Morphogenesis of Regional Systems

Abstract

The most famous model of regional structure is the concentric ring model of von Thunen (1826) based on linear transportation costs, in a homogeneous plane, with a single urban market center. Subsequently this model was expanded by Christaller (1935) and Losch (1940) to multiple market centers of different sizes and different commodities, while still assuming linear transportation costs on a homogeneous plane. For both Christaller and Losch the shape of a market area around a single center for a single commodity will be a hexagon. Thus the general structure of a regional hierarchy, based on a set of market areas for different commodities, will be a nested (Christaller) or overlapping (Lösch) set of hexagons.

“And if you share my personal taste, watch out especially for the breaks in continuity, the frontier zones. Be alert to the moment when the shape or the materials of the roofs change, or when the wells have a different structure (a revealing but rarely-noticed piece of evidence).” Fernand Braudel, 1986, The Identity of France, p. 51