| Term | Definition |
| Latitude lines (parallel lines) | The numbering system used to indicate the location of parallels draw on a globe and measuring distance north and south of the equator |
| Space | The the physical gap or interval between two objects |
| spatial patterns | ways in which people, places and characteristics are organized on the Earth's surface |
| Scale | Generally the relationship between the portion of Earth being studied and earth as a whole, specifically the relationship between the size of an object on a map and the size of the actual feature on Earth's surface |
| Clustering | the tendency to put similar or related items in groups |
| Cartographer | a person who makes maps |
| Absolute location | exact location of a place on the earth described by global coordinates (lat,log) |
| Relative location | the position of a place in relation to another place |
| elevation | Height above sea level |
| Absolute distance | The distance that can be measured with a standard unit length, such as a mile or kilometre |
| Longitude lines (meridian lines) | The number system used to indicate the location of meridians drawn on a globe and measuring distance east and west of the prime meridian |
| Mental map (Cognitive map) | A representation of a portion of Earth's surface based on what an individual knows about a place that contains personal impressions of what is in the place and where the place is located |
| Maps | an illustration of land or other geographic, political or historical features |
| Density | Is the number of things-people, animals, or objects in a specific area |
| Relative distance | Is a measure of the social, cultural and economic relatedness or connectivity between two places-how connected or disconnected they are-despite their absolute distance from each other |
| Thematic maps | maps that tell stories, typically showing the degree of some attribute or the movement of a geographic phenomenon |
| reference maps | Maps that show the absolute location of places and geographic features determined by a frame of reference, typically latitude and longitude |
| Map projection | a way of representing the spherical earth on a flat surface |
| Contiguous | Sharing a common border; touching (Contiguous U.S) |
| Distortion | a change in the shape, size or position of a place when it is shown on a map |
| Dispersal | movement of individuals away from centers of high population density or their area of origin |
