religion

Unit 3 - Culture• De Blij Chapters

–4 - Culture–5 - Identity–6 - Language–7 - Religion

OVERVIEW of Religionde Blij Chapter 7

AP HUMAN GEOGRAPHY

Religious Composition of the US

• Christian– Protestant, Catholic, Mormon, Orthodox

etc.• Other Religions

– Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, Hindu etc.• Unaffiliated with any religion

– (atheist, agnostic, no religion in particular)

What percentage of the US population do you think identifies as:

What do you think is the largest single religious denomination in the US?

What parts of the US do you think have the greatest percentage of religious

adherents?

What is Religion?• Worship of ancestral souls

living in the natural world• Worship of an individual who

possesses power granted by a supreme being

• Belief in deity/deities

Basic definition: traditions, beliefs, rituals, organizations relating to a god or gods

Religions of the World

• Widespread religions have one characteristic in common: they are universalizing religions (global religions). They actively seek converts because they view themselves as offering belief systems of universal appropriateness and appeal.

• Ethnic religions (cultural religions) do not seek converts outside of the group that gave rise to the religion. They tend to be spatially concentrated.

Put the following in order from greatest to least number of adherents:

BuddhismChinese ReligionsChristianityHinduismIslamJudaismNo ReligionSikhism

Estimated Adherents to Major World Religions

• Christianity 2.0 billion• Islam 1.5 billion• No Religion 1.1 billion• Hinduism 900 million• Chinese Religions 390 million• Buddhism 370 million• Sikhism 24 million• Judaism 15 million

Syncretic Religions• Elements of different cultural sources are combined

in a distinct way

Christmas

Ancient Northern Europe• Winter Solstice on December 21• Norse celebration “Yule”

• Yule log & feast• Green Tree: reminder of Spring• Winter ending

Christianity co-opts Saturnalia & Yule with Christmas

Ancient Rome • Winter Solstice “Saturnalia” (god of

agriculture)• Feast of plentiful food & drink• Dec. 25: Holiday for Mithra (God

of the Sun)

Vocabulary• Secularism

– Indifference or rejection of organized religious affiliations and ideas

• Monotheism– worship of a single deity

• Polytheism – worship of more than deity

• Animistic religion– inanimate objects possess

spirits and should be revered

Major Religions & Cultural Hearths

JudaismChristianity Islam

Hinduism Buddhism

Hindu TempleTamil Nadu, India

Hindu TempleFlushing, NY

Temple in Bali

Temple in Britain

Jainism

Sheetalnath Jain Temple, Calcutta, India

Jain Center of America

Buddhism

Shwedagon Stupa

Myanmar(Burma)

Borobudur, IndonesiaBorobudur, Indonesia

Taoism• Qi (Chi) - energy• Feng Shui -

Geomancy

Feng-Shui

Tomb locations are of great importance because deceased ancestors are believed to exert great influence on the living. Therefore, it is important for tombs to be located in harmony with the natural forces.

Many factors were involved in the location of a tomb including geographic requirements. For example, steep slopes, difficult terrain, angular cliffs should be avoided as sources of discord.

Repulse Bay, Hong Kong

SynagoguePrague, (1280)

Synagogue Toledo, Spain

Torah Ark

ChartresCathedral

St. Basil’s ChurchMoscow

Nieuwe Kerk ,Amsterdam

Ethiopian Churches

Lalibela, Ethiopia

Countries with the Largest Muslim Populations (2009)

Estimated Muslim Population

% of the population that is Muslim

%of the world Muslim population

Indonesia 202,867,000 88.2% 12.9%Pakistan 174,082,000 96.3 11.1India 160,945,000 13.4 10.3Bangladesh 145,312,000 89.6 9.3Egypt 78,513,000 94.6 5.0Nigeria 78,056,000 50.4 5.0Iran 73,777,000 99.4 4.7Turkey 73,619,000 ~98 4.7Algeria 34,199,000 98.0 2.2

Morocco 31,993,000 ~99 ~2

Isfahan, Iran

Mosque, Samarkand, Uzbekistan

Mihrab (niche) indicates the Qibla (direction to Mecca)

Mosque, Djenne, Mali

Mosque, Toledo, Ohio

Masjid al-HaramCapacity – 4 million people

Kaaba“cube”

Megalithic Tomb

Japanese Gravestones Memorialize the Dead With QR Codes

QR codes are practically everywhere in Japan nowadays, but here’s a unique take on the technology: Japanese gravestone maker Ishi no Koe ("Voice of the Stone") recently announced plans to begin selling gravestones with the two-dimensional bar codes embedded into them. By simply snapping a shot of the tag with their cellphones, visitors will be able to view photos, videos and other information about the deceased. The device would also keep a log of each time the code was scanned so family members can keep up to date with when other relatives last visited the site.In the future, Ishi no Koe hopes to use this technology to develop a new way to pay respect to the dead that wouldn't require you to actually be at the cemetery in person. The company sees this as an alternative especially fitting for today’s younger generation.

Blog.wired.com

One of the greatest cities of the world, Cahokia was larger than London was in AD 1250.

Hopewell Serpent Mound, Ohio

Tower of Silence

Religion & Conflict

Identify conflicts in the world that is (was) between competing religious groups?

Country Main religious groups involvedAfghanistan Extreme, Fundamentalist Muslim terrorists & non-MuslimsBosnia Serbian Orthodox Christians, Roman Catholics, MuslimsCôte d'Ivoire Muslims, Indigenous, ChristianCyprus Christians & MuslimsEast Timor Christians & MuslimsIndia Animists, Hindus, Muslims & SikhsIndonesia, province of Ambon Christians & MuslimsIndonesia, province of Halmahera  Christians & Muslims

Iraq Kurds, Shiite Muslims, Sunni Muslims, western forces

Kashmir Hindus & MuslimsKosovo Serbian Orthodox Christians & MuslimsKurdistan Christians, MuslimsMacedonia Macedonian Orthodox Christians & MuslimsMiddle East Jews, Muslims, & ChristiansNigeria Christians, Animists, & MuslimsNorthern Ireland Protestants, CatholicsPakistan Sunni & Shi'ite MuslimsPhilippines Christians & MuslimsRussia, Chechnya Russian Orthodox Christians, MuslimsSouth Africa Animists & "Witches"Sri Lanka Buddhists & HindusSudan Animists, Christians & MuslimsThailand Buddhists & MuslimsTibet Buddhists & CommunistsUganda Animists, Christians, & Muslims

Interfaith Boundaries can divide countries

Hausa-Fulani(Muslim)

Yoruba & Ibo(Christian/ Animist)

Women and motorbike taxi riders are defying a new ban in the Nigerian state of Kano that stops women travelling on the bikes by pretending to be related.

According to Sharia law, men and women are not allowed to travel together on public transport, but women can travel with their male relations. State authorities say mobile magistrate courts will impose on-the-spot fines on offenders of the law from Monday. Women say there are not enough alternatives

for them to get around.

Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated by her Sikh bodyguards in 1984

Babri MosqueAyodhya, India

More than 2000 killed in

subsequent riots

Christian

Exclave

Shiite Muslim

EnclaveA piece of land of a particular state that is separated from it by another state

A piece of territory that is surrounded by another political union of which it is not part

“Ethnic Cleansing” moved Muslims and others from their homes

In Srebrenica, Bosnia approximately 8,000 Muslim boys and men were killed

Cave of the Patriarchs

Intrafaith Conflict

More than 3,200 people were killed in Northern Ireland’s “Troubles” 1969-1998