Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community - View Single Post - Understanding 'East' vs 'West' on a sphere.

highthief · 02-07-2006, 09:28 AM

jwoody - things change over time, nations, their boundaries and their relative locations all shift as the world changes around them. Russia, when St. Petersburg was made the capital, looked west - it would have been fair to label them "European" (as many did for a long time). Then they turned inwards. Now, their future is tied increasingly to the east.

The former eastern bloc is now very integrated into the Western european sphere - 20 years ago, this was not the case.

China is now part of the Pacific Rim economies - until Deng Xiaoping came along, that was not so.

Hence, you are correct - definitions of "east" and "west" etc are fuzzy as they change constantly.

Many geographers break the world into 12 seperate parts or realms to recognize a degree of homogeneity and linked or similar economies and politics, and then further break those realms down into regions to better define things.

Those realms are:

North America
Central America/Caribean
South America
Europe
SW Asia/North Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa
South Asia
East Asia
Russia
Australia
SE Asia
Pacific Islands

02-07-2006, 09:28 AM	#41 (permalink)
highthief Junkie Location: Ontario, Canada	jwoody - things change over time, nations, their boundaries and their relative locations all shift as the world changes around them. Russia, when St. Petersburg was made the capital, looked west - it would have been fair to label them "European" (as many did for a long time). Then they turned inwards. Now, their future is tied increasingly to the east. The former eastern bloc is now very integrated into the Western european sphere - 20 years ago, this was not the case. China is now part of the Pacific Rim economies - until Deng Xiaoping came along, that was not so. Hence, you are correct - definitions of "east" and "west" etc are fuzzy as they change constantly. Many geographers break the world into 12 seperate parts or realms to recognize a degree of homogeneity and linked or similar economies and politics, and then further break those realms down into regions to better define things. Those realms are: North America Central America/Caribean South America Europe SW Asia/North Africa Sub-Saharan Africa South Asia East Asia Russia Australia SE Asia Pacific Islands __________________ Si vis pacem parabellum.