Urban Geography Glossary
25 essential terms — because precise language is the foundation of clear thinking in Urban Geography.
Showing 25 of 25 terms
The idea that different land users compete for central locations, with those willing to pay the most occupying the most accessible sites.
A small, relatively permanent geographic area used for census data collection and analysis of urban demographics.
The commercial and often geographic heart of a city, characterized by the highest land values, density, and concentration of offices and retail.
Christaller's model explaining the hierarchical distribution of cities based on market areas for goods and services.
Burgess's model of the city as concentric rings radiating outward from the CBD.
The movement of population from large cities to smaller towns and rural areas.
A measure of residential segregation indicating the percentage of a group that would need to move for even spatial distribution.
A suburban concentration of employment and commercial activity outside the traditional downtown.
Neighborhood transformation as higher-income residents displace lower-income inhabitants, altering the physical and social landscape.
Geographic Information Systems — technology for capturing, analyzing, and visualizing spatial data.
A city serving as a command center for the global economy with concentrated financial and producer services.
The surrounding area served by and economically connected to a central city.
An urban agglomeration with a population exceeding 10 million people.
Harris and Ullman's model of cities developing around several distinct activity centers.
The transitional area between urban and rural land with mixed uses and rapid change.
A city disproportionately larger than all other cities in its national urban hierarchy.
The empirical regularity where the nth-ranked city has roughly 1/n the population of the largest city.
Discriminatory mapping practices denying loans and services to neighborhoods based on racial composition.
The spatial separation of population groups across urban neighborhoods by race, ethnicity, or income.
Hoyt's model of city growth in wedge-shaped sectors along transportation corridors.
The physical characteristics of the land on which a city is built.
A city's location relative to surrounding features, trade routes, and other settlements.
The outward movement of population and activity from central cities to surrounding suburbs.
The phenomenon of higher temperatures in urban areas compared to surrounding rural areas.
The process of increasing concentration of population in cities and urban areas.