APHuG Vocab Unit 6

Megacities

a metropolitan area with a total population exceeding 10 million peopleC

Central Place Theory

explains the size, number, and distribution of settlements in an urban system based on service provision

Suburbanization

the transformation of land from rural/natural to residential/commercial on the outskirts of central cities, marked by the movement of populations from urban cores to these surrounding, lower-density areas

Range (of a service)

the maximum distance people are willing to travel to use a service

Suburb

residential or commercial areas located on the outskirts of a central city within a metropolitan area

Infrastructure

the fundamental, physical, and organizational structures—such as roads, bridges, water supply, power grids, and communication networks—necessary for a society or city to function, grow, and support economic development

Threshold

the minimum number of people (population or demand) required to support a service or business and make it profitable

Settlement

a permanent, organized collection of buildings and dwellings where people live, work, and obtain services

Redlining

the historical, discriminatory practice where banks and insurers drew red lines on maps to refuse or limit loans, mortgages, and services in specific, often predominantly Black or minority neighborhoods

Primary Economic Sector

Direct extraction or harvesting of natural resources from the Earth

Secondary Economic Sector

Manufacturing, processing, and assembly of raw materials into finished goods

Tertiary Economic Sector

The service industry; provides services rather than tangible goods

Quaternary Economic Sector

Knowledge-based services focusing on information, research, and capital

Quinary Economic Sector

High-level decision-making, specialized knowledge, and management

Inclusionary Zoning

local government regulations requiring or incentivizing developers to set aside a specific percentage of new, market-rate housing units for low-to-moderate-income households

Gentrification

the transformation of deteriorated, low-income urban neighborhoods through the influx of more affluent residents, businesses, and investment

Infill

building on vacant, underutilized, or formerly developed land within existing, built-up urban or suburban areas

Primate City

the largest city in its country or region, disproportionately larger than any others

Rank-Size Rule

the population of a city is inversely related to its rank; specifically, the second-largest city will have about half the population of the largest city, the third-largest city will have one-third, and so on.

Central Business District

the downtown heart of a city characterized by high-density commercial, office, and retail space, often featuring skyscrapers

Metacities

a massive, sprawling urban agglomeration with a population exceeding 20 million people

De Blij African City Model

an urban development model for Sub-Saharan African cities featuring three distinct CBDs —colonial, traditional, and market—surrounded by ethnic neighborhoods and peripheral squatter settlements

Brownfield

abandoned, idled, or underused industrial and commercial facilities where expansion or redevelopment is complicated by real or perceived environmental contamination

Greenfield

undeveloped land—usually agricultural, rural, or natural—that is considered for new, master-planned urban expansion, housing, or industrial development

Greyfield

economically outdated, underutilized, or vacant commercial properties

Gravity Model

a model used to estimate the spatial interaction—such as migration, trade, or commuting—between two places based on their population size and the distance between them

Transit-Oriented Development

an urban planning strategy focusing dense, walkable, mixed-use communities (residential, commercial, office) within a 10-minute walk of high-quality public transit stations

Burgess Concentric-Zone Model

urban model describing cities as growing outward from a Central Business District (CBD) in a series of five concentric rings

Hoyt Sector Model

urban land-use model describing cities growing in wedge-shaped sectors or corridors radiating outward from a central business district (CBD), rather than rings

Harris and Ullman Multiple Nuclei Model

city that does not have one central area, but instead has several nodes that act as regional centers for economic or residential activity within one larger city

Galactic City Model

a post-industrial, automobile-dependent city where the traditional Central Business District (CBD) has decentralized, losing its dominance to specialized suburban nodes known as edge cities

Boomburb

a rapidly growing, incorporated suburban city with over 100,000 residents that is not the major city of its metropolitan area

Blockbusting

an unethical and illegal real estate practice, common in the mid-20th century, where agents stoked fears that racial or ethnic minorities were moving into a neighborhood

Ford-Griffin Model

depicts the structure of Latin American cities, blending colonial history with rapid globalization

Urbanization

the process by which an increasing percentage of a population comes to live in urban areas, leading to the growth and expansion of cities.

European City Model

describes older cities with a dense, historic, and walkable urban core featuring narrow streets, plazas, and a central church

Bid Rent Theory

land value and demand decrease as distance from the Central Business District (CBD) increases

Zoning Laws

local government laws that dictate how land in specific geographic areas can be used, restricting development to designated categories such as residential, commercial, industrial, or agricultural

Urban Renewal

declining urban areas, acquiring the land, and clearing old, neglected structures to replace them with new infrastructure, housing, or commercial developments

Edge City

master-planned or rapidly developed commercial, business, and entertainment hubs located on the outskirts of major metropolitan areas, typically near highway intersections

Favela

informal, low-income squatter settlements or slums in Brazil

Special Economic Zones

designated, geographically limited areas within a country operating under distinct economic regulations, policies, and laws, typically featuring tax incentives, lower tariffs, and reduced, more flexible regulations compared to the rest of the country

Census Data

the systematic, comprehensive collection of demographic, social, and economic information about an entire population, typically conducted by governments at regular intervals

Urban Sprawl

the unrestricted, low-density expansion of housing, commercial development, and roads into rural land, typically characterized by high automobile dependency and poor land-use planning

Enviromental Injustice

disproportionate exposure of low-income and minority communities to environmental hazards—such as toxic waste, pollution, and industrial facilities—driven by systemic, discriminatory land-use policies

Enviromental Justice

movement for equitable treatment, ensuring all people, regardless of race or income, have equal access to a healthy environment and input on policies

Exurb

a prosperous, low-density residential community located beyond the suburbs on the metropolitan fringe

Greenbelts

a policy-based, designated area of open land—such as parks, agriculture, or wildlands—surrounding urban centers that is protected from development

Urban Growth Boundary

regional, legally mandated zoning lines separating urbanized areas from surrounding rural land, designed to curb urban sprawl and protect agricultural/natural areas