Cities with at least a million inhabitants in 2006
A 'metropolis' (in
Greek ''μήτηρ'', ''mētēr'' = mother and ''πόλις'', ''pólis'' = city/town) is a big
city,
[1] in most cases with over half a million inhabitants in the city proper, and with a population of at least one million living in its
urban agglomeration.
[2] Big cities belonging to a larger urban agglomeration, but which are not the core of that agglomeration, are not generally considered a metropolis but a part of it. A metropolis is usually a significant
economical,
political and
cultural center for some
country or
region, and an important hub for regional or international connections and communications. The plural of the word is most commonly ''metropolises'', though ''metropoli'' is sometimes used as well.
In a broader sense it refers to the city or state of origin of a
colony (as of
ancient Greece), a city regarded as a center of a specified activity, or a large important city.
Antiquity
In the past, metropolis was the designation for a city or state of origin of a
colony. Many large cities founded by ancient civilizations have been considered important world metropolises of its time due to their large populations and importance. Examples include
Alexandria,
Angkor,
Antioch,
Athens,
Babylon,
Beirut,
Benares,
Byblos,
Cahokia,
Carthage,
Constantinople,
Corinth,
Damascus,
Dholavira,
Ephesus,
Great Zimbabwe,
Harappa,
Jerusalem,
Nanjing,
Nineveh,
Macchu Picchu,
Mohenjo-Daro,
Rome,
Side,
Siracuse,
Tenochtitlan,
Teotihuacan,
Tikal,
Tyre, and
Ur. Some of these ancient metropolises survived until the modern days and are among the
world's oldest continuously inhabited cities.
Etymology and modern usage
The word comes from the
Greek '''metropolis''' ("
mother city"), which is how the
Greek colonies of
antiquity referred to their original cities, with whom they retained cultic and political-cultural connections. The word was used in post-classical
Latin for the chief city of a province, the seat of the government, and in particular ecclesiastically for the seat or see of a
metropolitan bishop to whom
suffragan bishops were responsible. This usage equates the province with the
diocese or
episcopal see.
In modern usage the word is also used for a
metropolitan area, a set of adjacent and interconnected
cities clustered around a major urban center. In this sense "metropolitan" usually means "spanning the whole metropolis" (as in "metropolitan administration"); or "proper of a metropolis" (as in "metropolitan life", and opposed to "
provincial" or "rural").
Global/world city
The concept of a
Global city (or a World city) means a city that has a direct and tangible effect on global affairs through socioeconomic, cultural, and/or political means. The term has become increasingly familiar, because of the rise of
globalization (i.e.,
global finance,
communications, and
travel). An attempt to define and categorize world cities by financial criteria was made by the Globalization and World Cities Study Group & Network (GaWC), based primarily at
Loughborough University in
England. The study ranked cities based on their provision of "advanced producer services" such as
accountancy,
advertising,
finance and
law. The Inventory identifies three levels of world cities and several sub-ranks (''See
World cities ranking'').
A metropolis isn't necessarily a global city, or being one, it could not be among the top ranking due to its standards of living, development, and infrastructures.
London could be considered the first
Global City and modern metropolis in the world.
Local definitions by country
Canada
Statistics Canada defines a
census metropolitan area as one or more adjacent municipalities situated around a major urban core where the urban core has a population of at least 100,000.
[3]
India
In
India, the Census Commission defines a metropolitan city as one having a population of over 4 million.
[4] Mumbai,
Delhi,
Chennai,
Kolkata,
Bangalore,
Hyderabad are the six cities that qualify. Residents of these cities are also entitled to a higher House rent allowance. The figure only applies to the city region and not the conurbation. Now recently Bangalore and Hyderabad are considered Metropolitan cities, due to tremendous development in these cities.
United Kingdom
Various
conurbations in the United Kingdom are considered to be metropolitan areas (see
Metropolitan county). The term 'Metropolis' itself is rarely used.
London is archaically referred to as 'the Metropolis', although in more recent times the term has also been used to describe Bolton by some of its citizens, albeit in a tongue-in-cheek fashion.
United States
In the
United States an
incorporated area or group of areas having a population more than 50,000 is required to have a
metropolitan planning organization in order to facilitate major infrastructure projects and to ensure financial solubility. Thus, a population of 50,000 or greater has been used as a
de facto standard in the United States to define a metropolis. A similar definition is used by the
United States Census Bureau. They define a
metropolitan statistical area as ''at least one urbanized area of 50,000 or more inhabitants''.
Metropole
Main articles: Metropole
Like in the
UK, in
French and
Portuguese language, the
cognate word ''métropole (Fr.)'' / ''metrópole (Port.)'', designates the part of a country near or on the
European continent; in the case of France, this would mean France without its
overseas departments; for Portugal during the
Portuguese Empire period, it used to be common to designate Portugal except its
colonies (the ''Ultramar'').
Gallery
Contemporary metropolises
According to the main definition at the top of this article, worldwide examples of modern-day metropolises by
continent include the cities in the following non-exhaustive list:
Africa
Asia
Eastern Asia
Southern Asia
Southeastern Asia
Western/Central Asia
Europe
Eastern Europe
Northern Europe
Southern Europe
Western Europe
North America
Northern America
Middle America
South America
Oceania
Notes and references
1. [1] ''The United Nations has set up its own classifications scheme: a "big city" is a locality with 500,000 or more inhabitants; a "city" is a locality with 100,000 or more inhabitants; an "urban locality" is a locality with 20,000 or more inhabitants; a "rural locality" is a locality with less than 20,000 inhabitants...'', Sociumas magazine. Retrieved 15 July 2006.
2. [2] ''A full member is either a capital city or a city with more than one million inhabitants'', City Mayors: Metropolis World Congress. Retrieved 15 July 2006.
See also
★
Cottonopolis
★
Ecopolis (city)
★
Ecumenopolis
★
Ekistics
★
Global city
★
Large Cities Climate Leadership Group
★
List of cities by population
★
List of metropolitan areas by population
★
List of megalopoleis
★
World largest cities
★
Megacity
★
Megalopolis
★
Metropolis (film)
External links
★
'U.S. Census Bureau': ''About Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistics''
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