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Alternate Explanations of Urban Rank–Size RelationshipsAnnals of the Association of American Geographers
Vol. 48, No. 1 [Mar., 1958]
, pp. 83-91 [9 pages]
Published By: Taylor & Francis, Ltd.
//www.jstor.org/stable/2561542
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Journal Information
The Annals of the American Association of Geographers is one of the world’s foremost geography journals. It has been published since 1911 and currently has an Impact Factor of 2.799, ranking 8th out of 79 geography journals worldwide. The Annals contains original, timely, and innovative articles that advance knowledge in all facets of the discipline. Articles are divided into four major areas: Geographic Methods; Human Geography; Nature and Society; and Physical Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences. There are Editors responsible for each these themes. The Annals is published six times a year [January, March, May, July, September and November]. One issue per year is a dedicated Special Issue drawing a diversity of papers from across the discipline under a single theme. Following tradition, the annual Presidential Address is published in Annals; Memorials for former AAG Presidents and exceptionally distinguished geographers are also published.
Publisher Information
Building on two centuries' experience, Taylor & Francis has grown rapidlyover the last two decades to become a leading international academic publisher.The Group publishes over 800 journals and over 1,800 new books each year, coveringa wide variety of subject areas and incorporating the journal imprints of Routledge,Carfax, Spon Press, Psychology Press, Martin Dunitz, and Taylor & Francis.Taylor & Francis is fully committed to the publication and dissemination of scholarly information of the highest quality, and today this remains the primary goal.
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Vocab:
trade area: area around a city/town where its influence dominates
rank-size rule: pop of a city is inversely proportional to its hierarchical rank
primate city: the largest city, can be a capital, cultural, economic, & population center
central place theory: how and where central places ni the urban hierachy should be functionally and spatiall distributed
Christaller: created
central place theory
hexagonal hinterlands: hexagonal regions
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Primate City
Definition: The largest settlement in a country, must have MORE than 2x the people than the second ranking city. It should be disproportionately large and a leader in national capacity and expressions.
Good Examples: Paris, London, Cairo
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Central Place Theory
All AP Human Geography Resources
The Gravity Model in geography suggests that __________ and __________ are the two most significant factors in determining the extent of the relationship and interaction between two cities.
Possible Answers:
population size . . . cultural output.
distance . . . cultural output.
industrial output . . . cultural output.
industrial output . . . distance.
population size . . . distance
Correct answer:
population size . . . distance
Explanation:
The Gravity Model is based on Isaac Newton’s law of gravitation. It is a mathematical formula, so it cannot rely on something like “cultural output” because this is unquantifiable. It instead relies on population size and distance. The Gravity Model holds that the interaction between two places can be determined by the product of the population of both places, divided by the square of their distance from one another. The primary implication of this model is that distance is not the only determining factor in the interaction between two cities. For example, although Kingston, Canada is much closer to New York City than London it also has a much lower population than London so the interaction between London and New York City is likely to be higher than the interaction between Kingston and New York City.
According to the rank-size rule, if the largest city in a country has a population of 1,000,000, then the fourth largest city in that country would have a population of approximately __________.
Correct answer:
Explanation:
The rank size rule states that the largest city in a given country will have of the population of the largest city in that country. If the largest city has a population 1,000,000, and we want to know the population of the fourth largest city, it will have of the population of the largest city. of 1,000,000 is 250,000 people.
The rank-size rule is related to the size of which of the following answer choices?
Possible Answers:
All of these
Ethnic populations within cities
Urban neighborhoods
The income-level of the different populations within cities
Cities
Explanation:
The “rank-size rule” is related to the relative size of cities. According to the rank-size rule, there should be a larger number of small cities than bigger cities. Also, this rule predicts that the larger a city’s population is then the fewer number of cities there should be in the surrounding area with a similar population.
In Mexico, the population of Mexico City metropolitan area is over 20 million people. The next largest metropolitan area, Guadalajara, has approximately 4.5 million people. This disparity in population sizes makes Mexico City an example of __________.
Possible Answers:
an alpha city
a primate city
a world city
a capital city
a mercantile city
Correct answer:
a primate city
Explanation:
Mexico's population distribution is an example of a primate city. Mexico City has a population that is more than double the population of Guadalajara, therefore not qualifying the population to be under a rank-size rule. Cities can be world cities, alpha cities, or capital cities and not have the population disparities found in countries like Mexico.
A country has a population of twenty million, with a capital city with a population of nine million. That capital city is an example of a __________.
Possible Answers:
decaying city
megalopolis
gentrified city
primate city
urban jungle
Correct answer:
primate city
Explanation:
The term “primate city” is used to refer to a city that functions as by far the largest city in the country it inhabits. It may have a population between a third and a half of that of the whole country. Classic examples of primate cities include Bangkok in Thailand and Seoul in South Korea.
Primate cities have typically arisen in __________ environments.
Possible Answers:
wealthy and modern
post-colonial
peaceful and vibrant
poor and impoverished
war-torn and violent
Correct answer:
post-colonial
Explanation:
A “primate city” is a city that serves as by far the biggest city in the country that it inhabits. It’s population is exponentially greater than the population of the next largest city in that country. These types of cities typically arise in “postcolonial” settings because during the colonial era it was common for the European governments to carry out all their political and economic activity through one regional center. This led to infrastructure being disproportionately developed in one centralized area. After decolonization this infrastructure remained in place.
What is a mercantile city?
Possible Answers:
a city which has a major train route
any city that is composed of many industries
any coastal city
a city which focuses mainly on exporting goods
a city designed by trade routes
Correct answer:
a city designed by trade routes
Explanation:
By definition, mercantile refers to anything of or relating to trade. A mercantile city is a trade city which developed because of the trade routes. Most of these cities benefit from being on the coast because they can have a port, but after train transportation became prominent, having a port was no longer an essential element to being a mercantile city.
Which of the following theories is based on the premise that in any given region there can only be one large city and a series of smaller municipalities—cities, towns, and hamlets—that surround the city and depend on the larger city for goods and services?
Possible Answers:
Central node
Concentric zone
Multiple nuclei
Outlying spaces
Central place
Correct answer:
Central place
Explanation:
The “central place theory” states that in any given region there can only be one large central city, which is surrounded by a series of smaller cities, towns, and hamlets. The central city provides goods and services that meet the needs of the people living in the smaller communities; furthermore, the people living in the smaller communities provide part of the labor supply and market required by the city.
Which of these geographers developed the central place theory?
Possible Answers:
Johann von Thunen
Alexander von Humboldt
John R. Borchert
Kevin Lynch
Walter Christaller
Correct answer:
Walter Christaller
Explanation:
The “central place theory” was developed in the 1930s by Walter Christaller. According to the “central place theory” in any given region there can only be one large central city which is surrounded by a series of smaller cities, towns, and hamlets. The central city provides the goods and services required by people living in surrounding communities. John R. Borchert is responsible for organizing American urbanization into five different epochs, called Borchert's Epochs. Johann von Thunen developed a model of modern agricultural land use. Alexander von Humboldt's work laid the foundation for biogeography.
In “central place theory” what name is given to the outlying communities that rely on the central city for support?
Possible Answers:
Hinterlands
Edgelands
Wayward lands
Outlands
Frontier territory
Correct answer:
Hinterlands
Explanation:
In “central place theory” the outlying towns and small communities that rely on the central city for goods and services are known as “hinterlands.”