Population and Settlements

Population is the number of people living in a place. Settlements are places where people live and work.

Types of Settlement

1. Villages — small, rural, often farming communities. Population: under 1,000.
2. Towns — larger, have markets and shops. Population: 1,000-100,000.
3. Cities — large, important centres with cathedrals or universities. Population: over 100,000.
4. Megacities — over 10 million people! Examples: Tokyo, Delhi, London.

Why Do People Settle?

People choose to settle in places with:

• Water (rivers, lakes)
• Flat land for building and farming
• Good climate
• Natural resources (wood, minerals)
• Transport links (rivers, roads, ports)
• Safety (away from floods, volcanoes)

Site and Situation

• Site — the actual land the settlement is built on
• Situation — where the settlement is in relation to other places

Population Distribution

People are not spread evenly across the Earth. Some areas are densely populated (lots of people), others are sparsely populated (few people).

Dense Population

• South-East England, India, China, Japan

Sparse Population

• Antarctica, Sahara Desert, Amazon Rainforest, Northern Canada

Factors Affecting Population Density

Pull factors (attract people):

• Jobs, good climate, services (schools, hospitals), transport

Push factors (drive people away):

• Lack of jobs, extreme weather, war, natural disasters

Urbanisation

More people are moving from countryside to cities. This is called urbanisation. By 2050, about 68% of the world's population will live in urban areas.

Activity

Research your own town or city. Why was it settled there? What natural features made it a good location? Has the population grown or shrunk over time?