Unit 1 - Study of Settlements Flashcards
Settlement
Settlement, a place where groups of people live in either a rural or urban environment.
Settlement is categorized as:
Rural or urban.
Site
The actual place on which a settlement is built.
Factors that influence site: (6)
Physics factors - water, soil.
Economic - minerals.
Social - planned settlements, agriculture.
Historical - defensive sites.
Political - communism.
Trade and transport - natural habour, bridging point of river.
Situation
Position of a settlement in relation to surrounding environment. (Hex river valley)
Rural
Areas in the countryside, people engaged in primary activities such as farming, fishing, mining.
Urban
A built up settlement, like a city or town, where people are involved in secondary, tertiary and quaternary activities.
Secondary activities
Manufacturing of finished goods
Eg. Textiles, chemicals, construction.
Tertiary activities
Provision of services including banking, tourism, media, entertainment, sales.
Quaternary activities
Intellectual activities linked to government research and education.
Unifunctional
Rural settlements in the countryside.
One dominant/main function, mining.
Multifunctional
Urban settlements located in towns and cities.
More than one function. Functions are secondary, tertiary or quaternary.
How are settlements classified into rural or urban?
Size and complexity
Pattern
Function
Size and complexity
Top of pyramid:
Increase in size of settlement, higher populations and more services
Bigger bottom of pyramid:
Decrease in number of settlements.
Pattern
Pattern refers to spacing of buildings.
Either dispersed (buildings apart) or nucleated (buildings close together).
