This isn’t a map, though there are small maps embedded, but an awesome graphic using the tree metaphor to detail the spread of languages. The size of the foliage represents the approximate population of speakers of each language. The graphic contains Indo-European and Finno-Ugric families so while it contains much of the world’s population, it does not include African, East Asian, Middle Eastern or indigenous languages. The author, Minna Sundberg is Finnish so there is extra attention given at the bottom of the map to the Finno-Ugric tree (detailed below) and North Germanic branch of the Indo-European tree. -via Mappenstance

Watching the superb and sublimely acted recent film A Complete Unknown has inspired me to revisit the songs of Bob Dylan. In doing so, I have once again been impressed with his geographical vision, marked by effective invocations of place. His frequent use of place names in lyrics has even drawn cartographic attention, as can […] The post Highway 61 Revisited Revisited in 2024: Bob Dylan, Geography, and the Blues appeared first on GeoCurrents.

The second GeoCurrents YouTube video has been posted, which examines the current debate between anti-natalists, who think that the world is severely overpopulated and therefore want to reduce birthrates, and pro-natalist, who are concerned about plunging fertility and therefore want to increase birthrates.   I do not take a side in this debate on this […] The post New Demography Video: Pro-Natalism vs. Anti-Natalism appeared first on GeoCurrents.