urban morphology
study of physical form and structure of urban places
city
conglomeration of people and buildings clustered together to serve as a center of politics, culture, and economics
urban
the entire built-up, nonrural area and its population, including the most recently constructred suburban appendages. Provides a better picture of the dimensions and population of such an area than the delimited municipality that forms its heart.
agricultural village
small egalitarian village where most population in in agricult over 100 000 ya
social stratification
enables formation of cities, differentiation of classes based on wealth and job
leadership class
group of decision makers and organizers who helped bring about the creation of cities
first urban revolution
innovation of the city, five separate hearths
Mesopotamia
region of cities b/w the Tigris and Euphrates; first urban hearth; 3500 bce
Nile River Valley
second urban hearth; 3200 bce
Indus River Valley
3rd urban hearth; 2200 bce
Huang He and Wei
4th hearth; now china; 1500 bce
Mesoamerica
5th hearth; 200 bce
Acropolis
high point of city used in greek cities for religious purposes
agora
public place (Greece) where people socialized/debated/traded/schemed
site
internal physical attributes of a place; absolute location; spatial character and setting
Forum
Roman acropolis and agora combined
situation
external locational attributes of a place; relative location and regional position
trade area
region adjacent next to every city w/i which its influence is dominant
rank-size rule
idea that population of a city is inversely proportional to its rank in hierarchy
central place theory
Walter Christaller that explains how and where central places in the urban hierarchy should be functionally and spatially distributed.
Sunbelt phenomenon
movement of millions of Americans from N and NE states to S a SW regions of US
functional zonation
division of a city into zones (residential/commercial) for certain purposes or functions
zone
area of a city with a relatively uniform land use
central business district
downtown hearth of a central city, high land values, concentration of buildings and commerce; skyscrapers
central city
urban area that isn't suburban; the older or original city with suburbs around it
suburb
subsidiary urban area surrounding and connected to the central city; some have commercial districts and shopping malls
suburbanization
movement of upper and middle-class people form urban core areas to the surrounding outskirts to escape pollution and bad social conditions
concentric zone model
structural model of the American central city that suggests the existence of five concentric land-use rings arranged around a common center
edge cities
Joel Garreau-shifting of urbanization away from CBD toward new paths of economic activity at the urban fringe; massive amounts of retail/commercial space, residential areas, and modern buildings
urban realm
generalization of the large, late twentieth century city; widely dispersed, suburban downtowns, shrunken central realm focused on CBD
Griffin-Ford model
model of latin american city showing blend of traditional elements of Latin culture and globalization on the urban scene
disamenity sector
poorest parts of city controlled by gangs or drug-lords
McGee model
model of land-use patterns among the medium sized cities of SE Asia
shantytowns
unplanned slum development on margins of cities; crude dwellings made out of scrap garbage
zoning laws
legal restrictions of land use that determine what types of building and economic activities that are allowed to take place in certain zones (residential/retail/industrial)
redlining
illegal process where minorities where denied credit to live in predom-white neighborhoods
blockbusting
rapid change in racial comp of residential blocks in US cities when real estate agents stir up fears of neighborhood decline after encouraging people of color to move to previously white neighborhoods
commercialization
transformation of an area of a city into a area attractive to tourists and residents alike
gentrification
rehab of deteriorated housing of low-income residents
tear-downs
homes bought in american suburbs with intent of tearing it down and creating large mansion
McMansions
super sized mansions in appearance with other homes in area; often in tear-downs in US suburbs
urban sprawl
unrestricted growth of American urban areas of housing, commercial development, and roads over large expanses of land with little concern for planning
new urbanism
urban design (Influence from designers from over 20 countries) that will revive urban areas and create walkable suburban areas w/ diversity of housing and jobs
gated communities
restricted neighborhoods or subdivisions, where entry is limited to residents and guests, high income-based but middle class ones as well
informal economy
economic activity that isn't taxed nor monitored by government; not in GNP
world city
dominant cities in the role of a global political economy; not the largest city, but most controlled
primate city
countries largest city; cultural center and possibly the capital
spaces of comsumption
areas of a city where main purpose is to encourage people to consume goods and services; driven by media