Unit 2 Review (Population & Migrations)

Unit II. Population & Migration (13-17%)

In AP® Human Geography, unit 2 covers population & migrations. The following guide will be updated periodically with hyperlinks to excellent resources. As you are reviewing for this unit, focus on the key concepts! Near the bottom of this piece you'll find an expansive list of AP HUG unit 2 vocab!

You can request the full Ultimate Guide to AP Human Geography here.

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Unit 2 Summary 

⚡ Read: AP Human Geography - Unit 2 Overview

The following summary is from AMSCO AP Human Geography: 

Critical to human geography is the human population. Geographers seek to understand the distribution of people on earth, why people decide to live where they do, why they migrate from one place to another, and the effects of migration. The demographic characteristics of populations, such as their birth rates, death rates, and life expectancy, are key to understanding population change. 

The distribution of people influences all other elements of human geography. Where people live, whether spread out or in small communities, or concentrated in large cities, affects how they relate to each other, what demands they place on the environment, and what decisions they make as a community. For example, the spatial distribution of children will influence where a community will build a new school. People decide where to live based on many factors. Some are physical: people want to be near sources of food and water, and where the climate is not too extreme. Some factors are human: people might want to move to take a job or to be close to family.

Population Changes: For most of history, women typically gave birth to many children, but so few children survived to adulthood that the total human population grew slowly. However, in the past two centuries, advances in public health, medical care, and the economy have enabled people to live longer. The number of births per woman has decreased, but children are more likely to survive to adulthood. As a result of these new patterns, the global population has exploded. However, in recent decades, population growth has leveled off in the prosperous countries.

Why People Move: People have always been on the move. Usually, they migrated by choice, wanting to leave a place of poverty or persecution or warfare in order to live in a place with economic opportunity, religious liberty, political freedom, and peace. In some cases, people had no choice. For example, for nearly four centuries, Africans were enslaved and brought to the Americas.   

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Models to Know from Unit 2

STUDY TIP: The models will appear all over the exam, in both multiple choice and FRQs. You should be able to identify each one from a description or image, apply them to examples, and use them in your writing. 

• Population Pyramids
• Demographic Transition Model
• Epidemiologic Transition Model
• Ravenstein’s Laws of Migration
• Zelinsky Model of Migration Transition
• Malthusian Theory of Population Growth

⚡ Watch: AP Human Geography - Deconstructing the DTM, Ravenstein's Laws of Migration, and Malthusan Theory

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Past FRQs from Unit 2

STUDY TIP: Content from the this unit has appeared on the FRQs ten times since 2001. Take a look at these questions before you review the key concepts & vocabulary below to get a sense of how you will be assessed. Then, come back to these later and practice writing as many as you can!

2017 - Question 2: Population Growth, Rate of Natural Increase, and Anti-natal policies

2015 - Question 3: Refugees and their impacts on their countries of origin and receiving countries

2013 - Question 2: Reasons for and consequences of aging populations in Developing Countries

2012 - Question 3: Muslim Population growth in Europe

2011 - Question 2: Malthusian Theory

2010 - Question 3: Population Pyramids/Demographic Transition Model

2008 - Question 2: Regional Migration Patterns in the United States

2006 - Question 1: International Migration Patterns

2005 - Question 2: Historical Immigration to the United States

2003 - Question 3: Historical Migrations to and from Europe/Demographic Transition Model

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UNIT 2 KEY CONCEPTS - COURSE OUTLINE

The following outline was adapted from the AP® Human Geography Course Description as published by College Board in 2015 found here. This outline reflects the most recent revisions to the course.*

1. Geographical analysis of population 1. Boundaries, aerial units, and densities1. Scale and process1. Population and environment
2. Population distribution and composition 1. Factors affecting distribution1. Consequences of particular distributions1. Patterns of age, sex, race and ethnicity1. Responses to natural hazards: past, present, and future
3. Population growth and decline over time and space1. Historical trends and projections for the future1. Regional variations of demographic transitions1. Patterns of fertility, mortality and health1. Effects of pro- and anti-natalist policies
4. Population movement1. Major voluntary and involuntary migrations at different scales - Short term, local movements and activity space

⚡ Watch: AP Human Geography - Decoding Population Pyramids, Population and Migration Key Concepts, and Women and Demographic Change

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AP HUMAN GEOGRAPHY UNIT 2 VOCABULARY AND CONCEPTS

STUDY TIP: These are the concepts and vocabulary from unit 2 that most commonly appear on the exam. Create a quizlet deck to make sure you are familiar with these terms!

• Age distribution - Carrying capacity- Cohort- Demographic equation- Demographic momentum- Demographic regions- Demographic Transition model- Dependency ratio- Diffusion of fertility control- Disease diffusion- Doubling time- Ecumene- Epidemiological Transition model- Gendered space- Infant mortality rate- J-curve- Maladaptation- Malthus, Thomas- Mortality- Natality- Neo-Malthusian- Overpopulation- Population densities- Population distributions- Population explosion- Population projection- Population pyramid- Rate of natural increase- S-curve- Sex ratio- Standard of living- Sustainability- Underpopulation- Zero population growth- Migration- Activity space- Chain migration- Cyclic movement- Distance decay- Forced- Gravity model- Internal migration- Intervening opportunity- Migration patterns- Intercontinental- Interregional- Rural-urban- Migratory movement- Periodic movement- Personal space- Place utility- Population- Push-pull factors- Refugee- Space-time prism- Step migration- Transhumance- Transmigration- Voluntary