Settlements and Urbanisation
Settlement patterns
Settlements are rural or urban, dispersed or nucleated, and their sites reflect water, defence, transport, relief and resources. Site is the exact location; situation is the position relative to surrounding features. Urban hierarchies rank settlements by population and services; higher-order centres offer rarer, more specialised functions and draw from larger hinterlands.
Urban growth and structure
Urbanisation is the rising share of people living in cities, driven by rural push and urban pull. Cities show internal structure (central business district, residential zones, industry, suburbs) and models such as concentric zones and sectors. Counter-urbanisation and suburbanisation are distinct: the first moves people out of cities altogether, the second expands city edges. Know land-use conflicts, transport, housing and sustainability responses such as smart growth and green belts.
Traps
Distinguish urbanisation (share of urban population) from urban growth (absolute numbers); don't confuse site with situation; and remember that a megacity exceeds 10 million people.
Worked example
A town of 200,000 people gains 4,000 residents in a year. Urban growth is 4,000/200,000 = 2%. If the country's urban share rises from 60% to 62%, that change in share is urbanisation, a different measure.