Beyond the urban hierarchy: rethinking power and dominance in a dynamic settlement system

This chapter offers a critical examination of scholarly perspectives on the spatial organization of settlement systems. We rethink the conventional top-down, hierarchial approach of urban dominance, arguing that the spatial distribution of power among places is a dynamic process that provides a space for the agency of rural and smaller urban places. We reject the notion of an urban-rural binary and recommend that scholars and policymakers employ a lens of independence rather than dependence. This chapter also argues that while settlement systems are comprised of social, economic and political relationships and interdependencies, individual places still matter. People still engage with the challenges of daily life in places, and one’s place of residence still comprises a critical dimension of personal identity. We observe that the agency of individual places is contingent on a combination of their institutional capacity and their relationships with other places in the settlement system.