Communities can be characterized by their physical and cultural locations. Other ways of describing physical location can be site and situation as well as absolute and relative location. Physical location deals specifically with the absolute location of a site. Latitude and longitude or other coordinate systems help define a community's location. Reference maps provide precise locations of communities.
Thematic maps can capture the essence of cultural locations.
The physical and human characteristics of places Places can be identified by their unique physical and human characteristics. The information derived for a community characterization should be modified and written so that an outside reader would gain a mental image of the physical nature of the area. Human characteristics can be researched using categories such as architecture, religion, language, food habits, recreation, education, ethnicity, business, and industry. Terms such as ranch style housing, high tech industry, growing Hispanic population, sport fishing and steel industry help others understand the cultural diversity in an area. The five skills in geography provide the method for asking and answering geographic questions and help guide the student through the research process.