AP Human Geography: Chapter 13 Vocabulary

Vocabulary for AP H.U.G unit 6

Edge City

an urban area with a large suburban residential and business area surrounding it.

Gentrification

urban renewal that leads to the displacement of the occupying demographic.

Greenbelt

a portion of land reserved for farms, parks, forests, and other such things.

Metropolitan statistical area (MSA)

an urbanized area with a population of at least 50,000 with high density adjacent counties where the majority of inhabitants work in nonagricultural jobs.

Public Housing

government-funded residential buildings designed to provide affordable living spaces for low-income families and individuals.

Smart Growth

an urban planning approach that focuses on sustainable development, promoting efficient land use, and creating livable communities.

Squatter Settlement

a collection of buildings aimed to provide housing and shelter for poor people in a city.

Urban Renewal

the process of redeveloping areas with low property values in order to create new infrastructure and increase tax revenue.

Zoning Ordinance

A law that limits the permitted uses for land and maximum density of development in a community.

Megalopolis

when urban expansion results in an overlap in development by cities in close proximity to one another, resulting in a network of high-density human settlements.

Gateway City

city that acts as a port of entry into a country or a large geographic region.

Central Business District (CBD)

where a large amount of businesses are located.

Counter-Urbanization

the process by which a significant portion of the population of an urban center starts to migrate away from the city to live in suburbs or rural areas.

Ethnic Neighborhoods

An area within a city containing members of the same ethnic background.

Ghetto

an area of a city in which people of an ethnic minority are confined either by official government policy or by economic and social obstacles that make it difficult for people of that ethnicity to exist outside of the ghetto.

Hinterland

the outlying towns and small communities that rely on the central city for goods and services.

Infrastructure

the fundamental facilities and systems that support the functioning of a society, including transportation, communication, water supply, and energy systems.

Megacities

a very large city, typically with a population of more than 10 million people.

Planned Communities

a designed and organized residential area that typically includes a mix of housing, commercial, and recreational spaces, intended to promote a cohesive and efficient living environment.

High-Tech Corridors

Areas along or near major transportation corridors that are devoted to the research, development, and sale of high-technology products.

Primate City

a city that serves as by far the biggest city in the country that it inhabits

Suburbanization

the process by which people move from urban areas to the outskirts or suburbs.

Threshold

the minimum number of people needed for a business to operate.

Suburb

residential areas situated on the outskirts of a city or town, typically characterized by lower population density and a greater reliance on private transportation.

World City

major urban centers that have significant influence on global economic, political, and cultural activities.

Slum/Favela/Barriadas

densely populated urban areas characterized by substandard housing, inadequate infrastructure, and limited access to basic services such as clean water, sanitation, and healthcare.