Option G: Urban Environments
Amenities These may be within the home, in which case they refer to baths, toilets, hot water etc.,
or outside people's homes in which case they would include parks, shops, public
transport provision, etc.
Break of Bulk The place where goods have to be unloaded e.g. a port.
Point
Bridging Point: A settlement site where a river is narrow or shallow enough to be bridged. The bridge
becomes a route center and trading center, the natural location for a market. It is also a
good defensive site. The lowest bridging point on a river is the bridge nearest to the sea;
this site is ideal for a river port settlement.
Brownfield land Urban land that has previously been developed, such as a site of a demolished building
or factory.
Burgess Model An urban land use model showing five concentric zones, based upon age of houses and
wealth of their inhabitants. (See concentric ring model).
By-pass A road built around a busy urban area to avoid traffic jams.
CBD Central Business District or city centre; the commercial and business centre of a town or
city where land values are at the highest. This is the most accessible part of the town or
city. High land values lead to intensive use of the land and buildings are built as high as
possible to maximise office space and therefore rental income.
Central Place Any settlement that provides goods and services for smaller neighbouring settlements.
City Cities are urban places. They are usually large (more than 20,000 people) and are
economically self- sufficient (unlike a large dormitory or suburban town).
Clustered A settlement where buildings are clustered around a particular point.
Settlement
Pattern
Commuting The process by which people living in one place, travel to another place to work.
Comparison These are high-order (usually expensive) goods such as antiques, jewelry, and some
Goods/Services clothing and electrical equipment. They are called comparison goods because people
like to compare prices, quality and other features before buying them. Comparison
goods are usually sold in shops in city centres or large out-of-town shopping centres.
People visit comparison shops only occasionally so they need a large market area.
Comprehensive An area, usually in the inner city, where the whole urban landscape was demolished
Redevelopment before being rebuilt on a planned basis by the council or city government.
Concentric Ring See Burgess Model.
Model
Congestion Overcrowding on roads causing traffic jams.
,Consumer These are people. As trade in goods and services increases, the power of the consumer
increases.
Conurbation A large urban settlement which is the result of towns and cities spreading out and
merging together.
Convenience These are low/order goods - inexpensive things that vary little in price, quality or other
Goods/Services features that we need to buy regularly e.g. newspapers, cigarettes and bread.
Convenience shops are found on most street corners where they have a small market
area of people who visit the shop on most days.
Corner Shop A shop typical of the inner city zone (but also common in all zones except the CBD)
found on every street corner, selling a range of every-day needs. (See convenience
goods and low-order goods/services).
Counter-urbanis The movement of people from the MEDC cities to the countryside seeking a better
ation quality of life. Many still commute into the city to work, but increasing numbers are
moving to completely change their lifestyle and work in the rural area, often by
teleworking.
Cycle of A sequence of events experienced by disadvantaged people in which one problem e.g.
Deprivation lack of work, leads to other problems and so makes things worse
Defensive Site A settlement which usually grew at or around a fort or castle on top of a hill, although
river meander bends, bridges, dry-point sites and coastal sites with cliffs were also good
for defence.
Demand The willingness and ability of consumers to pay for a particular good or service; As long
as the supply of goods and services meets the demand, prices remain the same (stable).
High demand for land in the CBD from businesses wishing to locate their results in very
high land values because supply cannot be increased to meet the demand.
Dependant This is either a dependent child, or a person with long-term sickness preventing him/her
person from working.
Deprivation The degree to which an individual or an area is deprived of services and amenities.
There are many different types and levels of deprivation including poor and overcrowded
housing, inadequate diet, inadequate income and lack of opportunity for employment.
Derelict Abandoned buildings and wasteland.
Detached house A house standing alone (not joined to another) typical of the wealthy suburb zone of a
city. (See Burgess).
Dispersed Where buildings in a settlement are not clustered around a particular point but are
Settlement scattered in a random fashion (see linear and nucleated settlement)
Pattern
Dormitory One where many commuters 'sleep' overnight but travel to work elsewhere during the
Settlement day.
, Dry-point Site A settlement site on dry land surrounded by low, wet ground; this was good for defence.
Ethnic group This is a group which is defined by race, religion, nationality or culture.
Family Life A model which is based on the movements of people within a city seeking a better home
Cycle Model as their personal circumstances (both financial and social) change over time.
Family status A person's family status reflects age, whether or not the person is married and whether
or not the person has children.
Favela A Brazilian term for an informal, shanty-type settlement.
Filtering A process by which social groups move from one residential area to another, leading to
changes in the social nature of residential areas. (See Social leapfrogging).
Formal Sector The employment sector comprising 'proper' jobs that are usually permanent, with set
hours of work, agreed levels of pay, and sometimes pensions and social security rights.
Function of a What the settlement does to 'earn its living' e.g. market town, mining town, administrative
Settlement centre, tourist resort etc.
Gap Town A town located at a gap between hills, providing a good defensive site and route centre
that led to a trade and market function.
Gentrification A process by which run-down houses in an inner city or other neglected area are
improved by better off (affluent) people who move there in order to have easier access to
the jobs and services of the city centre. The 'improving' social group changes attract
more people of the similar wealthier social group.
Green Belt An area around a city, composed mostly of parkland and farmland, in which development
is strictly controlled. Its purpose is to prevent the outward growth of the city, preserve
countryside for farming, wildlife and recreation, and, often to prevent two or more cities
from merging to form one huge urban area.
Greenfield land A term used to describe a piece of undeveloped rural land, either currently used for
agriculture or just left to nature.
Hectare This is an area equivalent to 2.471 acres.
Hierarchy A ranking of settlements or shopping centres according to their population size or the
number of services they provide.
High-order A good or service, usually expensive, that people buy only occasionally e.g. furniture,
goods/services computers and jewelry. High-order services are usually located in larger towns and cities
with a large market area - accessible to large numbers of people.
Hinterland The area served by a port (its sphere of influence).
