Edmund William Gilbert (1900–1973) was a British social geographer. He was Professor of Geography at the

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

, from 1953 to 1967. and Fellow of

Hertford College, Oxford Hertford College ( ), previously known as Magdalen Hall, is a colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It is located on Catte Street in the centre of Oxford, directly opposite the main ga ...

. He defined

geography Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth description") is a field of science devoted to the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and ...

in terms of the recognition of the characters of

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

s In the 1920s, while at

Reading University The University of Reading is a public university in Reading, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1892 as University College, Reading, a University of Oxford extension college. The institution received the power to grant its own degrees in 192 ...

, he studied the

American West The Western United States (also called the American West, the Far West, and the West) is the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. As American settlement in the U.S. expanded westward, the meaning of the term ''the Wes ...

. He was much influenced by

Halford Mackinder Sir Halford John Mackinder (15 February 1861 – 6 March 1947) was an English geographer, academic and politician, who is regarded as one of the founding fathers of both geopolitics and geostrategy. He was the first Principal of University Ext ...

, to the point of being thought an uncritical admirer. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

he worked on the

Naval Intelligence Handbooks The United Kingdom, British ''Naval Intelligence Division Geographical Handbook Series'' was produced between 1941 and 1946. At 31 titles, encompassing 58 volumes, this is the largest single body of geographical writing ever published. The books w ...

, producing, with Robert BeckinsaleObituary: Robert Beckinsale , Independent, The (London) , Find Articles at BNET.com
/ref> and S. da Sá, the ''Spain and Portugal'' volumes.

Works

*''The Exploration of Western America, 1800-1850: An Historical Geography'' (1933) *''Brighton Old Ocean's Bauble'' (1953) *''The University Town in England and West Germany'' (1961) *''British Pioneers in Geography'' (1972)

References

*''Obituary: Edmund William Gilbert'', The Geographical Journal, Vol. 140, No. 1 (Feb., 1974), pp. 176–177

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gilbert, Edmund William 1900 births 1973 deaths British geographers Fellows of Hertford College, Oxford Social geographers 20th-century geographers