Population and Settlement Geography
What this domain tests
Expect questions on population distribution and density, census indicators, migration, and rural and urban settlement patterns.
Core rules
- Population density = total population divided by area, usually persons per square kilometre.
- Sex ratio is usually expressed as females per 1,000 males. Literacy rate is literate persons aged seven and above as a percentage of that age group.
- Migration is driven by push factors (unemployment, drought, conflict) and pull factors (jobs, services, safety).
- Settlement patterns: compact/nucleated, dispersed, linear, rectangular. Urban settlements may form agglomerations and conurbations.
Worked example
A district has 2,000,000 people and an area of 4,000 km². Density = 2,000,000 ÷ 4,000 = 500 persons per km². If 1,200,000 are female and 800,000 male, the sex ratio is (1,200,000 ÷ 800,000) × 1,000 = 1,500 females per 1,000 males.
Traps
Density is not the same as growth rate. Sex ratio is not males per female. A high absolute population does not mean high density. Urban agglomeration includes suburban outgrowths, not just municipal boundaries.