This document contains notes and summaries made from the " FOCUS Geography" textbook which summarizes: Chapter 1 study of settlements; chapter 2 rural settlements; chapter 3 rural settlement issues; chapter 4 urban settlements; chapter 5 urban hierarchies and chapter 6 urban structures and pattern...
A settlement is a place where …
A group of people live.
An infrastructure exists.
Buildings occur.
Social and economic activities happen.
A settlement can be as small as a village or as large as a city, with the
main criteria being that it operates as a single integrated system on a
regular daily basis.
Factors that can influence the site of a settlement:
- Physical factors = the availability of resources.
- Economic factors = the availability of valuable minerals.
- Trade and transport factors = the availability of a natural harbour
or the crossing point of a large river.
- Cultural or social factors = new towns have been built away from
existing urban settlements that are congested, polluted and
overpopulated. These are designed to …
Improve the living conditions and lifestyles of people.
Attract light industries.
Have road networks that allow for easy traffic flow.
Provide easy access to schools, clinics, shops and other
facilities.
- Political factors = government policies can influence the site of
settlements.
- Historical factors.
Situation of a settlement: the relationship between a settlement and its
region e.g., soil, climate, rivers, geology and vegetation.
- Rural settlement: a small settlement with a small population
involved in primary activities.
- Urban settlement: a large settlement with a large population
involved in secondary, tertiary and quaternary activities.
The difference between rural and urban
settlements:
Size and population.
Economic activity.
Services.
Land use.
,Size and population:
- Settlements can be classified as urban or rural according to their size.
- Rural settlements are small in physical size and in human population size.
- Urban settlements are larger in size and in population.
Economic activity and function:
- Rural settlements are usually unifunctional, meaning they have one
function.
- The inhabitants of rural settlements are involved mainly in primary
activities.
- Urban settlements are predominantly multifunctional and have a wide
variety of functions.
- The people living in urban settlements are usually involved in secondary,
tertiary, and quaternary sectors.
Services:
- In rural settlements, services such as high schools, universities,
hospitals, shopping malls and public transport are usually not
available or are limited.
Land use:
- In urban areas, a settlement is denser and buildings are closely grouped,
with a great variety and mixture of land use.
- Urban land use can be residential, industrial, commercial and recreational.
- In rural areas, the settlements tend to be widely spaced and the land is
used for one or two activities.
Settlement classification:
Size and complexity:
- The simplest settlement is the isolated farmstead consisting of a few
buildings, people and social and economic activities.
- The more complex settlement has a variety of buildings, a complex
infrastructure, a larger population and many social and economic
activities.
KEYWORDS:
Nucleated pattern: settlement dwellings form a dense grouping of buildings.
Dispersed pattern: settlement dwellings are isolated and spaced far apart from
each other.
Function: the reasons for the existence of the settlement.
, RURAL URBAN
1. ISOLATED FARMSTEAD: 1. Town: a densely populated
smallest, least complex settlement urban area with a more complex
involving primary activities. infrastructure and varied economic
activities.
2. Hamlet: a loose grouping of a 2. City: a large urban area where
few farmsteads involving primary many people live and work.
activities.
3. Village: a denser grouping of 3. Conurbation: a large urban
many farmsteads involving primary area formed by the growth and
activities. coalescence of a number of cities
and towns.
4. Metropolis: a main city in a
region, which is
surrounded by dependent towns.
5. Megalopolis: a gigantic urban
complex formed when a number of
conurbations join to form the most
Different types of settlements: complex settlement with regards
to economic activities, population
and infrastructure.
Function:
- The function relates to its economic and social
development, and determines its main activities.
- The functions is often closely related to:
The site of the settlement.
The reasons for a settlement’s existence.
The way in which the inhabitants make their living.
Pattern:
- The pattern of a settlement is either nucleated or dispersed.
- Urban settlements display nucleated pattern because the buildings tend to
form a compact unit.
- The settlement unit is a dense structure of buildings and infrastructure.
- Isolated rural settlements show a dispersed pattern.
- The dwelling units are spread apart from each other so that their pattern is
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