Urban Areas: Definitions and Concepts
Key Urban Concepts and Definitions
Peri-urban or Suburban Area
An area with unclear boundaries, characterized by a mixture of rural lifestyles and the city.
Metropolitan Area
A large urban sprawl surrounding a major city, covering several municipalities with significant economic and social relations.
Historic Old Town
The urbanized part of a city from its origin to the 19th-century industrialization.
City
A population center of over 10,000 inhabitants (in Spain). It is characterized by a high density of buildings, dominated by tall and collective structures. Economic activities are usually dominated by the secondary and tertiary sectors. It has a more dynamic culture, less traditional social relations, and influences the organization of the surrounding space.
Conurbation
A continuous urban area formed by the growth of two or more cities that merge, with each core maintaining its independence.
Urban Location
The specific area on which a city sits.
Ensanche City
The expansion of the city beyond its preindustrial walls.
Urban Structure
The division of the city into areas with characteristic morphology and functions.
Functions of Urban Areas
Socio-economic activities performed by cities outwardly.
Urban Hierarchy
The organization of cities according to their importance in terms of size, functions, and area of influence.
Urban Morphology
The external appearance presented by the city.
Radiocentric Map
A large-scale map showing areas of a city organized by streets radiating from a center, intersected by others forming rings around the center.
Orthogonal Plane
A large-scale map showing areas of a city organized by streets intersecting at right angles.
Irregular Plane
A large-scale map showing areas of a city with irregular streets and squares, without a defined structure.
Urban Plan
A large-scale map reflecting the building space and a free city.
Urban Regeneration
Actions for the conservation, recovery, and revitalization of traditional urban areas.
Secondary Residence
A second home generally used for leisure activities.
Urban System
A network of cities that organize a space through their interrelationships.
Location
Position relative to the broad geographic environment.
Urban Fabric (Trama Urbana)
The arrangement of buildings (closed or open).
Neighborhood
The progressive concentration of urban population, economic activities, and socio-cultural innovations, as well as their dissemination in the environment.
Central Areas
The more developed areas of a territory, possessing greater economic, social, and decision-making power.
Outlying Areas
Less-developed areas of a territory, with a lower economic and social standing and greater reliance on core areas.
Inter-territorial Compensation Fund
A financial instrument aimed at providing additional resources to Autonomous Communities with per capita incomes below the national average.
LOFCA
Financing Act of the Autonomous Communities.
Spatial Planning
Spatial expression of the economic, cultural, and ecological aspects of society.
Planning Cascade
A hierarchical chain of plans in which each plan contains the determinations of lower-level plans.