Suggest reason for the location of the settlement. Settlements start in particular places for different reasons, such as fertile soil water availability, minerals, job opportunities, transport routes and trade
Answers
Answer:A settlement is a collection of buildings where people live. They vary in size from small hamlets to large cities.
There are many factors that can influence where settlements locate within a region. The site of a settlement is the actual land that the settlements is built upon. The situation is the location of a settlement in relation to the things that are around it.
•
Physical factors that influence the location of a settlement include;
1.
Water supply – settlements need water, they often locate on wet point sites for this. Settlements built away from rivers and water supplies to avoid flooding are located at dry point sites.
2.
Defence – building on high ground allowed people the chance to look out for enemies (e.g. Edinburgh castle) while surrounding a settlement with water also helped with deed defence e.g. Durham is built inside a meander.
3.
Aspect and shelter – In the northern hemisphere south facing slopes receive more sunlight and are protected from cold Northerly winds. More settlements and agricultural land is therefore located on South facing slopes.
•
The economic factors include;
Communications – settlements often located next to rivers that could be easily crossed. These are called bridging points. Other favourable places included where at the junctions of valleys or in gaps through hills. These locations allowed maximum communication between different settlements and increased trade. E.g. Newcastle is built on the Tyne at a bridging point and could benefit with trade from the North and the South.
•
Resources - Early settlers relied upon wood for fuel and building. A site close to woodland was there fore an advantage. Later, resources such as Iron ore, coal and bauxite encouraged the growth of settlements.
There are 3 different shapes of settlement according to the arrangement of buildings within them;
•
Linear settlements grow in a line, often along roads, river valleys or the coast.
•
Nucleated settlements have buildings grouped close together and are found at cross roads or are used for defence purposes.
•
Dispersed settlements have individual buildings spread out, and are often found in rural areas.
Explanation: