Rural and Urban Settlement Patterns and City Structures

Settlement Types and Differences

Settlement: The settlement of population in the region can be of two types: rural, when people settle in villages or houses in the countryside, and urban, which is based in cities.

Key Differences Between Rural and Urban Areas

Differences: Cities have more residents than rural nuclei. In rural areas, farming dominates, while in cities, industry and services are the primary activities. Cities are larger than villages, urban buildings are taller, and streets are wider.

Rural Settlement Classifications

Rural Settlement Types: There are three types:

• Dispersed settlement: These are houses, farmhouses, and farms scattered throughout the countryside.
• Concentrated settlement: Cluster cores forming the houses where the inhabitants reside.
• Interlayer settlement: An interim settlement between the two.

Peoples: Peoples (villages) are the basic units of rural settlement in a settlement.

Urban Settlement and City Growth

Urban settlement: The urban settlement is the result of a process of population concentration in cities.

Large Urban Centers and Growth

Growth of Cities: The growth of cities leads to three types of large urban centers:

• Metropolitan Area: Formed by a central core called a Metropolis.
• Conurbation: Originates when two or more nearby cities unite to form a single urban set.
• Megalopolis: The result of several conurbations.

Roles and Functions of the City

Functions of the City:

• Residential function: Housing is dominated by industries and shops.
• Commercial function: There is an abundance of commercial centers and supermarkets.
• Industrial function: Industries tend to be located on the city outskirts.
• Politico-administrative function: The role of cities that concentrate political and administrative organisms.
• Cultural function: Cities where relevant educational centers are located (e.g., Oxford, UK).

The Urban Plan and Layout Types

The urban plan is a graphical representation of the distribution of buildings and the space of a city. There are three types:

• Orthogonal plans: Introduced where streets cross in straight lines perpendicularly.
• Radiocentric plan: Characterized by the existence of a central point from which radial streets and irregular paths originate.
• Irregular plan: Does not respond to a definite shape.

Urban Buildings and Growth Patterns

Urban buildings: There are three types:

• Ancient buildings: Located in the historical centers of the city.
• Block buildings: Formed by several floors; when their height is elevated, they are called skyscrapers.
• Family dwellings: Isolated buildings or those attached to one or two floors.
• Spontaneous building growth: These stand on the outskirts of large cities and are built with scrap materials.

Spontaneous construction growth: These stand outside the big cities and are built out of scrap materials.