Imprints of galaxy evolution on H II regions: Memory of the past uncovered by the CALIFA survey

H II regions in galaxies are the sites of star formation, so they are special places for understanding the build-up of stellar mass in the universe. The line ratios of this ionized gas are frequently used to characterize the ionization conditions. We explore the connections between the ionization conditions and the properties of the overall underlying stellar population in H II regions, in order to uncover the actual physical connection between them. We use the H II regions catalog from the CALIFA survey, which is the largest in existence with more than 5000 H II regions, to explore their distribution across the classical [OIII] [lambda]5007/H[beta] vs. [NII] [lambda]6583/H[alpha] diagnostic diagram, and the way it depends on the oxygen abundance, ionization parameter, electron density, and dust attenuation. The results indicate that although H II regions are short-lived events, they are affected by the total underlying stellar population.