HISTORICAL GEOGRAPHY

1. The first inhabitants of America were likely adventurers from Asia, across Bering Strait, which separates Russia from Alaska in the United States.



The ancient Egyptians were celebrated for their civilization and learning, and the Phoenicians, for their skill in navigation and commerce.

The Phoenicians, or Canaanites, inhabited the eastern coast of the Mediterranean, and explored all the coast of that sea, besides the western shores of Europe and Africa.

In 800 B.C., the great monarchies of ancient times were Assyria, Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome.

Rome was most powerful at the beginning of the Christian era, among its most celebrated rulers were Julius Caesar and Augustus Caesar.

The Middle or Dark Ages were from the fifth to the fifteenth century. Identified with them were the rise of Islam, the Feudal System, and the Crusades.

The Muslim Turkish people conquered Syria and were expanding their influence and capturing territories. Consequently, many thousand Christians throughout Europe left their homes for that distant land, to counter the Turkish expansion. These expeditions, which occurred circa 1095-1212, were called the Crusades, and they did not succeed. The Turkish people again obtained possession of Palestine.

There is some reason to believe that America may have been visited from Europe before the time of Christopher Columbus. The inhabitants of Scandinavia (the country now divided into Denmark, Sweden, and Norway) were known as Norsemen. In the old romantic tales of Scandinavia there are stories which go to show that these Norsemen, under the command of Leif, the son of Eric, in the year 1001, and afterward, probably explored the coast of America from Labrador southward for some distance. Christopher Columbus was unaware of Leif Erikson's voyage, and sailed to find America himself in 1492.

In the 16th century, the English and Dutch made efforts to reach India by a northwest passage around the northern part of America. Among the celebrated explorers of that route were Frobisher, Davis, Hudson, and Baffin.

The first voyage around the globe was made by Magellan, in the 16th century. Another was made in the 18th century by Captain Cook, who made known the great length of the Arctic coast of North America.

MAPWORK - SEA VOYAGES

Study the map below to answer the following:

1. Remember that all meridians or lines of longitude run north and south, and all parallels of latitude, east and west.
2. Observe that Greenland points to the south, not southeast, and that Cape Farewell is nearly due north of Cape St. Roque.
3. On what waters and in what directions would you sail from New York to:
   • Cuba
   • Cape St. Roque
   • Newfoundland
   • Baffin Bay
   • Rio de Janeiro
   • British Islands
   • Mediterranean Sea
   • Cape of Good Hope
   • Cape Horn
   
   
4. What is the shortest route by water from New York to Asia?
5. What directions would you take, and what capes would you pass, in a voyage from New York to:
   • Australia
   • New Zealand
   • Iceland
   • Japan
   • San Francisco
   
   
6. What are the possible modes of travel from:
   • New York to San Francisco
   • From New York to the Sandwich Islands (Hawaiian Islands)
   • From New York to Japan
   
   
7. If you should sail west from the Sandwich Islands (Hawaiian Islands), or on the parallel of 30 north latitude, at what part of Asia would you arrive?
8. If you should sail west from San Francisco, at what islands on the Eastern Hemisphere would you arrive?
9. If you should sail east from New York, at what part of the Eastern continent would you arrive?
10. By what two routes can you sail from:
    • San Francisco to Japan
    • New York to Australia
    • New York to Japan
    
    
11. What islands and capes would you pass in a voyage by water around the world, starting from New York? Starting from San Francisco?