to its neighbors in the Horn • A map is a two-dimensional scaled representation of part or whole
of the Earth surface on a flat body such as piece of paper, black
Country Area(km2) Boundary (km) A/B ratio B/C ratio A/C ratio board, wood or cloth.

Ethiopia 1,106,000 5,260 210.27 1.41 296.61 • Map reading encompasses a systematic identification of natural
features and manmade features.
Djibouti 22,000 820 26.83 1.56 41.83 • Natural features include mountains, plateaus, hills, valleys, river,
ocean, rocks, plain etc. On the other hand, manmade features
Eritrea 117,400 2,420 48.51 1.99 96.83 include roads, railway, buildings, dam etc.
Kenya 582,644 3,600 161.85 1.33 215.28
• Although many disciplines use maps, they have a special
significance for Geographers as primary tools for displaying and
Somalia 637,657 5,100 125.03 1.80 225.22
analyzing spatial distributions, patterns and relations.
Source: Bekure (1982, 1983)
• Since these features cannot easily be observed and interpreted in real
19 landscapes, maps are essential to Geographers. 20

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Basic Skills of Map Reading… Basic Skills of Map Reading…

Types of Map
What are importance of Maps? There are many types of maps according to their purpose and functions.
Maps are:
• basis for making geographical details of regions represented • For the purpose of this course, topographical and statistical maps are considered.
• i.e. the geographical facts of an area such as relief, drainage, settlement etc.
a) Topographical maps: depict one or more natural and cultural features of an
• powerful tools for making spatial analysis of geographical facts area.
of areas represented. • They could be small, medium or large scale depending on the size of the area
represented.
• useful for giving location of geographical features by varied methods • Contents of topographical maps depend on purpose of a map, scale of a map, date
of grid reference, place naming etc. of compilation, and nature of the land represented.

• used on various disciplines like; land use planning, military science, a) Special purpose/statistical maps: show distribution of different aspects such as
aviation, tourism, marine science, population studies, epidemiology, temperature, rainfall, settlement, vegetation etc.
geology, economics, history, archaeology, agriculture etc.
• storage of the geographical data of areas represented.
• potentially used to asses reliable measurements of the geographical
features.
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Basic Skills of Map Reading…

Marginal Information on Maps (Elements of Maps) Basic Skills of Map Reading…
It is shown on a map to enable the reading and interpretation of the Basic Principles of Map Reading
geographical information of an area represented. This includes: In developing map reading abilities and skills, certain basic principles must be applied
by the map-reader to translate map symbols into landscape images.
a. Title: is the heading of the given map- tells what the map is all about. Map Readers must have ideas about the symbol and also the real World (landscapes).
b. Key (legend): is the list of all convectional symbols and signs shown Every map symbol must be visualized by the reader to read a map.
on the map with their interpretation. ü The first symbols introduced should be those, which refer to landscape features of
c. Scale: is the ratio between the distance on the map and the actual which the reader already has some images. Map symbols should be introduced as
ground distance. Scales enable the map user to interpret the ground needed.
measurement like road distance, areal sizes, gradient etc. It can be ü Secondly, knowledge of directions is an important principle in reading maps. One
of the basic functions of maps is to help us to orient ourselves and to locate places
expressed as representative fraction, statements/verbal scale, and linear on the earth. Unless a reader knows the basic directions, he or she may not use a
(graphic) scale. map effectively. Before locating features using a map, north (the north arrow)
d. North arrow: is indicated with the north direction on a map; used to should be determined and the readers should have practice in finding this
know the other important directions of the mapped area like E, W, S & direction. Next they should learn to read direction on a specific map and the
W. location of the features shown on the map in relation to one another.
ü Maps are covered in a series of lines that make up a grid. The lines have numbers
e. Margin: Is the frame of the map. It is important for showing the end accompanying them that allow you to accurately pinpoint your location on a map.
of the mapped area. Once you have located where you are, the grid system makes it simple to give an
f. Date of compilation: is a date of map publication. This enables map accurate description of your location. This description, which will be a series of
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users to realize whether the map is updated or outdated. numbers, is known as a grid reference.

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