Contribution of Carl Ritter B A III (Hons.) Paper -5, unit -1
By Dr Bhawana Nigam Dept. of Geography, A N College, Patliputra University, Patna. Introduction.
Founder of Modern Geography and holds an important position in the field of Geographical thought. Contemporary of Humboldt was a very dedicated fieldworker and believes in Empirical Research. From 1825 until his death, he occupied the first chair in geography at the University of Berlin. Early life and Education
Born in 1779 in a doctor family at Germany, he did his early education at home. At the age of five, he was enrolled in the Schnepfenthal Salzmann School, a school focused on the study of nature, which helped him in developing various concepts in Geography. He studied many subjects such as Greek and Latin, History and Geography. He also studied Physical and cultural landscape in the countries like, ITALY, SWITZERLAND and Germany. Ritter received his doctorate there in 1821, and was appointed professor Extraordinaires in 1825. He also lectured at a nearby military college. He was particularly interested in the exploration of Africa and held constant contacts with British scholars and scientific circles like the Royal Geographical Society Ritter's impact on geography was especially notable because he brought forth a new conception of the subject. In his view: geography was a kind of physiology and comparative anatomy of the earth: rivers, mountains, glaciers, &c., were so many distinct organs, each with its own appropriate functions; and, as his physical frame is the basis of the man, determinative to a large extent of his life, so the structure of each country is a leading element in the historic progress of the nation. The earth is a cosmic individual with a particular organization, an ens sui generis with a progressive development: the exploration of this individuality of the earth is the task of geography. His work - ERDKUNDE At the time of his death, Ritter had produced an astonishing amount of geographical literature contained in his "Erdkunde" alone. It amounts to 21 volumes comprising 19 parts which can be roughly divided into 6 sections
1. Africa (I) 1822
2. East Asia (II-VI) 1818-1836
3. West Asia (VII-XI) 1837-1844
4. Arabia (XII-XIII) 1846-1847
5. Sinai Peninsula (XIV-XVII) 1847-1848
6. Asia Minor (XVIII-XIX) 1850-1852
Ritter's masterwork, the 19-volume Die Erdkunde im Verhältniss zur Natur und zur Geschichte des Menschen (Geography in Relation to Nature and the History of Mankind), written 1816–1859, developed at the theme of the influence of the physical environment on human activity.
It is an encyclopedia of geographical lore.
Ritter unfolded and established the treatment of geography as a study and a science. His treatment was endorsed and adopted by all geographers His concept- Unity in Diversity.
Ritter, in his class lectures, emphasized the point that geography is not a dry gazetteer of names of places, rivers, mountains, and trade routes. It is a subject of great importance which deals with man- nature interrelationship. He developed the concept of “unity in diversity.” Ritter was chiefly concerned with studies of human geography. He believed, as did Vidal de la Blache much later, that earth and its inhabitants stand in the closest reciprocal relations, and one cannot be truly presented in all its relationships without the other. Hence history and geography must always remain inseparable. Land affects the inhabitants and the inhabitants the land. In simplw words every naturally bounded area is a unity in respect of climate, production, culture , population and history. Cont….
He was pioneer of the regional approach in Geography. He introduced the idea of Land and Water Hemisphere Distinction between the rate of heating and cooling The northern and southern hemisphere Different races of the world. According to him Geography was concerned with objects on the Earth as they exist together in an area. He studied areas in totality. references
National digital library
E-pathshala
Google scholar
Geographical thought by- Mazid Hussain, R D Dixit.
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