Edexcel Igcse Geography. Urban Environments Key Words

Front 1

Urbanisation

Back 1

the process of becoming more urban, mainly through more and more people living in towns and cities.

Front 2

Suburbanisation

Back 2

the spread of low density, often detached or semi-detached housing around the edges of a city or town. E.g. Shirely in Birmingham.

Front 3

Megacity

Back 3

A city with a population over 10 million. E.g London.

Front 4

Inner city

Back 4

City area, close to the CBD, characterised by old housing, poor services and brownfield sights.

Front 5

Self help (housing)

Back 5

When people in shanty towns gradually improve their own housing and surroundings. Often they are helped by a NGO.

Front 6

Rural-urban fringe

Back 6

An area on the outskirts of a city where land use is contested between rural and urban uses.

Front 7

Brownfield site

Back 7

Land that has been used, abandoned and now awaits a new use. Commonly found in urban areas, particularly in the inner city.

Front 8

Greenfield site

Back 8

A plot of land, often in a rural area, that has not yet been built on or developed.

Front 9

Deprivation

Back 9

When people lack what the rest of society considers "normal", such as good housing, reasonable income or access to healthcare.

Front 10

Urban regeneration

Back 10

The revival of old parts of the built-up area by either installing modern facilities in old buildings (known as renewal) or opting for redevelopment. (e.g. the jewellery quarter)

Front 11

Rebranding

Back 11

Urban regeneration that also tries to give an area a new image. Rebranded areas often have names and logos, e.g. MediaCityUK in Salford.

Front 12

Problems of rapid urbanisation

Back 12

Housing (shanty towns), transport, employment, crime, health (typhoid, cholera), access to water and electricity.

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The CBD

Back 13

Near the centre of the city, this is the most accessible area. Retail businesses will pay high rents to be here because it is where the customers are.

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Inner city

Back 14

Old industry, Victorian terraced housing, 18th/ 19th century, tunnel back, grid-iron street pattern. E.g. Highgate

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Inner suburbs

Back 15

Inter-war housing, semi-detached (1930s-1940s), bay windows and arched front doors, infill 1960s and Victorian housing. E.g. Shirley.

Front 16

Outer suburbs

Back 16

Result of on going suburbanisation/ urban sprawl. Business parks, super stores, retail parks, car sales showrooms, golf courses etc. E.g. Blythe valley business park. Post was housing and council estates. more modern housing estates for higher income groups e.g. monkspath

Front 17

Urban fringe

Back 17

Rural areas being eroded to develop commuter housing, out-of-town shopping centres and business parks. (e.g. Dorridge)

Front 18

Social segregation

Back 18

The richest people can afford to live anywhere in the city. The poorest can only afford to live where rents are cheap.

Front 19

Ethnic segregation

Back 19

A ghetto is an area where one ethnic group forms the dominant population. Associated with immigration. Form because of external pressures such as discrimination and internal factors such as mutual support.

Front 20

Shanty towns

Back 20

Develop as a consequence of the rapid growth of urban areas in LICs.

Front 21

Push factors to the urban fringe

Back 21

Housing in the city is too cramped, old and expensive. Businesses cannot afford the space to expand. Pollution, congestion, social problems (crime)

Front 22

Pull factors to the urban fringe

Back 22

Land is cheaper so new houses can be bigger. Plenty of space for business to expand. Roads are less busy, air is fresher, social problems less obvious.