ABSTRACT
The current debate on regional geography is both more outward-looking and more restricted than that which surrounds Richard Hartshorne’s (1939) advocacy of the central importance of chorography for geography. Although the chorography debate is extensive in alluding to fundamental distinctions in knowledge, it is inward-looking in applying these distinctions to the nature of geography as a discipline. By contrast, the contemporary debate is concerned less with the characteristics of knowledge and more with the nature of the relationships between space and society. It is concerned with trying to make sense of the constitution of a world in which geographical fragmentation and diversity are not only of demonstrable significance but also essential characteristics.
