Human Settlements
Settlements: rural and urban
Describe the functional link between towns and villages.
A settlement is a cluster of dwellings (homes), together with the land around it that supports the people economically.
Settlements range in size from tiny hamlets to huge metropolitan cities. They are of two broad kinds:
- Rural settlements (villages) depend on land-based, primary activities: farming, animal rearing, fishing.
- Urban settlements (towns and cities) specialise in manufacturing and services: factories, trade, offices, transport.
The two depend on each other. Cities provide goods and services to the villages in their hinterland (the area they serve), and in return get food and raw materials from them.
Their ways of life differ too: in villages, social relations are close and intimate; city life is fast, complex and more formal.
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