1. Rank Size Rule And Primate Cities
AP HUG

2. Objective
To understand what the Rank Size Rule is and the pattern that it tries to outline

3. Directions
Independently: read Ch 13 H in your books and complete a Concepts and Notes Sheet
Independently: Review the Notes Section of these PPT slides to review what you have read in the book.
Independently or in Partners: Complete the practice slides found in this packet.

4. Notes Slides

5. Rank Size Rule
This is an attempt to find a numerical relationship between population size of settlements within an area such as a country or county
Settlements are ranked in descending order of population size, with the largest city first

6. Assumptions
The 2nd ranked city will have 1/2 the population of the 1st
The 3rd ranked city will have 1/3 population of the 1st
The 4th ranked city will have a ¼ population of the 1st ranked city

7. Example The largest city has a population of 1,000,000
The 2nd largest city: 1,000,000/2= 500,000
The 3rd city: 1,000,000/3= 333,333
The 4th city: 1,000,000/4= 250,000
And so on….

8. Formula This allows us to express the rank size rule as:
Pn= Pl /n (or R)
Pn= The population of the City
Pl= The population of the largest city
N (or R)= The rank size of the city

9. Primate City
This is found where the largest city (often the capital) completely dominates a country or region
The population size will be many times greater than that of the 2nd or 3rd city

10. Example of Primate City: Buenos Aires, Argentina
Populations in thousands:
Buenos Aires: 10,990
Cordoba:
Rosario:
Mendoza:
La Plata:
San Miguel de Tucuman: 622

11. Binary Distribution
Occurs where there are 2 very large cities of almost equal size within the same country. One may be the capital and the other a major port or industrial centre
Examples: Spain- Barcelona and Madrid

12. Exceptions to the rule
Rank size rule is more likely to operate in a country that is developed or urbanized for a long time and is:
Large in size
Stable economic and political organisation
Primate distribution is likely to occur in countries that are small, less developed and only recently urbanised

13. Work on your own or in partners to practice what you have learned
Practice Slides

14. practice
If a country conforms to Rank Size Rule, fill in the population chart below:
City A 250,000
City B ? __________________
City C ? __________________
City D ? __________________
City E ? __________________

15. Primate City or Rank Size Rule? Austria (Circle One)
Vienna 1,691,468
Linz-Wels-Steyr ,000
Graz ,326
Linz ,162
Salzburg ,269

16. Primate City or Rank Size Rule? Egypt (Circle One)
Cairo 7,734,614
Alexandria 3,811,516
Al Jīzah 2,443,203

17. Rank Size Rule or Primate City? (Circle One)
France 1 Paris 11,293,200 2 Lyon 1,665,700 3 Marseille 1,532,400 4 Toulouse 975,000 5 Nice 943,000

18. Rank Size Rule or Primate City? (Circle One)
England 1 London 7,172,091 2 Birmingham 970,892 3 Leeds 715,404 4 Glasgow 577,869 5 Sheffield 513,234

19. Rank Size Rule or Primate City? (Circle One)
Spain 1 Madrid 5,078,100 2 Barcelona 3,871,400 3 Valencia 1,406,600 4 Sevilla 1,135,600 5 Zaragoza 607,000

20. Rank Size Rule or Primate City? (Circle One)
Japan 1 Tokyo 8,027,500 2 Yokohama 3,552,300 3 Osaka 2,647,000 4 Nagoya 2,258,000 5 Sapporo 1,779,700

21. Rank Size Rule or Primate City? (Circle One)
South Korea Seoul 10,349,312 Pusan 3,678,555 Inch’ŏn 2,628,000 Taegu 2,566,540 Taejŏn 1,475,221

22. Rank Size Rule or Primate City? (Circle One)
Libya Tripoli 1,150,989 Banghāzī 650,629 Mişrātah 386,120 Tarhūnah 210,697 Al Khums 201,943

23. Rank Size Rule or Primate City? (Circle One)
Thailand Bangkok 5,104,476 Samut Prakan 388,920 Mueang Nonthaburi 291,555 Udon Thani 247,231 Chon Buri 219,164

24. Rank Size Rule or Primate City? (Circle One)
Mexico Mexico City 12,294,193 Iztapalapa 1,820,888 Ecatepec 1,806,226 Guadalajara 1,640,589