Changes in rural settlement Flashcards
What are 3 factors that lead to towns being remote?
- No roads or transport links
- Cold climates
- Harsh relief (difficult to access and build on)
Define a rural area
An area where there is a low density of people usually in the countryside or open areas.
Define an urban area
A built up area, like a city with a population of 10000 people or more
Define a settlement
A place where people live, which can range from one isolated building to a capital city of over 20 million people.
Define a megacity
A very large city, typically with a population over 10 million.
Define a millionaire city
Cities that have over a million residents.
Define function (settlement)
The job, purpose, or use of a settlement
Give 4 examples of functions within a settlement
- Retail
- Residential
- Agricultural
- Tourism
Why do rural areas have less functions than urban areas?
Because rural areas have less people and lots of land, whereas urban areas consist of many buildings - which provide services to people.
What is a settlement hierarchy?
It puts settlements in order of size, normally according to the size of their population.
What is an isolated building (rural)?
A single building - usually a farm.
What is a hamlet (rural)?
A small group of houses, normally about 5 to 10. There is often no services here.
What is a village (rural)?
A settlement of up to 10000 people. Villages will have some services in them like small shops, a primary school etc.
What is an isolated settlement pattern?
A single building on its own
What is a dispersed settlement pattern?
When individual buildings are separated by several hundred meetings.
What is a loose knit settlement?
When houses are built near each other and are obviously in the same settlement, but there are spaces in between.
What is a linear settlement pattern?
A settlement that has grown in a line. This line does not have to be straight but will normally follow a road or river.
What is a nucleated settlement pattern?
When all the houses in a settlement are built very close together, often around a central village green or church.
State 4 causes of settlement dispersion
- Relief of land
- Weather - flooding
- No electricity or water supply
- Mainly farm land
State 4 causes of settlement nucleation
- Flat land
- Good services and resources available
- Fertile land for agriculture
- Good transport links
Why have HIC’s, MIC’s, and LIC’s undergone considerable changes in the last few decades?
- Rural-urban migration
- Urban-rural migration
- Consequences of urban growth
- Technological change
Name 3 socio-economic issues caused by living in rural areas
- Unemployment, as it’s difficult to access jobs in larger settlements.
- Low capital investment - therefore low output and poverty.
- Human diseases (lack of healthcare)
How can these socio-economic issues be solved?
- Clean, piped water
- Tarred roads
- Reliable electricity supply
