COLEGIO PURSIMA CONCEPCIN Y STA.

M MICAELA 2 ESO

TERM #2 URBAN SETTLEMENT

1. SETTLEMENT Settlement refers to the action of people establishing themselves in a particular place. There are two types of settlements: Rural settlement: people live in separate houses dispersed around the countryside or close together in villages and hamlets. The inhabitants of rural areas work mainly in primary sector activities. Urban settlement: the population lives in cities. The inhabitants of cities work in secondary or tertiary sector activities.

Primary sector: economic activities like agriculture, livestock, forestry, fishing and mining, which obtain resources from nature. Secondary sector: economic activities that consist of the construction of buildings, roads, bridges, etc., and of industry, which transforms raw materials into finished or semifinished products. Tertiary sector: economic activities that do not produce goods but offer services such as health care and commerce.

1.1 Migration between urban and rural settlement Rural settlement provides food to the urban settlement Rural settlement provides raw materials to the urban settlement Rural settlement provides people to the urban settlement Urban settlement provides services to the rural settlement Urban settlement is a recreation area for the people form the rural settlement

2. CITIES

In the world today, 49.5% of the population lives in urban settlements. However, in some countries such as Japan, almost 70% of the population lives in cities. The growth of cities has created different kinds of urban areas: Metropolitan area: a main city or metropolis and other neighbouring areas that depend on it economically. The most productive economic activities are concentrated in the main city. Conurbation: two or more neighbouring cities that have grown and become one urban area, although each one is a separate administrative entity. Megalopolis: several conurbations joined together.

Urban hierarchy is the classification of cities into different ranks: Global cities: cities with an international sphere of influence. For example, Tokyo, New York, London and Paris. National cities: cities with influence throughout the whole of a country. For example, Madrid or Washington. Regional cities: cities with influence throughout a particular region of a country. For example, Sevilla or Milan.

3. ANALYSIS OF CITIES 3.1. The elements of a city - Geographical environment: the specific location of the city may be in a valley, on an island, on a plan - Types of buildings: o Old or historic buildings, such as palaces and churches o Blocks (building with several floors: flats, offices, department stores) o Single-family homes of one or several floors (detached, semi-detached or terraced houses) o Shacks (house made of scrap materials such as cardboard, metal, wood, tyres or of very poor quality).

Plan: a graphic representation of the distribution of built-up areas (housing, public buildings) and open spaces (streets, squares) of a city. There are three common types of plan: o Orthogonal plan: It has a regular layout with straight, perpendicular streets crossing at right angles. It often has wide diagonal avenues. Cities founded by the Ancient Romans and the ensanches built in some European cities in the 19th century have this type of plan. o Radiocentric plan: It is characteristic of cities built in periods with frequent wars. It has a central point which streets radiate, crossed by others that form concentric circles. The historic centres of some cities have this type of plan. o Irregular plan: it has no defined geometric shape. It is characteristic of medieval cities in which buildings were joined to each other without any kind of human planning. The layout is irregular. Streets are narrow and usually winding and some alleys and passages are dead-ends (with no exit).

Orthogonal plan

Radiocentric plan

Irregular plan

3.2. Structure of cities Cities have different areas or zones characterized by the particular function that predominates there: residential, touristic, commercial, industrial There is a: central zone (which usually coincides with the original location of the city). It usually has the following parts: o Central Business District: this is where the main commercial and financial activities take place. Most buildings are offices; not many are houses. o History centre: the most important historical buildings (churches, palaces, museums) are located in this area. It is a tourist area. The town hall and other official buildings are often located there too. o Ensanches: these neighbourhoods consist of buildings from the 19th and 20th centuries. They usually contain houses, banks, shops and a periphery (the outskirts are usually around the central zone) in most cities. There are two types of areas: o residential areas: these areas consist of houses. They are neighbourhoods that are usually served by public transport; they are generally have sports facilities, shopping centres, hospitals and schools. In big cities there are sometimes poor residential areas called shanty towns. o Industrial areas: these areas consist of factories, warehouses, offices, hypermarkets They are usually near the main roads to make access easier for people and goods.

3.3. The functions of a city - Residential: common function of all cities. - Political and administrative: function of cities in which political and administrative organisations are based at regional, national or international levels (UN, EU), for example, New York. 3

Commercial: common function of all cities but more important in cities that have modern means of transport (railways, roads, airports, ports), for example, Hamburg. Industrial: predominant in cities with factories, workshops, for example, Milan or Liverpool. Cultural and educational: this function is important in cities with a renowed national heritage (for example, Rome) o a prestigious university (for example, Oxford). Touristic: cities with monuments, museums, exhibition centres that attract tourists, for example, Venice.

4. CITIES AROUND THE WORLD Cities around the world have different characteristics: Less-developed countries (for example, Mumbai in India): o Cities are few but they are densely populated. In Asia and Latin America, we find the largest urban centres on the planet. o Urban growth is usually chaotic. o In the city centre there are skyscrapers where different economic activities take place (financial, commercial), residential areas where housing is of high quality, green zones (parks and gardens), shops, schools and hospitals. o On the outskirts, there are shanty towns, which lack basic infrastructures (electricity, drains) where poorer people live.

Developed countries (for example, New York in USA): o Most cities are medium-sized or small. o Urban growth is usually planned. o The contrast between the different neighbourhoods is not as as great in less-developed countries: the green zones and basic services (drinking water, public transport) are distributed throughout the city. o These cities have many road links.

5. CITY LIFE 5.1. Urban resources - Educational and cultural: universities, museums, cinemas - Health: health centres, big hospitals - Economic: job opportunities - Transport: commuter trains, underground, buses

5.2. Cultural diversity and social differences Most cities today are multicultural. People of the same culture often live in the same neighbourhood for the following reasons (for example, Chinatown in New York): Geographical: people settle in urban areas that are near to their home country or have good transport connections to it. Historical: there are neighbourhoods where people from a particular culture have lived for years. Cultural: there are schools or religious centres linked to a particular culture.

5.3. Urban problems Cities have various problems such as shortages of natural resources (water), pollution (air pollution, noise pollution) and social problems (human relations are quite impersonal). Public institutions take certain measures to solve these problems and guarantee a minimum level of well-being (raise the cost of water, carry out campaigns, build subsidized housing which people who dont have a lot of money can apply for, green zones, establish sound barriers) . However, the collaboration of the citys inhabitants is also necessary.

6. SPANISH CITIES Of Spains inhabitants, 78.1% live in cities. Most of the large cities in Spain are in coastal areas (Barcelona, Valencia) but there are also some important cities in the interior of the Peninsula (Madrid, Sevilla, Zaragoza). In recent decades, some rural areas have become residential areas. Many people who live in these areas commute to work every day in the nearest cities. There are several metropolitan areas (Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Sevilla, Bilbao, Zaragoza and Malaga) with a large population. The structure of Spanish cities is similar to that of other cities in the world: there is a centre and periphery. Spanish cities have different functions: political-administrative, industrial, cultural, educational, touristic The cities in Spain are classifies into several categories or ranks: National cities: the metropolitan areas of Madrid and Barcelona. They have national and international sphere of influence and perform all the urban functions. Regional cities: Valencia, Sevilla, Zaragoza, Bilbao Their spheres of influence cover large parts of central and coastal areas of Spain. They perform most of the urban functions. Provincial cities: Burgos, Cceres, Granada Their sphere of influence is within the province. They usually carry out several urban functions. Small cities: Plasencia, Ponferrada, Tudela Their sphere of influence covers a comarca. Administrative, commercial and industrial functions predominate in these cities.