Disciplines and Ideas in the Social Sciences

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Introduction to the Disciplines and their History

Introduction to the Disciplines and their

History

The following are the objectives for this module:

1. Compare and contrast the various Social Science disciplines and their
fields, main areas of inquiry, and methods
2. Trace the historical foundations and social contexts that led to the
development of each discipline

Geography
The Word Geography
Geography comes from the Greek word geōgraphia meaning
“earth writing”). It is a mixture of two Greek words gē meaning “earth” and
graphia meaning “writing.” The subject matter, then, is the earth, and the
studies that are engaged in this discipline refer to the writings.
The Discipline of Geography
Geography is primarily a natural science concerned with the planet we
inhabit, that is, the land, bodies of water, mountains, valleys, types of
vegetation, and animal habitats. (Perry & Perry, 2003) In other words,
Geography is the study of the earth’s surface; a specialized investigation of
the physical structure of the earth, including its terrain and its climates, and
the nature and character of its contrasting inhabited portions. However,
geography
means “earth
geography is not strictly a natural science, that is why it finds itself within the
writing” or ranks of the social sciences. But what makes it social?
“writings of the
John and Erna Perry remark that, “Geography is also concerned with the
earth”
ways in which people use the natural environment: why they settle in some
locations rather than others, which types of land are good for agriculture and
which for mining, what routes of transportation people choose to follow and
why, and where people establish their industrial centers.” (Perry & Perry,
2003). Geography is not only concerned with the physical aspect of the earth,
but also its social implications. That is why geography is not strictly
considered only to be a natural science, but as a social science. These matters
of location, preference, and different human attitudes enable it to gauge
society in relation to the earth, and to conduct studies that show how the
human community utilizes it.
The Origins of Geography
Eratosthenes is considered the father of geography. He is known as the first
person to actually use the term. Geography today still carries the basic
principles of Eratothenes’ time. Geography is characterized by a fascination
Course Module
 for the earth, which partners itself with that of the natural science of geology.
The oldest known world maps date back to ancient Babylon from the 9th
century BC. (Raauflab & Talbert, 2009) The earliest civilizations would draw
the places they had seen, and the horizons they had discovered, mainly
because of survival purposes. In other words, they did not want to get lost in
the vastness of the lands they roamed in. The best known Babylonian world
map, however, is the Imago Mundi of 600 BC. It is one of the most notable
proponents of the study of geography, and is still recognized today as an
intellectual treasure. Today’s geography retains the basic principles of
ancient geography. The only difference is that today’s geographers utilize a
number of modern tools that help with the advancement of the discipline.

History
The Word History
History can be derived from two Greek terms: histōr meaning “learned or
wise man,” and histōria meaning “finding out.” The two words, therefore,
signify that history is about a search or discovery about the experiences of
the world, man and society.
The Discipline of History
History is not universally considered a social science, because its primary
objective is to record human events for future generations. In fact, historians
history means
often cannot use the scientific method. (Perry & Perry, 2003) History,
finding out or therefore, is a study of the past, one that describes/narrates and analyzes
discovering; an human activities in the past and the changes that these had undergone. This
unearthing absence of the scientific method, however, does not make it a lesser social
science. As John and Erna Perry put it, “The discipline does attempt to study
systematically a sequence of related events – or a number of such sequences –
for the purpose of learning about, verifying, and establishing meaningful
relationships among them.” (Perry & Perry, 2003) The science involved in
history is a science of sequence that aims to determine the proper linear
development of society in all aspects.
History as a social science is geared more to learning about the development
of society, and how society has evolved through different social systems that
have influenced a number of key factors such as the well-being of society, and
how it interacts with the external world and other communities. Key
historical facts are studied closely not only for their significance when it
comes to learning, but also for looking at the causes to these facts, and what
events could have occurred if events had happened in a different manner.
History provides a context in which to study human relationships
systematically, it may be considered a social science. (Perry & Perry, 2003)
history is crucial The important thing to note here is that all of the social sciences develop in
because all of the history, and that without the systematic study that history provides, all the
other social other social sciences would not have a record of their development, thus
sciences are lacking information needed to be able to establish growth.
under it
The Origins of History
To outline the history of history would be a hard task, seeing as when we
speak of history, we note the development of one historical event. But history
 Disciplines and Ideas in the Social Sciences
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Introduction to the Disciplines and their History

is not just an historical event. It is history itself. Nevertheless, we can

pinpoint a period in history where history itself was properly introduced as
an object of study.
Herodotus of Halicarnassus is considered to be the “father of history.”
Cicero was the first to call him such, for Herodotus wrote the famous work
The Histories. This work served as the first major account of human history.
However, it was not only in Ancient Greece that history came into reality.
Ancient China also had a troop of chroniclers that would write down the
development of the empires. Chinese historians are the reason for our
knowledge of the dynasties, as well as the progress of Ancient China and
other neighboring kingdoms and countries. Furthermore, it is because of
figures like these that the jotting down of major events in humanity began to
take shape, and would be the foundations of the discipline of history.

Glossary
 Geography – comes from the Greek word geōgraphia
meaning “earth writing”). It is a mixture of two Greek words gē
meaning “earth” and graphia meaning “writing.” It is the study of the
earth’s surface; a specialized investigation of the physical structure of
the earth, including its terrain and its climates, and the nature and
character of its contrasting inhabited portions.

 History – can be derived from two Greek terms: histōr meaning

“learned or wise man,” and histōria meaning “finding out.” It is a study
of the past, one that describes/narrates and analyzes human activities
in the past and the changes that these had undergone.

References
Harrison, B.C. & Dye, T.R. (2008) Power & Society: An Introduction to the
Social Sciences, 11th Ed. Boston: Thomson Higher Education
Perry, E. & Perry, J. (2003). Contemporary Society: An Introduction to Social
Science, 10th Ed. New York: Pearson Education
Raaflaub, K. & Talbert, R. (2009) Geography and Ethnography: Perceptions of
the World in Pre-Modern Societies. New York: John Wiley & Sons
Wilkins, E. (1979). Elements of Social Science, 2nd Ed. Plymouth: Macdonald
& Evans Ltd.

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