settlement in spain

8/3/2019 Settlement in Spain

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KEY WORDScasero:isolated rural home, or farm,

with additional buildings (granaries,

stables, etc.), surrounded by fields

of crops or pastures

rural exodus or rural-urbanmigration: migration from the

country to the city, which leaves

many villages semi-abandoned

rural tourism: type of tourism in

which tourists visit the countryside

to enjoy the natural environment

Settlement in Spain

In Spain, urban settlement predominates. 78.6% of the Spanish

population lives in cities.

Rural settlement

Dispersed settlement (hamlets, caseros) is characteristic of the northof the Peninsula.

Nucleated settlement is predominant in rural areas. However, there aredifferences depending on the geographical zone:

In the Duero river basin and the Ebro valley, villages tend to be

small and close to each other.

In the south of the Peninsula, the Mediterranean are and the

Balearic Islands, villages are bigger and farther apart.

Rural settlement in Spain has seen the following changes:

Some villages in mountain areas and the interior ofthe Peninsula, whichhad become depopulated because ofrural exodus, have now been

revitalized thanks to rural tourism and the arrival ofimmigrant families.

Villages in coastal areas, which used to be dedicated to fishing oragriculture, have been converted into tourist towns.

Many villages close to big cities have taken on urban functions(residential, industrial, services, etc.) and become part of the

metropolitan area of the city.

Alcorcn, a settlement near Madrid, was a village in 1959 (on the left) and is now a large city (on the right).


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KEY WORDS

services: economic activities that do not

produce goods, but provide services to

meet the needs ofthe population; they

include economic activities like

commerce, transport, tourism, health

services, cultural and educational

services, etc.

Spanish cities are ranked in a hierarchy according to the following categories:

Category Inhabitants Functions Sphere of

influence

Cities

Nationalmetropolis

more than4.9 million

multiple:political,

economic,cultural, etc.

national andinternational

Madrid,Barcelona

Regionalmetropolis

betwee n500000 and1600000

varied: political,commercial,cultural, etc.

regional, withdirec trelationshipwith nationalmetropolis

metropolitanareas ofValencia,Alicante,Sevilla, Bilbao,Mlaga andZaragoza

Subregionalmetropolisorsecondaryregional

metropolis

betwee n250000 and500000

less divers ified;but withspecializedservices

regional Murcia, Palmade Mallorca,Valladolid,Crdoba, etc.

Medium-sized cities

between50000 and250000

administrative,commerci al, etc.

provincial Burgos,Alb acete,Badajoz, etc.

Small cities less than50000

few district Plasencia,Mieres, etc.

These are the characteristics ofthe Spanish urban network:

The majority of large and medium-sized cities are in coastal areas, although there aresome important cities in the interior of the Peninsula.

The network is dominated by the metropolitan areas ofMadrid and Barcelona.

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Madrid Barcelona


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Example

Madrid, Barcelona

5Complete the chart.

Look at the photo and answer the questions.

Activities

lAre the following statements true or false? Correct the falseones.

a) In Spain, rural settlement is more important than urban

settlement.

b) In the Duero river basin, villages are usually small and close

together.

c) Many villages in coastal areas have been converted into

tourist towns.

2Look at the photo. Readthe description and write themistakes that you can see. Use these words: traditional, village,

wood, narrow, houses, old woman, stick, bucket.

Candelario (Salamanca)

3Read the text and answer the questions.

From San Francisco Square, in the centerofJan, we walk overto CervantesSquare, whose arches remind usof the old city prison

thatwashere before. On Los Caos Square, we stop and admire the

Carnicera Building and theancient fountain. Attheend of Milln de

Priego Street, wecomeacross partofthe oldcity wall;followingthe

wall, wecome outon MagdalenaSquare. From there, wecanenjoy

some wonderfulviewsof the castle.

www.aytojaen.es

a) Which part of the city is described in the text?

b) What types of tourist attractions or monuments are

mentioned?

c) Have you ever visited Jan? Would you like to? Explain whyIwhy not.

Madrid

a) Which urban zone does the photo show?

b) What functions does this zone normally have and what types

of building can we find there?

c) Describe the buildings in the photo with these words: tall,

modern, steel, glass, floors.

d) What do you think is inside the buildings?

e) What is the tallest building you have ever visited? How many

floors does it have? Where is it? What was the reason for

your visit?

Category

National metropolis =

Regional metropolis =

Sub-regional metropolis =Medium-sized city =

Small city =

Settlement


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e) An urban plan is a graphic representation of

the distribution of built-up areas and open

spaces.

f) Most villages in mountain areas in Spain are uninhabited

now.

e) There are two cities at the top of the hierarchy of Spain's

urban network.

5What are the differences between dispersed

and nucleated settlements? Where in Spain canwe find each type?

1 Identify the mistakes in these sentences.

Correct them.

a) The construction of skyscrapers became possible

thanks to the use of wood and titanium.

b) Population growth in the 19th century made the

construction of skyscrapers impossible.

c) In the year 1875, the tallest building in New York

was the Singer Building. It was 118 m tall.

d) The island of Manhattan did not have the right

physical conditions for the construction of

skyscrapers.

e) The Singer Building was the head office of a

company that manufactured cement.

f) The Singer Building, constructed in 1911, was 187 m

tall.

2 Correct the names of these urban spaces.

a)Nurbactiono

b)Galpomelois

c)Trolimeponat raea

3Complete the definitions below of the urban spaces inactivity 2. Use these words: main,joining, several, smaller,

close, and continuous.

a) urban area formed by a ________ city, called ametropolis, and other ____________ nearby urban nuclei

b) large, almost _______ rurban area, formed by the___of

two or more cities that are to each other, but in which each

city maintains its administrative independence.

c) large urban area formed by joining _________

conurbations

Now match the urban spaces to the definitions.

4 Are the following statements true or false? Correct the

false ones.

a) The largest part of the world population lives in

rural settlements.

b) The majority of the Spanish population Iives in

cities.

6 Write a short description comparing the photos of

a village and a city.

Village and City


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7 Read the text and answer the questions.

Rural homesinSpain

In Spain we can distinguish different types of rural

homes, depending on the materials they are made of:

Stonehouses (slate, granite, etc.) are mostly foundin the

mountainous peripheryof the Peninsula and in some

mountainous areas of theinterior.

Mud or adobehouses are characteristicofthe centerofthe

Peninsula and the vegetable garden regions of Valencia

and Murcia.

Wooden or mixed houses(wood andstone or mud) can be

found in the rural areas of the Montes Vascos, Sistema

Central andSistema Ibrico.

a) Look up these materials: slate, granite, mud, adobe.

b) Why do you think stone houses are characteristic of

mountain areas?

c) Describe the house in the photo with these words: roof,

walls, adobe, straw, small, pointed, white.

A typical adobe house (barraca) in the Comunitat Valenciana

8 Which part of a modern Spanish city does this photo

illustrate? Do you recognise the city?

9 Listen and complete the description of the photo

There is a large Gothic _______, possibly a cathedral,

in the city centre, with pointed _________and many

arches. At the front, to the left, we can see a _________ o

There are some cars on the square. Behind the

square there are lots of __________ , though they don't

have many ______.

Pag. 3.2.

This photo shows a modern, wide street in a city.

The houses are made of bricks and concrete and they all have three or more floors.

There are some shops as well.

There is a young man walking down the street, carrying a shopping bag.Pag. 6.9.

square

floors towers

blocks of flats

church

settlement in spain

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