not by a feature or set of characteristics that are homogenous there, but by a certain
level of functionality across the space in question. This also is a type of region,
typically called afunctionalornodalregion. In this type of region the common
quality is a system that integrates the space represented by the region. An example
is the region serviced by the subway system of a large city.
What is the rationale for regionalization? Both physical and human geographers
use the concept of the region, and it remains the foundation oflocational analysis
along with other geographical methodologies. Recent theoretical innovations in
geography focused on “place” or “locale” are merely refinements of the regional
approach. Despite the alleged homogenization brought on byglobalization,it
remains true that one of the more obvious qualities of the Earth’s surface is varia-
tion, both in the naturally occurring environment, and in the features created by
human activity. To understand this variation, geographers seek out patterns of
commonality, and after identifyingwherethese may be found, attempt to explain
whythey appear as they do. The spaces marked by this variation become the
regions that geographers discover and analyze. One regional pattern within a
region may directly influence another, either overtly or in a less obvious fashion.
For example, the pattern of soils in a region may have a direct bearing on the
resultant patterns of vegetation there, and this in turn may have substantial influ-
ence on the patterns of settlement by humans. Moreover, the relationships between
regions are of great interest to geographers, and the study of these may be quite
complex and challenging. Two or more regions may sharecomplementarity,
meaning that a partnership exists in which one region is able to supply the needs
of the other, while also receiving benefits in return, usually in some kind of eco-
nomic relationship. Mercantilism, developed under the system ofimperialismin
the 19th century, although exploitative, was an example of complementarity.
Regional geography is the branch of the discipline that directly studies regions.
Regional geographers typically are broadly trained, have even broader interests,
and much if not most of their scholarly work is descriptive. Often a regional geogra-
pher develops an expertise in a specific region, frequently defined by political boun-
daries, economic linkages, or some other unifying feature, and then studies the
manner in which various aspects of the geography there are integrated to provide
coherence to the region as a whole. A regional geographer interested in contempo-
rary Europe might focus on the trend towardsupranationalismthere, the economic
region represented by the European Union, and the relationships between the
nation-states that comprise the organization. The perspective of regional geography
perhaps is not as scientific or as technical as other fields of specialization within the
discipline, but in fact regional geography is the branch of geography that non-
geographers most frequently study, anda knowledge of regional geography is
Region 281