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Small Islands and Geomorphology: Review and Prospect in the Context of Historical Geomorphology
Journal article   Peer reviewed

Small Islands and Geomorphology: Review and Prospect in the Context of Historical Geomorphology

Patrick Nunn
Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, Vol.12(2), pp.224-239
1987
url
https://doi.org/10.2307/622530View
Published Version

Abstract

Physical Geography and Environmental Geoscience Human Geography Urban and Regional Planning small islands geomorphology eustatic theory historical geomorphology integration ethic
Small islands, defined as those < 10 000 sq km in area, have been studied only infrequently by geomorphologists. The reasons for this, which relate principally to the scale and emphasis of geomorphological enquiry at particular times, are described in the context of the development of geomorphology. It is contended that an important future development will be a revival of historical geomorphology. Studies of small islands would benefit contemporary geomorphology largely because of the simplicity of controls on their landform development compared to most continental areas of equivalent size. This makes small islands excellent places for the testing of certain theories and for the gathering of data for model testing. A discussion of retrodictive sea-level change modelling is given to illustrate this point. Historical geomorphology is considered a suitable integration ethic for geomorphology. There are good reasons why small islands are among the best testing grounds for a new historical geomorphology. There are signs of an increase in geomorphological studies of small islands, but the value of, and the necessity for, such studies must be recognized if the trend is

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