Since childhood, we used to hear that the most reliable source of knowledge is a book. In fact, there are many more sources. With their help, we develop and learn to live in the world around us. What are the sources of knowledge? Which of them are useful in geography?
Knowledge and knowledge
In a broad sense, knowledge is a form of representation of the world, an image or a person’s attitude to the reality. In a narrower sense, knowledge is information, skills that are owned by a person and which are based on awareness.
The process of acquiring knowledge is called cognition. It can be sensual, rational, and intuitive. Sensory cognition occurs through vision and sensations (taste, hearing, touch, smell). Rational is based on thinking, it includes understanding, reasoning and inference.
Knowledge is a combination of sensory and rational knowledge. The main ways to obtain it are observation and experience. These are the oldest sources of knowledge. Primitive and ancient people did not have books and computers. They studied the world, watching him. So, they made conclusions, revealed certain patterns for themselves.
At the same time, the experimental track was also used. Having tried to draw a sharp stone on a wooden stick, the man realized that you can sharpen it and use it as a weapon or tool for hunting. Thanks to the attempts, people made fire, cooked food for the first time, planted a plant, tamed the animal and developed to the modern level.
Speech as a source of knowledge
At the initial stage of human formation, the only place to store information was memory. All thoughts, information and conclusions that people might have made remained in their own heads. With the advent of connected speech and language, it became possible not only to think about something, but also to share it with others.
Observation of natural phenomena raised many questions. Why is it raining, the sun is shining, or is a bird flying? To explain these phenomena, people come up with myths, tales, legends and beliefs. So people create a certain idea of the world, which they pass on to the younger generation.
The oral source of knowledge reflects the vision of the world and the way of life of the people. Thanks to him, the connection between generations. Of these, folklorists, ethnographers, and historians can understand how people lived before, what they believed in, and what problems they had. Language and speech are of great importance in the modern world. With their help, we communicate with people, learn news, adopt traditions and norms in behavior.
Real sources
An important source of knowledge is material culture. For the first time it appeared in the form of cave paintings and figurines. Even in the Paleolithic people painted themselves and animals on the walls in caves, carved totems, amulets and small sculptures from natural materials. Subsequently, these findings became the most important evidence of the development of ancient people.
The main sources of knowledge for anthropologists and historians are household items, tools, jewelry, religious attributes, weapons, coins. They provide the most important data on the nature and structure of ancient society.
Material sources are the remains of people. According to them, biologists and anthropologists find out what people looked like, what work they performed, what diseases they were exposed to. The remains of architectural structures provide information on ancient architecture. A lot of this knowledge is not only introductory in nature, but also applied in modern areas of life.
Written sources
Developing language skills, a person begins to feel the need to somehow fix his speech. For this, he comes up with special characters that carry a certain meaning. So there is writing. The first records are cut out on wooden and clay tablets, carved on stones. Then comes parchment, papyrus and paper.
Attempts to create a letter are observed 9 thousand years ago. Some of the oldest written sources are Egyptian hieroglyphs, Sumerian cuneiform writing, the Babylonian Codex Hamurapi, written in Cretan writing, etc.
At first, the letter was created manually and was not accessible to everyone. Mostly religious texts and messages were recorded, as well as contemporary events. The invention of typography made writing more accessible. Now the most common source of knowledge is the Internet. It can also be considered part of the written language, although the text is distributed virtually, in electronic form.
Sources of Geographical Knowledge
Geography is one of the oldest sciences in the world. She studies the landscapes, natural spheres and shells of our planet, the placement of various objects on Earth. This is eloquently reported by its name, which translates as "geography."
The earliest and simplest sources of geographical knowledge are hiking. People moved around the planet, observed and collected information about the location of rivers, lakes, cities, mountains. They recorded and sketched what they saw, thereby creating new sources of knowledge.
As one type of drawing, cards appeared. With the development of mathematics and physics, they improved, became more accurate and understandable. So, many geographers used the achievements of their ancestors, using maps and books. Until now, they remain the most faithful sources of knowledge in this discipline.